Vocational Norman Technology Center Vocational Technology Institute launches new program for aircraft trainees with its eyes on the growing government industry.
The Institute of Vocational Technology is developing its first aerospace technician program, which will open in the fall of 2023. The 18-month program will teach students the basics required to receive a certificate, such as an airport and power generator.
“We are thrilled to be able to provide much-needed flight training to the local community,” said MNTC Superintendent Brian Rutman. Together we can help grow the local economy and build a better tomorrow for students.
The process takes approximately six months to implement the program. Lee Doe, director of MNT Aerospace and Transportation, said the technology center is in the process of developing licensed air conditioning and power mechanics to be recognized by the Federal Aviation Administration.
He said that on the spot, a teacher, the institute’s plans have been prepared and a list of tools is ready and they are working on a course curriculum, but FAA recognition is needed before they can move forward.
Doug said the program will only be adult to begin with, adding that the University will eventually test a “Choose Aerospace” program that will allow high school students to go through the entire curriculum of the program and take the A&P course. They graduated.
“Maintenance technicians are needed in the aviation industry,” Dow said. And what we do – we go out in the community, in the metro, or in the state, and we fill that void for employment.
The first campus for the flight program will be MNTC on Franklin Avenue, but Dow said there may be plans for short-term courses on 12th Avenue Northwest and Pennsylvania Avenue campuses. .
While the COVID-19 epidemic may slow growth in some areas of the state’s economy, the Oklahoma Department of Commerce’s Aerospace + Defense Economic Development Report highlights how the state continues to draw in more aviation and defense companies.
According to the transcript, companies in the sector generated a total of 1,177 new jobs by 2020, with an average annual salary of more than $ 86,000, investment obligations to the state, and $ 35 million worth of defense contracts.
As Europe continues to grow as a fast-growing industry in the state, Norman Chamber General Manager Scott Martin said the city is desperate to bring the economy to Norman.
“Some expect the state to become a major industry in the next few years, and Norman will play a key role in helping that economy enter the next decade,” Martin said.
Citing the relatively central location between Will Rogers World Airport, Tanker Air Base, Max Westhem Airport and Oklahoma City Metro, the establishment of the Down program at MNC will provide a great opportunity not only for the towns of Moors. And Norman, but also the whole of Cleveland County.
“The biggest return on investment for the economy is in the aviation industry,” he said.
He said the fall of 2023 was the starting point for the program, but that the CVD-19 epidemic had delayed the entire process and continued to affect the development of the program.
He said the agency will continue to work with all stakeholders to monitor the impact of the global epidemic in the hope that it will meet that deadline.
“We are known not only for doing things but also for doing things right,” Dow said. That goes from educational institutions to education, and we want to be the best in the state for aviation.
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