Ensign Silas Wisehart, a born-and-raised Virgin Islander, graduated with a bachelor of science degree in management from the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, New London, CT.
Wisehart is excited about his first assignment as a Deck Watch Officer on Coast Guard Cutter Melvin Bell, a new Sentinel Class Cutter Boston, MA, named after a native Hawaiian retired Coast Guard Master Chief Melvin Kealoha Bell, the first master chief of color, and the first electronics technician master chief.
Named after Coast Guard enlisted heroes, the new class of cutters are delivering vital operational capabilities to the Department of Homeland Security U.S. Coast Guard to meet the service’s needs in the coastal zone and adjacent waters. According to a Coast Guard website, crews facilitated hundreds of domestic fisheries inspections at sea, apprehended 105 suspected drug smugglers, interdicted 18,877 kilograms of cocaine – depriving transnational criminal organizations of $787 million in profits – and rescued or interdicted 1,805 irregular maritime migrants during the fiscal year 2023.
Wisehart’s career has been on a steady course and includes a year at the Coast Guard Academy Scholars Program at Marion Military Institute, AL, and temporary duty assignments on CGC Eagle, New London, CT; CGC Elm, Astoria, OR; CGC Healy, Seattle, WA; CGC Maurice Jester, Boston, MA, and Coast Guard Station St. Petersburg, FL.
Asked for a few words of advice for students thinking about a military academy education and career, Wisehart responded, “Virgin Islanders are underrepresented in what is a great opportunity to excel at a military academy, achieve a degree, and pursue a career.”
Wisehart is a graduate of V.I. Montessori School and Peter Gruber International Academy in 2018 and the son of St. Thomas residents Lisa and Ryan Wisehart.
Founded in 1876, the U.S. Coast Guard Academy has a tradition as one of the finest and most selective colleges in America. The smallest of the five federal service academies, the Coast Guard provides a four-year bachelor of science program with a full scholarship for each individual. Unlike the other federal service academies, however, there are no congressional appointments.
