Tue, Jun 09, 2020
Aviation Program Expected To Launch In Fall 2021
The Southeast Missouri State University Board of Regents has approved a new Professional Pilot Bachelor of Science. The program now goes to the Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development for review. Southeast hopes to begin implementing the program and admitting students in August with the program expected to launch in fall 2021.

“This is an outstanding opportunity for the University to stay on the leading edge of academic program innovation and to grow our enrollment,” said Dr. Carlos Vargas, president of Southeast Missouri State University.
Vargas said that shortly after arriving in Cape Girardeau in 2015 he began talking to people, including the manager of the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport and visited the Cape Girardeau Career and Technology Center about a professional pilot program.
At about the same time, he was approached by Ken Jackson of Dexter, Missouri, who had a very similar idea. Jackson, state supervisor of instruction with the Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) and former superintendent of Dexter Schools, expressed to Vargas his keen interest in the development of a professional pilot program. Vargas and Jackson met to discuss their shared vision, and the program began to take shape.
“He had done a lot of research into a program and had already gathered a lot of information,” Vargas said. “When we talked, we both realized we had the same goal, and we were both really excited about the program. He was a champion from the very beginning.”
The Professional Pilot Bachelor of Science program will require a minimum of 121 credit hours of instruction, including 42 hours of general education coursework. Southeast plans to launch the program with minimal expense by structuring it similarly to other professional pilot programs. Under the program, Southeast will contract with a flight company that will own the aircraft and be responsible for maintaining them per contractual guidelines and FAA standards.
Southeast has had initial discussions with the City of Cape Girardeau on partnering with the Cape Girardeau Regional Airport as a primary facility for the program.
More News
LinxUs System Adds Capabilities for Data-Driven Operators Textron Aviation announced another option for operators processing their post-flight data, adding interoperability with GE>[...]
Aero Linx: The de Havilland Moth Club Ltd The de Havilland Moth Club evolved from a belief that an association of owners and operators of Moth aeroplanes should be formed to create>[...]
(Pilot) Inadvertently Applied Excessive Braking Action, And The Airplane Nosed Over Analysis: The pilot reported that, while landing at a remote, rough and uneven airstrip in a tai>[...]
“MCADT is committed to rapidly integrating armed first-person view drones into the FMF, enhancing small-unit lethality and providing organic capabilities that warfighters cur>[...]
From 2017 (YouTube Edition): Major Engine Supplier Joins Forces With Small Aircraft Manufacturer… GE recently made an agreement with Venom Aircraft to supply engines for the>[...]