Dayton Business Journal: Wright State students prepare for take-off

Wright State University serves as an anchor institution to Ohio’s largest single-site employer, Wright-Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB), growing an alliance that provides students with opportunities to train and learn in the defense field before graduating.

In June, Wright State announced the launch of an aviation degree at the university. Through the degree, students will prepare for careers as flight instructors or airline pilots through technical training and skill enhancement.

Unlike students at other Ohio universities often placed on waitlists before they can fly a plane, Wright State students who meet certain criteria will be able to fly a plane during their first semester in the aviation program.

The program goes hand-in-hand with Wright State’s growing efforts and close affiliation with the nearby WPAFB. Wright State continues to evolve its academic programs to ensure they are reflective of the needs of WPAFB, along with other Dayton-area defense-related companies.

“Because nearly 80% of Wright State’s graduates remain in Ohio, Wright State is a critical element of the workforce pipeline for Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, defense contractors and local non-defense related companies,” said Amy Thompson, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs.

Thompson said degree programs such as the bachelor’s and master’s degree in materials science and engineering; human factors engineering; and aerospace systems engineering were developed to address the needs of the growing defense sector.

The school offers numerous courses and degrees that have strong tie-ins to aerospace and defense, ranging in all subjects. Wright State’s College of Science and Mathematics offers courses such as research on toxins impacting servicemen and human-machine interaction, along with supporting the Wright-Patterson Medical Center laboratory science infrastructure.

The desire to closely align with WPAFB and other defense-related firms stems from the want to provide Wright State graduates with higher economic mobility and to prepare them to contribute to the betterment of the community.

“Wright State University is committed to being an anchor institution of higher education for its neighbor Wright-Patterson Air Force Base by educating the next generation of workforce for the base and the Dayton region,” said Sue Edwards, WSU president. “The role of higher education in the defense sector is valuable and unique because it sits at the intersection of cutting-edge research and workforce development. Wright State’s continued enrollment growth means we can prepare more career-ready graduates for WPAFB and defense-related companies.”

There’s no set data on how many Wright State graduates join the defense sector every year, but the nearby base continues to grow its presence around campus.

A 2022 agreement that provided Air Force Research Laboratory researchers space in Wright State’s Neuroscience Engineering Collaboration building has been built upon to expand the presence of WPAFB personnel on campus. The 88th Air Base Wing — which includes all Wright-Patterson Air Force Base mission partners — and Wright State have developed a license agreement that opens the entire Dayton campus to Wright-Patt personnel, “enhancing opportunities for collaborative research, increased innovation and more opportunities for students,” according to Edwards.

Looking ahead, the university plans to establish a Center for Aerospace Medicine and Human Performance, along with an aerospace medicine residency in the Boonshoft School of Medicine to enhance its research relationship with the 711th Human Performance Wing.

Read the complete article at bizjournals.com/dayton.