Wichita State’s Grant Boyd Receives $5,000 Award

The Wichita Aero Club has awarded its $5,000 H. Dean Humphrey Scholarship for 2017 to Wichita State University sophomore Grant Boyd of Topeka, KS. “We are very pleased to present this scholarship to Grant, a senior Marketing & Sales major at Wichita State University to receive the Wichita Aero Club’s Dean Humphrey scholarship for 2017 because he’s not only deserving of the recognition, he’s a proven contributor to our organization; he has been serving as an intern for the Aero Club for the past year and a half,” said John O’Leary, Vice President of Airbus Americas Engineering and Chairman of the WAC Education Committee. No Edward W. Stimpson Scholarship will be announced for 2017 until a recently modified selection process administered by the Wichita Community Foundation in cooperation with the Wichita Aero Club has been defined.

 “The Wichita Aero Club scholarships are designed to encourage and support students who have already established a clear aviation-related career path. One important change in the criteria for both the Humphrey and the Stimpson Scholarships is that they will now be available for students upon their graduation from high school. Previously, the application requirements included established academic achievement in college, university, or a trade school towards a degree or certificate as a basis for eligibility. That element created an unintended hurdle for potential applicants because most students who pursue scholarships do so at the same time they apply for admission to the college, university or training program of their choice,” O’Leary continued. “We’ve already modified our program to include applicants who have just graduated from high school and we’re reviewing all of our criteria to ensure that we can provide financial encouragement to students who wish to carry on Kansas’s aerospace leadership tradition."
 
The Humphrey scholarship, which was presented to Grant Boyd during a ceremony at the Wichita Aero Club Golf Classic, is aimed at public relations, marketing, communications and human resources or similar administrative areas. The Stimpson scholarship targets students pursuing engineering, flying, service or maintenance and technical careers.  “We were pleased to be able to recognize Grant and his parents, Daryl and Janet, at the WAC Golf tournament,” O’Leary added. “Since he was already working as an intern at the event we just had to make sure he took a break in order to participate in the presentation!”
 
 Grant Boyd graduated from Seaman High School in Topeka in 2014. A lifelong flying enthusiast, he earned his Private Pilot’s license in 2016. He plans to pursue a career as a Citation business jet salesman at Textron Aviation. “We’re thrilled that Grant applied and was selected to win this year’s Dean Humphrey Scholarship,” said Wichita Aero Club Board Chairman Jeff Peier, a partner at the law firm of Klenda Austerman. He assists clients in the acquisition of corporate aircraft and has been a personal encourager and role model for this year’s recipient. “Grant certainly fits the description of a ‘next generation aviation leader,’ and it’s gratifying to know that the Aero Club can provide tangible financial assistance to him and others like him,” Peier concluded.
 
 The Wichita Aero Club will host an event later this summer to formally present the awards and celebrate the recipients of the scholarships. The WAC was established in 2008 to foster and promote interest in aviation, provide a forum focused on the industry’s issues and achievements and bring together those with a passion for flight in an environment that expands and enhances professional relationships and furthers cooperation and understanding.
 
 (Image provided with Wichita Aero Club news release)

FMI: www.wichitaaeroclub.org