IAWA Committee Launches Pilot Program That Introduces Aviation To 5th Graders
On May 20, 2021, the Osceola Magnet School In Vero Beach, Florida was the recipient of a pilot program designed by the Aerospace/Manufacturing & MRO Committee of International Aviation Womens Association (IAWA), which is an international non-profit organization for women who hold positions of impact in the aviation and aerospace industry. IAWA brings together women of achievement who Connect, Inspire and Lead. The pilot program’s objective was to introduce aviation to 10-12 year old school children. Through the use of a short animated movie (Courtesy of Pratt & Whitney) describing the maintenance of an aircraft engine, we created a dialog on what jobs are available in aviation which are not the traditional pilot and flight attendant that children may be familiar with. The interaction was fabulous, the questions were insightful and detailed. The members of the IAWA committee also introduced themselves and explained what their jobs are and what they studied to get to these positions.
The Osceola Magnet School strives to be a model for the state in the areas of Mathematics and Engineering Exploration with the integration of the Arts and Literacy in an engaging, positive and collaborative school community. The concepts of math, science, and technology are used to design and construct products, systems, and environments, to solve problems that people might encounter daily.
We want to thank the teachers Kristen Bruckner, Kathy Cathcart, Brittany Eatman and Kathryn Woodall for welcoming us in their 5th Grade classroom.”
The Committee enjoyed this experience thoroughly and plan to identify more schools to do such a session. The Osceola Magnet School asked IAWA to come back again for the next school year.
The Members of the Americas’ Aerospace/Manufacturing & MRO Committee are:
- Marta Garbayo – Regional VP Customers at Pratt & Whitney
- Maria Martinez – CEO of Aerosense
- Charlotte Vaksman – Director Strategy at Chromalloy
- Brandi Dague – VP Sales & Customer Service – Americas of HEICO
- Sherry Chaput – Owner & CEO of Avion Trace Group
- Deb Santos – retired Boeing executive as honorary member
- Danielle Chaput – AVION Trace Group and STEM School graduate, and provides support in connecting with the children in our initiative
- Caroline Vandedrinck – SVP Business Development at SR Technics and Committee Chair