See how OAIRE is helping teachers across Oklahoma bring drone technology into their classrooms.

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TRANSCRIPT

Adam Hildebrandt, Oklahoma State University: People often think of drones as complex machines, but today, OSU is helping high school teachers bring drone technology into their classrooms.

Natalie Noles, Oklahoma Aerospace Institute for Research and Education (OAIRE) : This event today, we have our first and second-year AOPA teachers all from around the state of Oklahoma that are coming here to learn about OSU and the academics, and also do a drone build with us. Part of our land-grant mission, one of the pillars is aerospace. Oklahoma State University is the leaders in aerospace. So to bring that forth, we want to get drones and the knowledge that we have into the hands to underprivileged kids, teachers, anybody that wants to know aerospace. We want to get them excited for it.

Chris Swan, OAIRE Engineer: We're starting with the base kit that's going to have the components, but you've got to have a frame. So like today, if you can see my hands, start with something like an X-frame, so you've got four places to put your motors. Then you have to have rotors, right, the propellers. But then the other key is the little computer that runs everything. Getting the STEM teachers able to build the drone, take it apart, build it again, so they can teach their students how to do that. And then tomorrow, they're going to get a chance to fly some other drones that will give them the pilot skills and the flight skills that they can take back to their classrooms.

Adam Hildebrandt: These practical skills allow teachers not only to demonstrate to students but create whole lesson plans based on what they learn.

Dr. Jenny Peters, Pryor High School: I am Dr. Jenny Peters. I teach aviation, aerospace and physics at Prior High School. I have basically created the program to model and mirror what Oklahoma State offers. Effectively, what I do is I come in, I see what's happening over the next two days. I see what OSU is doing, and then I use that as inspiration to bring in similar projects and similar curriculum.

Chris Swan: And what we like to think is if you think of two islands and needing to connect them, you've got the academic research and a lot of people working on things for new technology. You've got industry trying to industrialize them, so we can help bridge that gap between academic research and practical application.

Dr. Peters: I want Oklahoma to be great at so many things, and one of the things that I am particularly passionate about is aerospace, the aviation industry. I see the need and there are individuals and industries that are coming, that are coming aware and having that workforce, puts us in a national leadership position.

Adam Hildebrandt: While it's teachers having fun and learning at this particular event, the focus is always on the students who will be learning these skills down the road.

Chris Swan: So when we teach students the Part 107, their actual drone license, they're learning other things behind just how to fly a drone. They're learning weather, they're learning different airspace rules, how to plan a flight, do a thing. A lot of things that can transfer as they go through their career. And again, the hope is to get them excited to come into an aerospace career, hopefully in Oklahoma.