Carbon County and USU Eastern Receive $1.4 Million for Aviation Maintenance Training

Utah State University Eastern is part of a $1.4 million grant program awarded to Carbon County by the Economic Development Administration in the U.S. Department of Commerce.

The funding will support the development of an aircraft maintenance technician training facility and hangar at the Carbon County Airport. The new facilities will make it possible for a new aviation maintenance program to be offered at USU Eastern in Price.

“The department has discussed the possibility of expanding the aviation maintenance program to USU Eastern for about five years, and having an appropriate facility was the hold-up,” said Bruce Miller, head of USU’s Department of Aviation Technology.

According to Miller, this technical program teaches important real-world skills and prepares students for careers that are in high demand in the aviation industry.

“Being able to offer this program creates an alternative technical program that provides students opportunities outside of the extractive energy industries that have traditionally been the economic driver in the region,” Miller said. “At the same time, this program also trains mechanics who are highly valued within those traditional employment sectors.”

This program will provide stackable credentials, beginning with industry certificates of completion in airframes or powerplants. Those certificates can stack into an associate of applied science degree in aircraft maintenance and then into a bachelor’s degree in aviation technology.

“The intent is that students have multiple points to complete credentials and enter the workforce at different stages of their education,” Miller said.

This project is funded under the Assistance to Coal Communities Initiative, through which the EDA awards funds to assist communities severely impacted by the declining use of coal. ACC projects support economic diversification, job creation, capital investment, workforce development and re-employment opportunities.

“As southeastern Utah seeks to grow and diversify economically, it is critical to provide access to education and training resources that align with high-paying job and career opportunities for Utahns,” said Utah Senator Mitt Romney. “This EDA investment will allow Utah State University Eastern and Carbon County to expand the Aviation Campus Workforce Development Project, offering workforce training and academic programs to students and workers from all over the state — strengthening regional career options.”

For more information about programs at USU Eastern, visit https://eastern.usu.edu/.