FLORENCE — An open hangar at the Florence Regional Airport will soon be a high school classroom for students interested in pursuing a career in aerospace.
Florence 1 Schools announced the creation of The School of Innovation in Aerospace, one of its newest schools of innovation. The district’s board of trustees approved a lease agreement for the aircraft hangar at its May meeting.
It will be a classroom where students will get hands-on education.
“This is absolutely not going to look like the desks in a row and the teacher at the front kind of thing,” Assistant Superintendent Greg Hall said.
Students instead will be immersed in the real-life work environment of those with aerospace careers. They’ll have four areas of instruction to explore: air traffic control, commercial/airline transport pilot, aviation maintenance technician and drones.
The School of Innovation in Aerospace will prepare high school juniors and seniors for the next step in their education or the workforce right out of school depending on their preference, according to Florence 1 Schools Superintendent Richard O’Malley.
The school will be operated by Florence 1 in partnership with the Florence Regional Airport, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, Charleston Southern University and the Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics.
“This is a great win for the airport, and I think it’s going to be a great win for Florence District One,” Airport Executive Director Brad Beadles told The Post and Courier.
The creation of the school comes at a time when aerospace employees are in short supply and high demand. It’s estimated that 9,000 more air traffic controllers will be needed by 2030, Beadles said. Roughly 100,000 drone operators will also be in demand over the next few years.
Just like a hangar isn’t the typical study hall, Schools of Innovation aren’t like typical schools.
“I would say changing the status quo would be an understatement, but (the school) is trying to redefine what high schools look like, what education looks like for workforce development,” Florence 1 Schools Superintendent Richard O’Malley said.
The type of curriculum that would be taught at the school of innovation does not mirror what is taught in a traditional high school classroom, Hall said. Schools of Innovation are intended to be unique, purposeful and intentional, he added.
“This is absolutely immersed in what the work environment looks like,” Hall said.
The School of Innovation in Aerospace is set to have some of its programs in operation by the 2026-2027 academic year.
This will be the second School of Innovation the district has opened in Florence this year.
In January, the district’s first school, The Poynor School of Healthcare Innovation, welcomed students. It’s designed to give those with an interest in healthcare a jumpstart into the career field right out of high school.
Florence 1 Schools also recently announced its upcoming addition of a school in partnership with The Citadel that will mimic the cadet experience.