We are thrilled to announce our newest education programs at the Fargo Air Museum: The Lil Flyers Club and the EAA Young Eagles Build Night- Pietenpol Workshop!
The Fargo Air Museum (FAM) has officially launched our Lil Flyer Club, where our educators and volunteers take our education program on the road. We visit rural schools in the Fargo-Moorhead area to bring our STEAM and aviation curriculum to smaller schools, to expand the aviation passion and education in our great state.
Since our September launch, we have visited Kindred, Harwood, and Maple Valley Elementary schools with our aviation camps. serving over 125 fourth graders. We have had a very successful couple of months with amazing feedback from students, faculty and parents! We plan to continue building this amazing program and add additional schools throughout the year.
We have also partnered with the EAA Chapter 317 to offer specialized camps at the museum, where 10 to 17 year old students are building a full scale Pietonpol wooden aircraft! The kids have built jigs, assembled wing ribs, and are currently working on the tail assembly. Once the aircraft is complete, covering and all, we will have students sign the fuselage and hang it on display at the FAM for all to see!
The next series in the EAA Camps will focus on aluminum construction, as we continue to dive deep into the various aircraft construction methods. Stay tuned for updates as we continue expanding our education program.
We truly believe aviation is such an amazing industry, where anyone can become a part of our passion for flight. We need doctors, maintenance, pilots, technology, engineering, business, and marketing, and so much more. Pretty much any degree can be a fit for the aviation industry. As you can see, education is a large part of what we do at the FAM. From our basic free camps to our highly interactive Intro to Aviation courses, there is always something going on at the Museum to continue sharing our love and passion for aviation. 
I am very thankful for all our sponsors, donors, friends, staff, our Board of Directors and the community. And a special thanks to the North Dakota Aeronautics Commission (NDAC) for grant support, which allows us to continually expand our education programs!
We could not have a special place like the Fargo Air Museum without your support! So on behalf of myself and staff at the FAM, thank you and include a stop at the Museum this fall.
Ryan Thayer is the Executive Director/CEO of the Fargo Air Museum. He has been part of aviation since birth, received his solo license at 16, and his private pilot’s license at 18 from UND as well as an Entrepreneurship Degree. He has always been passionate about aviation and business and is thrilled to be able to pursue both of his passions at the Fargo Air Museum.
