The greater York College community celebrated the JFKR Aviation and Aeronautics Academy (aka JFKR AAA) graduation on March 22, 2025, with lots of exuberance and reflection on the K1-12 students’ endeavors in various STEM-related topics. It was a fun-filled spring day with 350 students and over 150 parents, caregivers, and well-wishers joining the graduates in feeling proud of their achievements. The students’ positive outcomes in the JFKR AAA program were due to a well-coordinated team led by a group of trained STEM professionals who disseminated carefully designed STEM lessons, introduced exciting hands-on activities, and provided mentorship. Many knowledgeable peer leaders and volunteers offered their assistance to the student’s success.
Students from K1-12 participated during the four Saturdays and actively engaged in hands-on, critical thinking, and inquiry-based learning. The students were able to appreciate interactive, grade-specific lessons related to fundamental math and science principles. The STEM lessons primarily focused on aviation, airport design, robotics, programming language, coding, flight simulations, machine learning, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and supply chain issues. These topics brought in lots of curiosity and piqued students’ interest in the aviation-focused subject matter. As part of the core mission of the JFKR AAA program, teamwork was always encouraged during activities along with promoting scientific literacy.
The JFKR AAA Program enabled AAA’s current largest class of high school students (almost one-third of the total attendees) to utilize a plethora of pertinent STEM kits, navigate NASA, Federal Aviation Administration, Civil Air Patrol, and EPA websites for retrieving STEM-related data, performing statistical analyses, making plots towards meaningful interpretations. Computer-aided design (CAD) programs, along with published reports, were also used to gain an understanding of topics such as flight operations, sustainable development or upgrading airports, and atmospheric pollution. As a result, a series of 25 poster presentations led by students was accomplished under the leadership of JFKR AAA staff Andrew Singh, Omadevi Singh, Isaiah Jamna, and Tyler Shirrekrisengee.
High school students showcased their efforts at the graduation ceremony by explaining supply chain and manufacturing issues from a global geopolitical standpoint. Many elementary and middle school students also displayed neatly designed artwork, toys, and objects (made from cardboard, bamboo sticks, cans, and colored paper) representing airport design, model airports, and physical forces (drag, thrust, lift-off) that govern flight operation. Visiting parents and caregivers had the opportunity to view these displays, interact with the students, and gain insight into their comprehension of the various topics based on STEM concepts. Parents were extremely delighted to view the students’ effective participation in person.
Dr. Derrick Brazill (Provost and Senior Academic Vice President), Dr. George White (Dean of Arts and Sciences), Rachelle Antoine (Manager of External Affairs and Community Outreach – JFK Redevelopment Program), Dr. Nazrul Khandaker (geology discipline coordinator and JFKR Program director, Dr. Billy Metallinos (Assistant Professor Aviation, Business & Economics York College CUNY, FAA certified drone pilot) and Lt. Weller, addressed the participants and guests. They highlighted the benefits of early exposure to STEM disciplines, basic academic preparation needed to enter a STEM field/career, and the availability of the grand STEM outreach opportunity from JFKR AAA to build a STEM pipeline to meet future needs related to aviation, manufacturing, and technology.
Of particular interest to this graduation was the presence of Jasmin Budhan (York geology graduate and past NASA STEM Program instructor, MS from Tufts University). Jasmin shared her academic experience while at the York Geology Program and NASA STEM Program, and how both became the impetus for her to stay focused on STEM education and her subsequent career as a sustainability analyst. Jasmin urged students to be vigilant and curious about subjects they like or enjoy and take advantage of STEM outreach programs administered by York College, such as the current JFKR AAA. Jasmin said, “Your future depends on how you plan, prepare, and follow through various pathways to meet goals. I did not come to York College to major in geology; however, being in introductory geology courses, the field aspects of geology piqued my interest. It enabled me to think about science, find relevance to societal needs, and educated me to solve problems by applying multiple working hypotheses.”
The recently ended spring 2025 program also benefited from two guest pilots: Oswald Russell (Pan Am and American Eagle, who earned his first license as a private pilot in 1974) and Brian Worthington (Chapter President, NY Metro Black Pilots of America). Both shared their aviation-related experience with the students and encouraged them to think of a career in the aviation field, starting by taking advantage of the JFKR Program as well as considering York’s aviation discipline.
Since its inception in the fall of 2023, the JFKR AAA Program, supported by the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, American Airlines, Delta Airlines, and JFKIAT, has already served close to 1,800 K1-12 students primarily residing in close proximity to York College and shows great potential to exceed projected student enrollment during the entire course of the program (2023-2027).
Overall, the program continues to expose local youth to science, technology, engineering, and math concepts related to aviation, aeronautics, and airport management and introduce them to industry leadership and career opportunities.
The 2025 summer session will tentatively begin at the end of June and continue into the first week of August 2025. Stay tuned for more information on the 2025 summer session.
Please navigate by clicking the following link for the 2025 Summer Application.
