RICHMOND HEIGHTS— Fifth grade students in Richmond Heights are helping to break ground on their future— which happens to be a new multi-million-dollar community learning center.
- An aviation program will be set up at the high school with full flight simulators
- It’s part of a $26 million building project
- The new community learning center will open in 2021
While it's been a long time in the making, this will be the home to a host of things, including a new middle and high school, community center and a branch of a public library.
But added to that will be an aviation program at the high school—something Richmond Heights Superintendent Renee Willis is excited about.
“By the time this building is built with an aviation classroom, which we had already designated, we are also gonna be able to outfit that with full flight simulators,” said Willis.
Willis believes the program will spark an interest and open the doors of opportunity, especially for minority students.
“Drone aviation, aerospace technicians, atmosphere engineers… so all of the fields around aviation which our students don’t have exposure to, this will give them the exposure to at least experience something they probably hadn’t thought of,” said Willis.
88 percent of the students at Richmond Heights are African American.
Today, minorities make up only three percent of the aviation workforce in the U.S.
When classes start at the school, students will soon be soaring to new heights.
"The course initially would be done via distance learning. We have through the grant the ability to purchase the large screens and all of the equipment necessary to do the distance learning through Kent State," said Willis.
Currently, there are a handful of high school aviation programs across Ohio, many of which focus on air traffic control, pilot training, and meteorology.
But Willis and others are excited because Richmond Heights will focus on aeronautics and drones.
And they'll do it with the help of a three-year, $700,000 grant from the Ohio Department of Education through state’s expanding opportunities and career pathways division.
Dr. Willis is hoping that they'll develop new partnerships, so that they can continue the program.
“The curriculum consortium that we belong to, Excel Tech, does not have an aviation program. So, it’s also a thought that at the end of our three years when we’re looking for sustainability, we’ll be able to continue this program through the Excel Tech career consortium,” Willis said.
As the Community Learning Center takes on wings of its' own, Willis says at a certain point they want to be able to make their aviation program accessible to others in Northeast Ohio, since there aren't many in that part of the state.
In the meantime, those fifth-grade students who helped to break ground will be some of the first ones to take part in it if they choose...as the new learning center is set to open in 2021.
Although there is a heavy focus on aviation, a makerspace for manufacturing will also be created.
They hope both of these will help supply the high demand workers in these two areas. Richmond Heights is currently partnering with Kent Aspen Aerospace Alliance, and Cuyahoga County Regional Airport.