Cooperative Agreement 69A3352450002

AS HARRISBURG UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY (HU) LOOKS TO CONTINUE THE SUCCESS ESTABLISHED PROMOTING AND EXPANDING UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS (UAS) CREDENTIALING AND KNOWLEDGE, THIS AIRCRAFT PILOTS WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT GRANT (AWD) (ASSISTANCE LISTING NUMBER 20.111) APPLICATION SEEKS THE FUNDING NECESSARY TO EXPAND OUR OFFERINGS BOTH GEOGRAPHICALLY AND VIA ADDITIONAL CAREER APPLICATIONS. THE WORK THAT HU, AN INSTITUTION OF HIGHER EDUCATION ACCREDITED THROUGH THE MIDDLE STATES COMMISSION ON HIGHER EDUCATION, PROPOSES TO COMPLETE FALLS UNDER BOTH ELIGIBILITY CATEGORIES. IT WILL CREATE AND DELIVER CURRICULUM DESIGNED TO PROVIDE HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS WITH MEANINGFUL AVIATION EDUCATION TO PREPARE STUDENTS TO BECOME UNMANNED AIRCRAFT SYSTEMS OPERATORS, AS WELL AS SUPPORTING THE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF TEACHERS. WITH A COURSE ESTABLISHING THE BASELINE KNOWLEDGE FOR THE SUCCESSFUL COMPLETION OF THE FAA PART 107 REMOTE PILOT CERTIFICATE ALREADY CREATED, HU HAS GAINED FEEDBACK ON THE NEEDS OF HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS AND THEIR STUDENTS. HU WILL TAKE THIS FEEDBACK AND 1. ALTER OUR DELIVERY METHOD TO MAKE IT MORE CONVENIENT FOR HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS TO GAIN THEIR REMOTE PILOT CERTIFICATE AND BECOME VETTED TO TEACH THE CREDIT-BEARING COURSES 2. EXPAND OUR EXISTING UAS CURRICULUM TO NEW GEOGRAPHIES VIA A GROWING NETWORK OF INSTITUTIONS AND 3. EXPAND THE CURRICULUM TO INCLUDE CAREER-SPECIFIC, UAS COURSES THAT TEACHERS WANT THEIR STUDENTS TO HAVE EXPOSURE TO DRONES FOR FORENSICS AND DRONES FOR AGRICULTURE. THE PREVIOUSLY SUCCESSFUL TRAIN-THE-TRAINER METHODOLOGY WILL BE USED TO ENSURE THAT ACCURATE CURRICULUM IS BEING TAUGHT WITHIN ALL OUR PARTNER SCHOOLS AND THAT OVER TIME, MANY STUDENTS GAIN LICENSURE. HOWEVER, INSTEAD OF HAVING THE HIGH SCHOOL TEACHERS COME TO HU FOR A WEEK, ALL COURSES ARE GOING TO BE OFFERED IN A HYBRID FORMAT, WHERE HU TRAVELS TO THE PARTNER SCHOOLS FOR A HALF-DAY, HANDS-ON TRAINING SESSION AND THE REST OF THE CONTENT DELIVERED ONLINE. THE FEEDBACK WE HAVE RECEIVED INDICATES THAT THIS ELIMINATION OF TRAVEL WILL LEAD TO AN INCREASE IN TEACHERS TAKING AND TEACHING THE COURSE, AND THEREFORE, A GREATER NUMBER OF LICENSED STUDENTS.SINCE THE INCEPTION OF THE AWD GRANT THAT HU WAS FIRST AWARDED IN 2022, HU HAS FORMED PARTNERSHIPS WITH ADDITIONAL SCHOOL DISTRICTS. CURRENTLY, HU HAS ESTABLISHED CONNECTIONS TO OVER 90 DIFFERENT DISTRICTS MANY OF WHICH HAVE MULTIPLE SCHOOLS. WITH A PROVEN TRACK RECORD, COUPLED WITH THE NEW DELIVERY METHOD, WE BELIEVE THAT WE CAN IMPLEMENT THE EXISTING PART 107 REMOTE PILOT CERTIFICATION COURSE (REFERRED TO AS GSTC 107) WITHIN AN ADDITIONAL 30 SCHOOLS. IF EACH SCHOOL HAD 5 STUDENTS TAKE THE COURSE DURING THE 2024 2025 SCHOOL YEAR, 100 STUDENTS WOULD BE CERTIFIED AFTER A SINGLE OFFERING. OVER THE COURSE OF 5 YEARS, 1,000 STUDENTS COULD BECOME CERTIFIED.WHILE IT IS CRITICAL TO ENSURE THAT WE ARE TRAINING NEW, CERTIFIED REMOTE PILOTS, WE ALSO BELIEVE IT IS IMPORTANT TO RESPOND TO THE FEEDBACK THAT WE HAVE RECEIVED FROM OUR PARTNER SCHOOLS, WHO ARE CURRENTLY TEACHING OR PREPARING TO TEACH, PROSPECTIVE DRONE PILOTS. ONE OF THE MOST COMMON ELEMENTS OF THE FEEDBACK RECEIVED IS THAT THE TEACHERS WOULD LIKE THE PART 107 CURRICULUM TO BE FOCUSED ON SPECIFIC CAREER PATHS. CURRENTLY, GSTC 107 GIVES STUDENTS AN INTRODUCTION TO GEOSPATIAL TECHNOLOGY AND BUSINESS APPLICATIONS, BUT HU SEEKS TO EXPAND THIS OFFERING TO INCLUDE OTHER CAREER APPLICATIONS. WHILE GSTC 107 WILL REMAIN THE SAME IN TERMS OF THE CONTENT COVERED, HU SEEKS TO DEVELOP 2 NEW COURSES WHICH WILL BE 1-CREDIT COURSES. PER FEEDBACK RECEIVED, AND THE FACT THAT MANY OF OUR PARTNER SCHOOLS HAVE EITHER FORENSICS OR AGRICULTURE PROGRAMS, OR ELEMENTS OF THOSE TWO SUBJECT AREAS WITHIN BROADER COURSES, HU WILL DESIGN, DEVELOP, AND ADMINISTER THESE TWO COURSES THAT FOCUS ON UAS APPLICATIONS WITHIN THOSE 2 FIELDS. PARTNERING WITH HU ON THIS COURSE DEVELOPMENT WILL BE CUMBERLAND COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEYS FORENSICS DEPARTMENT AND CARWOOD FARM.