Thomas Michael McAlpin (born 1959 in Miami, Florida

Miami, Florida

Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625...

) is the former president of Disney Cruise Line

Disney Cruise Line

Disney Cruise Line is an American cruise line company owned and operated by Walt Disney Parks and Resorts, a division of The Walt Disney Company and is headquartered in Celebration, Florida. The business is run by President Karl Holz. Disney Cruise Line operates the Disney Cruise Line Terminal,...

. McAlpin resigned in 2009 “to pursue other interests”. McAlpin was with the company for 13 years and was replaced by former President of New Vacation Operations, Karl Holz. McAlpin oversaw two cruise ship

Cruise ship

A cruise ship or cruise liner is a passenger ship used for pleasure voyages, where the voyage itself and the ship's amenities are part of the experience, as well as the different destinations along the way...

s, the Disney Magic

Disney Magic

The Disney Magic is a cruise ship operated by the Disney Cruise Line, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company. Its sister, the Disney Wonder, was launched in 1999....

and Disney Wonder

Disney Wonder

Disney Wonder is the second cruise ship operated by Disney Cruise Line; it was launched in 1999. It is nearly identical in construction to its sister ship, Disney Magic. Both ships have 11 public decks, can accommodate 2,400 passengers in 875 staterooms, and have a crew of approximately 950. ...

, along with Disney's private Island Castaway Cay

Castaway Cay

'Castaway Cay' is a private island in the Bahamas which serves as an exclusive port for the Disney Cruise Line ships Disney Wonder, Disney Magic, Disney Dream, and Disney Fantasy. It is located near Great Abaco Island, and was formerly known as Gorda Cay...

.

He joined the business when it was founded in 1994 as vice president of finance, business development and shoreside travel operations. During the creation of Disney Cruise Line, McAlpin was responsible for planning the first two ships and negotiating the contracts for Castaway Cay. McAlpin is a veteran of the cruise ship industry and joined DCL after being director of corporate and financial planning for Royal Caribbean Cruises.

McAlpin is also a member of the national board of the Make-A-Wish Foundation

Make-A-Wish Foundation

The Make-A-Wish Foundation is a 501 non-profit organization founded in the United States that grants wishes to children who have life-threatening medical conditions. The charity now operates in forty-seven countries around the world through thirty-six affiliate offices.The president & CEO of this...

.

A graduate of Florida State University

Florida State University

The Florida State University is a space-grant and sea-grant public university located in Tallahassee, Florida, United States. It is a comprehensive doctoral research university with medical programs and significant research activity as determined by the Carnegie Foundation...

, McAlpin earned an M.B.A. from the University of Miami

University of Miami

The University of Miami is a private, non-sectarian university founded in 1925 with its main campus in Coral Gables, Florida, a medical campus in Miami city proper at Civic Center, and an oceanographic research facility on Virginia Key., the university currently enrolls 15,629 students in 12...

in 1990. He lives in Orlando, Florida.