The most significant thing I've seen has been the level of participation.

Our best accomplishment so far is participation. We had so many competitive elections for the 10 at-large seats.

Most of the roundtables have been wrapped up in by-laws, but are now moving ahead into substantive stuff and talking about issues. The danger is that the procedural stuff will turn some people off. During the next month or two months, we'll be making the shift from talking about rules and choosing leadership to how we work in a collaborative manner.

They have consistently attended the meetings and when there has been discussion about alternates, they've rejected them. They volunteered for the job and are serious about the role they play.

Ratings on Horizon Lines reflect its aggressive financial profile, modest financial flexibility, participation in the capital-intensive and competitive shipping industry, and an aging fleet.

This is not a trend we are seeing at Hopkins, in fact our alumni participation has actually increased over the past three years.