AOPA Awards 24 Flight Training Scholarships

Twenty-four student pilots have been selected as winners of flight training scholarships awarded by the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA). The scholarship program is designed to help student pilots of all ages earn a pilot certificate. The scholarships are funded by donations to the AOPA Foundation.



The winners, who included 10 female aviators, three helicopter pilots-in-training, 11 high-school and college-aged student pilots, and one recipient in her sixties, will receive grants ranging from $2,500 to $12,000.

"We recognize that the cost of learning to fly can sometimes be a barrier for student pilots," said Stephanie Kenyon, AOPA Foundation vice president. "And with generous contributions to the AOPA Foundation, our donors are helping us provide scholarships to these deserving, aspiring pilots."



Four awards were made in the program's first year. Its growth to 24 scholarship awards worth $118,500 in 2015 was made possible by the generous donations of organizations and individuals: the Blackburn Flight Scholarships, the Breitling Aviation Scholarship Fund, the Buddy Flights Scholarship, the Richard R. and Gretchen E. Harper Scholarships in memory of Richard R. Harper, the Noe-Singer Flight Training Scholarship, the Erral Lea Plymate Memorial Endowment Scholarships, the Gina Santori Flight Training Scholarship, the Richard Santori Memorial Scholarship, and the Ceci Stratford Flight Training Scholarship.

$12,000 - Noe-Singer Flight Training Scholarship - Isaac Wilson - Ramah, New Mexico

$7,000 - Buddy Flights Scholarship - Connor Frank - East Lansing, Michigan

$7,000 - Ceci Stratford Flight Training Scholarship - Genevieve Zasada - Honolulu, Hawaii

$5,000 - Blackburn Flight Scholarships - Noah Brands - Vancouver, Washington; Malia Johnson - Monmouth, Oregon

$5,000 - Breitling Aviation Scholarships - Diane Abela - New York, New York; Matthew Ehrlein - Franklin Square, New York; Stacey Hales - Wichita, Kansas; Frederick Hoffer - Douglas, Massachusetts; Trenton Jensen - Bountiful, Utah; Charlotte Kaber - Sherman Oaks, California; Mindy Nye - Los Angeles, California; Thomas Quirk - Albuquerque, New Mexico; Sandra Urias - Lake Hughes, California; Desiree Whittington - Steeles Tavern, Virginia

$5,000 - Richard R. and Gretchen E. Harper Scholarships - Chase Burnes - Rome, Georgia; Robert Rolley - Youngstown, Ohio

$5,000 Gina Santori Flight Training Scholarship - Shirleen Bergren - Suffolk, Virginia

$5,000 Richard Santori Memorial Scholarship - Zachary Huffman - Muncie, Indiana

$2,500 Erral Lea Plymate Memorial Endowment Scholarships - David Chuke - Oakbrook Terrace, Illinois; Abby Devarennes - Davis, California; Stephen Gilmer - Chicago, Illinois; Brock Longley - New London, North Carolina; Xaleon Shields - Ellenwood, Georgia

As the charitable arm of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, the AOPA Foundation provides support to improve aviation safety through the Air Safety Institute, preserve community airports, and encourage learning to fly for career and personal benefit--all in the interest of ensuring a strong future for general aviation in America.