METRO STATE
FEBRUARY 2010
Where success begins with you
Charting a path for
Colorado’s workforce success
In an era of economic uncertainty and high unemployment
nationally, an educated and skilled workforce is critical to attracting
and keeping more jobs in Colorado, keeping the state on the road
to economic recovery.
Stephen M. Jordan, Ph.D.
The Colorado Department of Labor and Employment reports that the state’s unemployment rate
is significantly below the national average, and the economic outlook for 2010 is better than for
most other states.
Nowhere is that outlook brighter than in Colorado’s aviation and aerospace industries. Colorado’s
aerospace industry is the second-largest space economy in the nation, and the Denver metropolitan
area is the 12th largest in the country for
aviation employment.1
“Metro State graduates come to Jeppesen
with values and a work ethic that closely
aligns with our culture and how we do business.” – President and CEO Mark Van Tine
Where do the aviation and aerospace industries
in Colorado turn for skilled, educated workers?
Metropolitan State College of Denver.
Metro State’s Aviation and Aerospace Science
Program is one of the largest in the nation. A
number of unique programs and partnerships enable
the Aviation and Aerospace Science Department
to provide relevant opportunities for its more than 500 students while advising industry and filling vital
workforce needs throughout the state.
Industry partnerships: Faculty expertise and skilled graduates
Industry often turns to Metro State’s Center for Aviation Management Studies for faculty expertise
or student research. Jeppesen, whose world headquarters is in Englewood, recently committed
$10,000 per year to the Center for faculty and students to work on special projects of relevance
to the company or the industry.
Jeppesen supports Colorado’s economy by employing more than 3,000 people. To meet its substantial
workforce needs, Jeppesen routinely relies on Metro State graduates, more than 100 of whom help lead
virtually every aspect of the company’s daily operations. President and CEO Mark Van Tine says, “Metro
State graduates come to Jeppesen with values and a work ethic that closely aligns with our culture and
how we do business.”
Metro State faculty members also lead airport security trainings for the American Association of Airport
Executives, provide aircraft-specific training to commercial airplane pilots, consult with nonprofits on
aviation safety and provide expertise in satellite communication. Professors Jeffrey Forrest and Jeffrey
Price, authors of the book Practical Aviation Security, provided expertise on aviation security to the press
and airport authorities in the wake of the December attempted airplane bombing.
__________________
1
The Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation, June 2006 and March 2009.
METRO STATE
Where success begins with you
Government partnerships: Training tomorrow’s air traffic controllers
Metro State’s aviation program is one of only 31 nationwide to be selected by the Federal Aviation
Administration for its Air Traffic Controller Collegiate Training Initiative, to help fill the need for qualified air
traffic controllers. The recently instituted program has 52 students enrolled, and five graduates have gone
on to air traffic control positions with the FAA. The Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation cited
this program at Metro State as one of the “key reasons for aviation companies to locate in the Denver
metropolitan area.”2
Academic partnerships: Creating a pipeline of scientists for Colorado
In September, Metro State co-founded the Academy for the Development of STEM-Related Careers
with the Colorado School of Mines. Developed to stimulate interest in careers in STEM fields (science,
technology, engineering and mathematics) from the preschool level through the graduate school level, the
consortium also includes the Community College of Denver and the Cherry Creek School District. With an
initial focus on aerospace, the academy plans to provide educational certifications and specialized training
to connect its targeted learning communities to job readiness and career enhancement, and to coordinate
with state Workforce Centers throughout the region to facilitate job training and assist in job placement.
In partnership with the Community College of Denver, Metro State also recently completed a three-year
grant from NASA and the United Negro College Fund to increase the number of minority students in
aerospace fields. As part of this program, Metro State students completed internships with the Space
Exploration Services division of Lockheed Martin.
For more information,
please contact
Christine Staburg at
The Capstone Group,
303-860-0555. To learn
more about Metro State,
visit www.mscd.edu.
Strengthening Colorado’s aviation and aerospace workforce
Whether they’re training in flight simulators in Metro State’s World Indoor Airport, learning the $2 million
space-mission planning software donated to the department by AGI, Inc., or gaining first-hand knowledge
of the industry by working on a research project for Jeppesen, Metro State’s aviation and aerospace
science students are preparing themselves to be Colorado’s skilled workforce of tomorrow.
__________________
Aviation: Metro Denver and Northern Colorado Industry Cluster Profile, prepared March 2009 by Development Research
Partners, Inc., for Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation.
2
Senior Zaida Gomez-Kuri, Intern,
Denver International Airport
Assistant Professor Jeff Price, International aviation
and airport security expert
Published February 2010
“Professor Price has given me the
confidence to do more than I ever thought I could, in school and in life. He encouraged me to add a physics minor to my aviation technology degree.
Now I see that it will open a lot of doors for me.”