Capt. Tuuli Messer-Bookman grew up aboard wooden sailboats in picturesque Sausalito, California. Her parents, both teachers, lived aboard for over thirty years. In 1986, Tuuli graduated from the United States Merchant Marine Academy at Kings Point, New York. After several years of working as a ship’s officer aboard commercial cargo ship, she earned her U.S. Coast Guard unlimited tonnage master’s license. She has sailed over 300,000 sea miles as a merchant marine officer. She returned to school and earned her law degree at the University of San Francisco, School of Law. She is currently a tenured, full professor in the Marine Transportation Department of the California Maritime Academy, a campus of the California State University System. She teaches all aspects of navigation and is the lead instructor for U.S. Coast Guard license exam preparation for the Academy’s senior cadets. She also evaluates and trainscadets for navigational watch standing in the Academy’s state-of-the-art full-mission ship simulator.