’s College of Aeronautics and Engineering opened a new building expansion this fall after a record-breaking enrollment year for the flight school.
WFMJ-TV in Youngstown, Ohio, recently produced two segments about the school’s record enrollment and what it means for the industry.
Christina Bloebaum, Ph.D., dean of the College of Aeronautics and Engineering at Kent State, told WFMJ-TV about the new building and how the pilot shortage is affecting enrollment.
“This is a field that is going to continue to grow for quite a few years,” Bloebaum said. “We do have a shortage across all of aviation. This is not only pilots but also the maintenance personnel, the air traffic controllers, and the airport management folks across the entire industry. All of our engineering and engineering technology programs, every single one of them, is directly relevant to supporting the aviation industry.”
In a separate interview, Brian Neff, assistant dean of flight and operations at Kent State, told WFMJ-TV about the renovations to the airport runway and employment opportunities for flight students that will be offered on campus.
“We’ll have several events that will allow our students to meet the airlines, talk to them, see if it’s an airline that they are looking to go to in the future,” Neff said. “And then, while they’re still students here, they can actually interview for that job.”
Learn more about the College of Aeronautics and Engineering.