Grad student protects waterways in Coast Guard

Sasha Queary knows about service.

The University of Louisville online Master of Science in Human Resources and Organizational Development student is a lieutenant in the United States Coast Guard. Serving at Sector Ohio Valley in Louisville as chief of the investigations division, she is responsible for overseeing the response to marine casualties in an area covering over 3,000 miles of navigable waterways on 12 major rivers.

Originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Queary has served in the Coast Guard since 2014. She began her career in the Prevention Field at Marine Safety Unit Texas City as an apprentice marine inspector. Queary also served in Marine Safety Unit Chicago where she was the assistant chief of the inspections division, and at Hampton Roads Recruiting Office in Chesapeake, Virginia, as an officer trainee.

Queary says her career highlight was serving in the Houston area in 2017 during Hurricane Harvey relief and recovery operations. She was directly responsible for ensuring that ports reopened safely and timely with minimal impact to commerce. Despite the long hours and complex operations, she also dedicated off-duty personal time to help rebuild homes and restore damaged communities.

She started at UofL in spring 2022. Although there were many factors in her choosing UofL, she said the school's academic reputation and variety of majors/programs were at the top of her list. She also appreciated that UofL is military friendly. 

With an expected graduation in December 2023, Sasha intends to use her degree continuing to serve as part of the Coast Guard’s recruiting mission. After retirement from the Coast Guard, she plans to use the knowledge, skills and qualifications learned in the program as a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion advocate in the private sector or academia.

Aug 4, 2023, is the 233rd birthday of the U.S. Coast Guard and its precursors, the Revenue Marine, the Revenue Cutter Service and the U.S. Life Saving Service.