The graduation ceremony for the week-long FAA Aviation Career Education (ACE)Camp hosted by Southern Illinois University 
Carbondale was held on Friday, July 22, 2011 at Southern Illinois Airport (KMDH). A total of 19 students from Colorado, Illinois, Missouri and Ohio completed the camp. The graduation was attended by approximately 50 family members and friends of the campers, plus camp faculty and sponsor representatives. Provost John Nicklow of SIUC, Barry Cooper, Director of the Federal Aviation Administration Great Lakes Region and Susan Shea, Director, IDOT Division of Aeronautics, were on hand to make a few remarks and to award the completion certificates to the 19 students.
(Photo – Prior to the ACE Camp graduation, dignitaries tour the SIUC Transportation Education Center at Southern Illinois Airport. Left to right: Barry Cooper, FAA, Director, Great Lakes Region; Dave NewMyer, SIUC, Chair Aviation Management and Flight; Susan Shea, Director, IDOT Division of Aeronautics;; Mike Burgener, SIUC, Chair, Aviation Technologies; Rick Kula, FAA Great Lakes Region (O’Hare Modernization Program Mgr)
The 2011 ACE Camp at SIUC was sponsored by the AAR Corporation, IDOT Division of Aeronautics, the Southern Illinois Airport Authority, the Federal Aviation Administration and Southern Illinois University Carbondale. Camp faculty were provided by all of the sponsors plus American Eagle Airlines and Southwest Airlines. Each day of the camp was focused on a different aspect of the aviation industry with Monday July 18 focused on airport management and planning; Tuesday July 19 focused on aviation product support, the aviation aftermarket, and aircraft maintenance; Wednesday July 20 on flight careers; Thursday July 21 on air traffic control and on aircraft manufacturing (via tours of FAA and Boeing facilities in St. Louis); and Friday July 22 on airport inspection and NEXTGEN careers. The camp was a residential camp, with the students provided housing on campus at SIUC in the university housing. Most of the costs of the camp were underwritten by the sponsors, with campers only having to pay a nominal $250 for a week-long stay at SIUC, including all local flights, simulator time, food, housing, local transportation and the trip to St. Louis.
Due to the success of the 2011 ACE Camp, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, the FAA and IDOT representatives agreed to work toward making this an annual event. For more information on the 2011 camp, please contact Steve Goetz, SIUC ACE Camp Director, at sgoetz@aviation.siu.edu or by calling 618-453-9300.
