With over 157 STEM Outreach Representatives signed up at the Aeronautical Center to participate in events that encourage young people to consider an aerospace or aviation a career, the future is bright for many young Oklahomans. Each month, Jamie Loving, the Aeronautical Center’ STEM Outreach Program Manager provides STEM-related tours or participates in STEM-related events on behalf of the Center, reaching hundreds of students of all ages each month.
In May, the Oklahoma Aeronautics Commission (OAC) awarded over $500,000 to 72 school districts and camps in Oklahoma through the Aerospace & Aviation Education Grant Program. The Aeronautical Center and the True Sky Foundation received support from the OAC to host the 2024 Aviation Career Education (ACE) Camp. For 17 years this camp has been a hallmark event for the Center’s STEM AVSED Program, and volunteers have experienced first-hand many students who have chosen aviation as a career field because of their participation in this camp.
We are looking forward to hosting the camp again next year, continuing this aviation legacy, and fulfilling our mission to educate students about the key role that air transportation plays in improving the economic and social life of all Americans. If you are interested in learning more about this click here: KOCO News Article & Video
Over the past few months, STEM Outreach activities have been multiplying with events being held across the city and state.
On National Aviation & Aerospace Day, August 19th, FAA’s STEM outreach representatives around the nation partnered with child-care centers across the agency to provide aviation-related activities that inspire the youth of tomorrow. At the MMAC, Jamie Loving and Sunday Hickerson visited a Pre-K class. They read the story ’High Flying Helicopters’ to fifteen future aviation experts, who in turn, assembled their own paper helicopters to spin around the room.
On August 26, employees from the MMAC’s Quality Systems & Business Resources Staff (AMC-3) and the FAA’s FAASTeam traveled to Woodward, Oklahoma to participate in the Third Annual Thunderbird Drone Festival. Over 300 attendees explored drone flight and safety through seminars, demonstrations, and STEM activities for all ages. The public event kicked off on Friday, August 25 with a drone film festival and light show, featuring 50 drones which were programmed to move in time with music. During the festival, visitors had a chance to fly drones both through drone simulators and in reality inside of the Drone Corral. Representatives from the FAASTeam presented breakout sessions about Understanding the Basics of the Drone License Program - Part 107 - and Recreational Drone Operations. AMC-3 hosted a booth to discuss aviation careers in Oklahoma while including a hands-on Air Traffic Control PRACTICE simulation and a table-top flight simulator.
On August 31, AMC-3 representatives participated in STEAM Night at the Oklahoma History Center. This event focused on hands-on activities to help provide K-12 students and their families a history lesson about STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Mathematics) in Oklahoma. Over 150 people attended the event. Representatives talked to students about what aviation is and the presented a summary of different aviation careers that are represented right here in Oklahoma at the Mike Monroney Aeronautical Center. Attending families had an opportunity to explore Air Traffic Control, using the PRACTICE simulation and they had a chance to virtually fly an aircraft using a tabletop flight simulator.
