Durant Public Schools STEM Director Zac Morgan welcomed community members to the grand opening of the school’s new aviation laboratory on recently. The school district is entering its fifth year of program implementation, which offers a pathway of aviation coursework designed to prepare students for careers in aerospace and aeronautics, Oklahoma’s second-leading industry. The new laboratory was developed in partnership with the Oklahoma Department of Aerospace and Aeronautics through the department’s “Classroom and Laboratory Improvement Grant Program.”
Morgan introduced Durant Superintendent Mark Moring, who spoke about the importance of providing college and career readiness programs for students and expressed his pride in the aviation program and its impact on Durant students. Senator David Bullard, R-Durant, and the ODAA’s Statewide Manager for Aerospace STEM Education Paula Kedy, both commended the district for its commitment to aerospace education and for its leadership in STEM education.
“We are so pleased with the work of Durant Public Schools,” said Kedy. “It is clear that they understand the importance of preparing students for career opportunities in Oklahoma’s growing aerospace industry.”
This year, Durant students will have the opportunity to build an aircraft through the Tango Flight program as one of only six districts in Oklahoma that will offer the aircraft structure and assembly program in 2025-2026.
At the conclusion of the event, the district unveiled its new “Flyin’ Lion” Foundation, a nonprofit foundation designed to provide flight training scholarships and post-secondary aviation scholarships for students.
