Aviation facility to jazz up programs
At the end of August, Fanshawe
College announced the purchase of
facilities formerly owned by Jazz
Aviation at the London
International Airport. These facilities
will become home of
Fanshawe's aviation programming.
It also comes equipped with a 52,000 square foot hangar and 30,000 square foot office building.
The new facility comes with an abundance of benefits for students and what Dean Vertha Coligan of the Faculty of Technology called an “authentic environment.”
“The facility has been in use to maintain commercial aircrafts,” said Coligan. “We feel that will prepare them better for the workplace.”
“This facility will allow us to expand our fleet,” she said. “[It] allows for all sorts of donations that will provide students with more varied practice.”
It remains unclear when students will be able to move into the new facility, however. “It is likely that there is less work that is necessary in the hangar,” said Coligan. “It may be that we get in there much sooner in terms of lab courses, and perhaps the theory courses will follow later when classroom space is appropriately prepared.”
She said there is a possibility for a staggered transition, where “students may move sooner for labs that require hangar space, and do the rest of their activity here instead.”
But students will not be shuffling back and forth in one day; their schedules will be appropriately blocked.
The purchase of the facility is already garnering attention from industry professionals.
“We have entertained a number of requests from folks in the industry how they can potentially share the space with us in some way, developing a closer relationship with the students in our programs,” said Coligan.
“[The students] will get to know people at the airport. They will get to know the folks from the industry who want to collaborate with us, whether it's in the provision of educational programs and training, applied research projects, so a much closer link to the industry and learning environment.”
Coligan said the aviation community is aware of the changes and is looking forward to working closely with the College.
“We have great faculty, we have great staff who are really committed to quality, but the facility helps,” said Coligan. “How many others have a facility like that?”
Coligan said this is just the beginning of big things for aviation programming.
“I envision a future in which we not only have programs related to aircraft maintenance, but also programs related to ground crew operations, airport operations and many more. We are looking closely at developing a more detailed vision for our plans for program development. And those are underway now.”
It also comes equipped with a 52,000 square foot hangar and 30,000 square foot office building.
The new facility comes with an abundance of benefits for students and what Dean Vertha Coligan of the Faculty of Technology called an “authentic environment.”
“The facility has been in use to maintain commercial aircrafts,” said Coligan. “We feel that will prepare them better for the workplace.”
“This facility will allow us to expand our fleet,” she said. “[It] allows for all sorts of donations that will provide students with more varied practice.”
It remains unclear when students will be able to move into the new facility, however. “It is likely that there is less work that is necessary in the hangar,” said Coligan. “It may be that we get in there much sooner in terms of lab courses, and perhaps the theory courses will follow later when classroom space is appropriately prepared.”
She said there is a possibility for a staggered transition, where “students may move sooner for labs that require hangar space, and do the rest of their activity here instead.”
But students will not be shuffling back and forth in one day; their schedules will be appropriately blocked.
The purchase of the facility is already garnering attention from industry professionals.
“We have entertained a number of requests from folks in the industry how they can potentially share the space with us in some way, developing a closer relationship with the students in our programs,” said Coligan.
“[The students] will get to know people at the airport. They will get to know the folks from the industry who want to collaborate with us, whether it's in the provision of educational programs and training, applied research projects, so a much closer link to the industry and learning environment.”
Coligan said the aviation community is aware of the changes and is looking forward to working closely with the College.
“We have great faculty, we have great staff who are really committed to quality, but the facility helps,” said Coligan. “How many others have a facility like that?”
Coligan said this is just the beginning of big things for aviation programming.
“I envision a future in which we not only have programs related to aircraft maintenance, but also programs related to ground crew operations, airport operations and many more. We are looking closely at developing a more detailed vision for our plans for program development. And those are underway now.”
