The initial kinetic energy of the boat and its rider is

After Sam stops it, the final kinetic energy of the boat+rider is

because its final velocity is zero.
For the law of conservation of energy, the work done by Sam is the variation of kinetic energy of the system:

where the negative sign is due to the fact that the force Sam is applying goes against the direction of motion of the boat.
The answer is d I took the test
Yes. It means that the acceleration increases at a constant rate, for example 3 mph every second.