Hosanna House and Aerium launch new aviation education program
For two years, Hosanna House has featured an exhibit to honor the Tuskegee Airmen at its Center for Aviation Technology and Training Museum.
On Thursday evening in Forest Hills, the community came together to honor the history of aviation while also celebrating a new program to find the aviators of the future.
In coordination with Aerium, an aviation non-profit organization based in Johnstown, Hosanna House hosted Hope Takes Flight, spotlighting stories of local aviation and opportunity. The museum exhibit was featured, paying tribute to the men who comprised the first unit of Black military fighter pilots in U.S. history.
In addition, a new program was introduced that offers children and adults the opportunity to attend classes and pursue Federal Aviation Administration certification as drone pilots.
Sean White, a pilot for Delta Airlines with 15 years of experience, praised the event and the opportunity it provides for young people who aspire to take to the skies.
"Opportunity has to meet you where you are," White said. "People have to know, kids have to know what they're capable of, not just by what their parents do or what they see on TV."
White said seeing a movie about the Tuskegee Airmen was the inspiration he was given to become a pilot, and says the new program will provide both education and inspiration.
"It influenced me because I didn't know I could be a pilot," White said. "When that movie came out and when I went to the Air Force base, that was all I needed to know."
Leon Haynes, Hosanna House's founding CEO, said the program was aimed at bringing the history of the Tuskegee Airmen to both young and old alike.
"We don't want to forget about any history," he said. "American history is Black history, is all history. And so our goal is to make sure we're communicating that and making it available for all people from all walks of life."
Through a partnership with the Smithsonian and the Children's Museum, Hosanna House has been able to create a traveling museum exhibit that has been in more than a dozen American cities and visited by more than 260,000 children and families.
The Part 107 drone certification program has already been implemented in two schools in the region and has been in four other schools previously. Starting May 2, adults 18 and older can participate in a 12-week hybrid program to prepare for the FAA Part 107 exam, receive hands-on drone flight and simulator training and learn skills that can lead to long-term career opportunities. There is also a year-long program available for students under 18.
"The first natural partner was Hosanna House," said Glenn Ponas, Aerium's executive director. "Leon and I have known each other on and off for the last 35 years. We've come up together through the ranks in our own respective fields, and the work that Leon and the team at Hosanna House has been doing here, with respect to aviation workforce development, has been spectacular."