Alabama Lieutenant Governor Will Ainsworth announced two new ventures on Wednesday designed to better connect Alabama’s students and small business owners with the state’s rapidly expanding aerospace industry.
One of the initiatives is a two-week summer internship for students touching on various aspects of the aerospace field. The second is a program to provide business connections between small businesses in Alabama and the state’s large players in the aerospace industry.
“For more than a half-century, Alabama has been a national leader in aerospace development and technology, and if we are going to maintain that role, we must develop a new generation of students, individuals, and businesses with the qualifications to work within the industry,” Ainsworth said in a release provided by his official office.
Ainsworth is the national chair of the Aerospace States Association (ASA), and both the projects announced Wednesday are created in partnership with Alabama’s chapter of the ASA. The lieutenant governor noted that Wednesday’s announcements are modeled on similar internships and business programs in other aerospace states.
The internship is open to both high school and college students. The application process is open now, and those who apply will hear in May before the internship commences in July.
Participants get to learn firsthand about the companies and dynamics that make up Alabama’s aerospace industry. Corporations involved in the internship include Lockheed Martin and the United Launch Alliance (ULA).
A webpage for the internship, which is unpaid, promises the students participating “will have an opportunity to network with leading aerospace professionals, drive rovers, launch water rockets, learn about the various engineering disciplines and what it takes to be successful in the industry, and meet a number of people working on some amazing projects in aerospace!”
More information on the internship, including how to apply, can be found here.
The stated goal of the business outreach program, Wednesday’s second announcement, is to find small Alabama businesses that could supply or subcontract for the big players in the state’s aerospace industry. A release noted that small businesses that get involved would “be invited to participate in forums and supplier conferences designed to connect them with industry contacts and guide them in next steps.”
“At the same time that we provide opportunities for students and small businesses that need them, we will grow Alabama’s economy and create long-lasting, well-paying jobs in an area that is expanding exponentially,” concluded Ainsworth.
Henry Thornton is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can contact him by email: [email protected] or on Twitter @HenryThornton95.
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