SEATTLE, Wash. (Sept. 14, 2016) – During its 57th annual meeting, held in Seattle Wash., Sept. 11-14, 2016, the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators (NASBLA) recognized Sgt. Jim Shelton with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, Law Enforcement Division as the regional Boating Educator of the Year, as selected by the Southern Caucus States.
Generously sponsored by BoaterExam.com, the Boating Educator of the Year Award was launched by NASBLA in 2011 to recognize those who go above to engage students and boaters, raise awareness, and make boating education initiatives relevant, thorough and exciting.
Sgt. Jim Shelton has been employed with the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement Division for over 19 years and has worked particularly hard during the past year to meet the needs of the boating public. Sgt. Shelton is assigned to the Law Enforcement Education Section in Region 4 as an Education Coordinator in Charleston, Berkley, Georgetown, and Horry County.
As a Regional Coordinator, Sgt. Shelton taught 12 Boater Education classes in his assigned area and gave 95 public presentations. In addition to teaching boating classes, he is an active member of the Boating Safety Action Force, a boating saturation team that travels to high traffic waterways across South Carolina between Memorial Day and Labor Day.
In 2015, the Law Enforcement Education Section developed a Boating Simulator Trailer in partnership with Pioneer Boats. This new simulator trailer incorporates a Boating Safety Virtual Trainer computer system into a real boat hull and console. The larger wide screen TVs surrounding the center console bring the simulation to life in a way that computer monitors on a table cannot. This combined with the enclosed nature of the trailer pulls the student driver into the virtual world of boating. The innovative design of the Boating Simulator Trailer made it a favorite at festivals and events in 2015. Sgt. Shelton quickly became the go-to person for these events such as the Charleston Boat Show, an event that serves as an annual kickoff for the boating season for several thousand people in the Lowcountry of South Carolina. He also was able to successfully incorporate the Boating Simulator into his boating education class so that participants in the class would get to experience some virtual “on the water” training. During 2015, Sgt. Shelton delivered and set up the boating simulator at seven events with over 5,734 people in attendance.
The National Association of State Boating Law Administrators is a national nonprofit organization that works to develop public policy for recreational boating safety. NASBLA represents the recreational boating authorities of all 50 states and the U.S. territories. NASBLA offers a variety of resources, including training, model acts, education standards and publications. Through a national network of thousands of professional educators, law enforcement officers and volunteers, the organization affects the lives of over 76 million American boaters. To learn more about how NASBLA continues to make the waterways safe, secure and enjoyable, visit http://www.nasbla.org.