First Aviation-Focused Public Charter School in Alabama

The Alabama Aerospace and Aviation High School (AAHS) enrolled its first 9th and 10th grade students to begin classes in the fall of 2022. 

Just two years later the school broke ground on a new campus at the Bessemer Municipal Airport (KEKY) in Bessemer, Alabama. The school is the first aviation, aerospace, and STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) focused public charter school in the state. And it’s free to attend.

School founder Reuben Morris was born and educated in Birmingham, Alabama, dreaming of becoming a commercial pilot. He graduated from Morehouse College in 2004 and earned his Master’s degree at the University of Denver in Denver, Colorado. While in Denver he also taught in the Denver Public Schools and the KIPP Sunshine Peak Academy, a free public charter middle school. At KIPP he absorbed the philosophy and advantages of public charter schools.

After moving back to Alabama, he became inspired by his son’s interest in flying helicopters.

Motivated as well by his own desire to establish a school similar to KIPP, which he considered the “gold standard of college readiness programs,” he founded the AAHS and serves as its CEO.

The Alabama Aerospace and Aviation High School is designed specifically to expose students to clearly defined career paths. The curriculum is STEM-based and includes four tracks – aviation, aerospace engineering, aviation maintenance, and computer science. Each track leads to college credit or an industry certification or credential. Some students work toward a pilot certificate by the time they graduate 12th grade.

Junior student Antonio Corona has had a very positive experience with the instructors, saying, “They're really helpful. I like their teaching styles. They're a little bit younger. A lot of people that want to get in the aviation industry think that everybody's mean and a military guy, but it really depends on what you make of the situation."

FMI: www.alaahs.org/