Aviation subcommittee to continue feasibility work, schedule site visits to peer programs

The school committee received an update on Aug. 11 from the aviation subcommittee, which has met twice since being established earlier in the spring and plans further work and site visits this fall to study whether to launch an aviation program at Greater New Bedford VocTech. The subcommittee reported it will meet next Thursday and hopes to schedule visits to Westfield Tech and Greater Lawrence in late September or early October.

A subcommittee member described Westfield Tech as a mature program sited adjacent to the Westfield Airport and said Greater Lawrence is launching an exploratory class this fall; those site visits are intended to give committee members first-hand information about facilities, program structure and operational challenges. The administration and committee also noted participation from airport-affiliated volunteers and businesspeople, including Chris Cunningham, Rick Arruccio, Mike Kanabe and Michael Joseph Ek, who have been described as pilots and businesspeople contributing ideas to program planning.

The subcommittee did not request immediate action; members said the final feasibility report will be presented to the full committee in October as previously scheduled.