AV group looks to grow aerospace engineers

The best way for area aerospace industries to address the growing shortage of engineers may be to "grow their own" from within the Antelope Valley. To that end, the Math, Science, Engineering and Technology Consortium is working hard to establish a full four-year engineering degree program here, as well as increase and improve math and science education at the lower school levels to provide engineers for the future.

"It's incumbent on the Valley to make sure we train the workforce to support our Aerospace Valley and aerospace industry," said state Sen. William J. "Pete" Knight, R-Palmdale. "It is in the best interest of the Antelope Valley and the country."

The consortium was founded two years ago with a state grant intended to support efforts to protect the state against military base closures. Because the availability of a qualified workforce has a direct bearing on a base's ability to perform its mission, the grant was also directed toward fortifying the workforce.

"When we started looking into this, we found it wasn't only an Edwards (Air Force Base) problem, it was nationwide," said Bob Johnstone, director of The Aerospace Office and facilitator for the consortium.

The group met Friday with industry, military and academic leaders to discuss what has been accomplished and what remains. The group is also seeking feedback from industry as to their own workforce needs.

"The bottom line is we want to locally grow our own engineers and technicians," Johnstone said.

Studies have found that most of the local students who go elsewhere for their schooling do not return to work here, he said, and it is easier to retain employees who already have ties to the area.

While there is already a pressing need for new engineers nationwide, the shortfall may become even more apparent as the country begins to implement the Bush Administration's recently announced space exploration program to the moon and Mars.

"We're going to be right in the thick of it, so we've got to be ready," Knight said.

The consortium has already been successful in coordinating efforts to bring advanced engineering education to the Antelope Valley College campus with joint programs with California State University branches at Bakersfield and Fresno.

In addition to the two years of general education and pre-engineering available through AV College, students can now take their third year of an electrical or computer engineering degree through distance learning with the university campuses.

It is hoped the fourth and final year of the degree program will be available by next fall, if the necessary laboratories can be made ready by then.

"We have the students right now in the system. If we can't satisfy their fourth year requirements, they're going to go (elsewhere) and they probably won't come back," Johnstone said.

The labs, now expected to require about $1.4 million in equipment, will be at the Lancaster University Center proposed for the former Antelope Valley Fairgrounds. The facilities will be modular, and therefore may be moved to another site should a four-year campus eventually be built.

The degree program itself is not enough to ensure a qualified workforce. Students also need exposure and experience through internships and mentoring opportunities, something that this area may be able to provide better than elsewhere.

"This could become a real center for aerospace education," said Carl Longley, dean of engineering at California State University Fresno.

Work-study opportunities with industry are very important to the success of a program, he said, and they also benefit industry in providing ready employees who have a head start on the operations plus security clearances.

While a four-year degree program may have the most immediate effect on the workforce, starting the process young is equally important to keep the program going.

Pre-engineering programs such as Project Lead the Way, in its first year at Lancaster High School and soon to begin at Highland High School, are proving popular for high school students.

Other programs, such as NASA's real-time laboratory at Joe Walker Middle School, are focusing on elementary grades to prepare even younger students for future engineering studies.

A free engineering curriculum provided by the Society of Automotive Engineers has found use in many elementary school classrooms, with support from Edwards Air Force Base, said Randy Scott, chief of planning division for the Air Force Flight Test Center.

The consortium is also focusing its efforts on improving math and science education for teachers, so that they may pass on the knowledge and enthusiasm to their students.

Tours of industry facilities, teacher in-service programs and mentoring have helped bring real-world engineering into area classrooms, Johnstone said.

While the consortium has come far in two years in promoting engineering education, more remains to be done.

"All of these are terrific opportunities, but opportunities don't just grow naturally," said former Assemblyman George Runner. "These opportunities need to be nurtured and helped along the way.

"There is no shortage of aerospace engineers. But there is a shortage of engineers that will work for cheap."

You got that right. We have a choice now. We can outsource all of our technology jobs or we can compete with the Asians----who will work for much less than we are willing to---by lowering our expectations. Nice choice.

You are absolutely correct. There is no shortage of EE's either. Just a shortage of competent engineers that will work for 30K/yr.

H1B's are killing ANY incentive to pursue engineering degrees in this in this country. It's a difficult field, and then you're just a "geek", something disdained by the media and CEO's.

This will boomerang on those doing the outsourcing and hiring entry level engineers from India and China. Soon we won't even need CEO's or managers from this country.

Last "real" job I had with a well known Fortune 500 company, I was "assigned" two engineers from China to work on my team. Both were technically good, but none of the rest of the team could understand anything they said, so they just did their own thing. Real bargain I'd say.

I couldn't help but notice that the medical profession isn't constantly complaining about a shortage of doctors. I'm not reading articles about a shortage of lawyers, either. But the number of qualified engineers is always a "crisis" because companies are always looking for a way to save a buck. Their tactic is to flood the market with so many engineers that we will have no choice but to work for $10 an hour. They forget that most of the younger generation is too lazy and too poorly educated on the high school level to pursue an engineering degree.

Studies have found that most of the local students who go elsewhere for their schooling do not return to work here

39% of those kids who receive their education in Alaska leave the state for jobs Outside. Never to return. Good schools here, but with no college football the Univ of Alaska is not seen as an actual university or college.

It's a difficult field, and then you're just a "geek", something disdained by the media and CEO's.

And it doesn't help that people on the shop level see us as overpaid and undeserving of the special treatment that we supposedly get. (A corporate officer making $250K a year doesn't bother them a bit, but engineers making $60K a year pisses them off to no end.) Whenever one of them climbs the ladder to a high position, they do what they can to keep the engineers down. There's a real us-verus-them attitude with the non-engineers.

They forget that most of the younger generation is too lazy and too poorly educated on the high school level to pursue an engineering degree.

Notice the font size? Notice the bold? That's because you got it right!

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