Paul Aziz has been an educator since he began teaching SCUBA diving in 1991. He holds a Master’s degree in Environmental Education and a Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration.  He has taught field marine ecology from the elementary school level to the graduate school level. Paul has also been a U.S.C.G. licensed captain since 1995, and he currently holds a 100 ton master’s license. 

Paul’s boating experience includes piloting commercial and private sailing vessels from Maine to the Caribbean, as well as six years operating a fleet of commercial towing and salvage vessels for the Boat/U.S. network.  Before taking over the Yankee Clipper in 2006, Paul was co-owner and captain of Ninth Wave Sailing Charters, where he taught marine ecology, sailing, and environmental education to the young and young-at-heart aboard a 48 foot sailing catamaran.

Janet Allen-Aziz is a life long proponent of outdoor education as a means to raise healthy families.  The proud mother of six children, Jan is a veteran of eight marathons and many Outward Bound programs. When Jan isn’t aboard the Yankee Clipper, she teaches Bikram yoga, and she’s also certified to teach Childlight Children’s Yoga. 

Jan’s artistic flair and passion for education is evidenced all over the Yankee Clipper in the children’s activities. Jan is highly motivated to give children positive alternatives to the sedentary media-type forms of entertainment which contribute to obesity, heart disease, and other health problems.

Paul and Jan’s vision for the Yankee Clipper when they purchased it in 2006 was to transform the business into a family-friendly, educational platform from which they could further their environmental goals. Their aim is to teach the community about the importance of protecting the magnificent natural resources in the ocean and in our own back yard. Their eco-tours of Newburyport Harbor and the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge are very popular with both local residents and tourists, and now they can offer young children a comprehensive, multidisciplinary field experience geared toward turning the students of today into the environmental stewards of tomorrow.

John Halloran is a lifelong educator who has been at the forefront of the experiential education movement in the United States since the 1970’s. For 36 years, he taught natural science in the Newburyport Public Schools, and is currently completing a Ph.D. in Environmental Studies. John has a special interest and expertise in teacher training and standards for learning in math and science. In 1980 John founded Adventure Learning, a company which is actively involved with educational outreach in area schools and recreational programs for teens and adults. He has also lead and taught for Outward Bound.

Since 2005 John has served both on the Board of Directors and also as Science Education Director of the Gulf of Maine Institute, where he helps to create awareness in students about issues that affect their communities, helps them to create projects that address these issues, and teaches them the civic engagement skills to seek solutions. John is also a U.S.C.G. licensed captain, and he continues to lead kayaking, sailing, and mountaineering expeditions in Alaska, Central and South America, Africa, New Zealand, Antarctica, and Europe.