Astronaut Nicole Stott, NTSB Member Robert Sumwalt, Warbird Museum Founder David O’Maley Will Address Students
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University will hold commencement ceremonies in May for 1,331 students of its Worldwide, Prescott, AZ and Daytona Beach, FL campuses. The graduating class includes 74 Daytona Beach and Prescott students receiving military commissions: 38 from Air Force ROTC, 20 from Army ROTC, 15 from Naval ROTC and one from the Marine Corps Platoon Leaders Course.
The commencement ceremony for 431 students of the Worldwide Campus will be held Saturday, May 2, at 9 a.m. at the ICI Center on the Daytona Beach Campus. The commencement speaker will be Robert Sumwalt, a current member of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) who earned a degree from the Worldwide Campus last year and will be one of the graduates recognized during the commencement ceremony.
Sumwalt joined the NTSB in 2006, where he has become an advocate for improving safety in all modes of transportation, including teen driver safety, impaired driving, distractions in transportation and several rail safety initiatives.
Before joining the NTSB, Sumwalt was a pilot for 32 years, including 24 years with Piedmont Airlines and US Airways. During his tenure at US Airways, he worked on special assignment to the flight safety department and also served on the airline’s flight operational quality assurance monitoring team. Following his airline career, Sumwalt managed the corporate aviation department for SCANA, a Fortune 500 energy company.
In other notable accomplishments, he chaired the Air Line Pilots Association’s Human Factors and Training Group and co-founded the association’s critical incident response program. Sumwalt also spent eight years as a consultant to NASA’s Aviation Safety Reporting System and has written extensively on aviation safety matters.
Sumwalt (pictured) earned an undergraduate degree from the University of South Carolina and a Master of Aeronautical Science (with Distinction) from Embry-Riddle Worldwide, focusing on aviation/aerospace safety systems and human factors aviation systems.
During the commencement ceremony he will receive the University’s Distinguished Speaker Award.
The commencement ceremony for 257 students of the Prescott Campus and 29 of the Worldwide Campus will be held Saturday, May 2, at 10 a.m. at the Prescott Valley Event Center in Prescott Valley, AZ.
The commencement speaker will be David O’Maley, a member of Embry-Riddle’s Board of Trustees and a retired senior executive with nearly 45 years of experience in the financial services industry.
Beginning in 1968, O’Maley spent 24 years with Life of Virginia. Among his titles were Vice President of Ordinary Agencies, Vice President of Agency Operations and Senior Vice President. He became Chief Marketing Officer in 1986 and was a member of the Board of Directors and the executive committee. O’Maley was also President of the company’s securities broker dealer and two life insurance company subsidiaries.
He joined Ohio National Life Insurance Company, a subsidiary of Ohio National Financial Services, in 1992 and held identical positions with both companies through the years. Starting as Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, he was then elected President and Chief Operating Officer. O’Maley retired as President and CEO in 2010, but remained Executive Chairman until his retirement from the board in 2012. He was elected Chairman Emeritus in recognition of his significant leadership accomplishments.
On Embry-Riddle’s Board of Trustees, O’Maley provides guidance as a member of the Development and Finance committees. He also serves on the Board of Directors of U.S. Bancorp and the charitable Million Dollar Round Table Foundation and is a member of the Cincinnati Business Committee.
An active pilot, O’Maley is the founder of the Tri-State Warbird Museum in Batavia, Ohio, where he is currently volunteer chairman. The museum houses one of the largest collections of flyable World War II aircraft in the nation.
O’Maley received a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Florida Atlantic University and a master’s degree in financial services from American College. He also earned Chartered Life Underwriter and Chartered Financial Consultant designations.
During the commencement ceremony he will receive the University’s Soaring Eagle Crystal Award.
The commencement ceremony for 614 students of the Daytona Beach Campus will be held Monday, May 11, at 10 a.m. at the Ocean Center in Daytona Beach.
Graduating with a Ph.D. in Aviation, the only degree of its kind in the nation, will be Kelly Whealan George. An employee with Embry-Riddle Worldwide since 1997, she is currently Associate Professor and Discipline Chair of Economics and Director of Accreditation, Assessment, and Research Advancement for Ignite, the undergraduate research initiative. “The knowledge and research skills I learned in the Ph.D. program apply directly to my Embry-Riddle responsibilities and will greatly enhance my career at the university,” she said.
The commencement speaker will be NASA astronaut Nicole Stott (pictured), an Embry-Riddle alumna and member of the university’s Board of Trustees.
On her first spaceflight, in 2009, Stott was a Mission Specialist for STS-128 Space Shuttle Discovery’s journey to the International Space Station (ISS). She lived and worked on the ISS for more than three months as a Flight Engineer with Expeditions 20 and 21. During her stay she completed a lengthy spacewalk, operated the ISS robotic arm, conducted over 100 research investigations, and performed ISS maintenance and numerous educational outreach activities.
Her second spaceflight, STS-133 in 2011, was not only Space Shuttle Discovery’s final flight, but also a landmark event for Embry-Riddle. It was the first time two of the university’s graduates shared a space mission – Stott and Worldwide Campus alumnus B. Alvin Drew were crewmembers for the 13-day mission to the ISS.
Following the STS-133 mission, Stott was assigned to Kennedy Space Center as the Astronaut Office representative to the commercial crew program. She currently works at Johnson Space Center as the Space Station Integration Branch Chief for the Astronaut Office.
Stott earned a B.S. in Aeronautical Engineering from Embry-Riddle’s Daytona Beach Campus and an M.S. in Industrial Engineering/Engineering Management from the University of Central Florida.
As a member of Embry-Riddle’s Board of Trustees, she serves on the Academic and Flight Safety and Education committees. In other involvement with the university, she is a frequent speaker at Embry-Riddle campuses; she collaborates with students and faculty in developing NASA applied research activities; and she is a member of the College of Engineering’s Industry Advisory Board. She has received two honors from the University, the Alumni Eagle of Excellence Award and the Distinguished Speaker Award.
During the commencement ceremony for students of the Daytona Beach Campus, the University’s Eagle of Aviation Award will be presented to Dent Thompson, Vice President and Chief Operations Officer of Phoenix Air Group Inc.
The award recognizes Thompson and his Phoenix Air team for their humanitarian efforts in transporting highly contagious patients infected with the Ebola virus from West Africa to specialized hospitals in the United States and Europe. Phoenix Air has logged more than 40 Ebola-related flights since August 2014 and continues to be the only company in the world providing this service.
In its Ebola endeavor, Phoenix Air is using technology it developed and certificated earlier under Thompson’s leadership for use during the 2003-2005 SARS outbreak in China. The Aeromedical Biological Containment System (ABCS) is the world’s first aircraft-based patient biohazard containment system. Integrated into modified Gulfstream G-III jets that Phoenix Air owns and operates, the ABCS isolates patients in a negative air pressure chamber, with an airlock allowing medical personnel to enter and exit the patient chamber in-flight while keeping flight crew safe.
Thompson has served on the Embry-Riddle President’s Advisory Board since 2008. In addition, Phoenix Air participates annually in the university’s Industry/Career Expos, offering internships and career opportunities to Embry-Riddle students.
ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (04.16.24)
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