Flight training scholarships remove the financial barrier to aviation, helping students from Louisville to Richmond take their first steps toward the cockpit.
FRANKFORT, Ky. – DreamFlight Charities, a Kentucky-based nonprofit dedicated to making aviation accessible to students across the Commonwealth, recently announced the latest recipients of its flight training scholarships. Seven students – representing five high schools and one university across Kentucky – have been selected to receive funds that cover flight training from a student’s very first hours in the cockpit through near-solo flight status.
The scholarships, worth up to $6,000 each, are awarded to students who have completed a DreamFlight Discovery Flight or Discovery Event and demonstrated the interest, aptitude, and drive to pursue aviation training. Recipients train through one of DreamFlight’s partnering flight schools, using a peer-to-peer group model that pairs hands-on flight instruction with ground school coursework, building both flying skills and a supportive community of young aviators.
This round’s scholarship recipients include Aubryona Ouasli (Ballard High School, Louisville), Sawyer Lona (Frankfort High School), Carter Edmonds (Frankfort High School), Jeremiah Elayaraj (Mars Hill Academy, Lexington), Zach Smith (Madison Central High School, Richmond), and Tanner Morris (Lexington Catholic).
Also among this semester’s honorees is Joey Hicks, a returning DreamFlight scholar pursuing continued aviation studies at Eastern Kentucky University. Hicks received an extended scholarship, allowing him to build on the training he began as a DreamFlight student and continue progressing toward his goal of an aviation career – a milestone DreamFlight hopes to see repeated as more of its scholars move on to collegiate and professional flight programs.
“Every one of these students has already shown us the curiosity, discipline, and heart it takes to succeed in aviation,” said Drew Underwood, Executive Director of DreamFlight Charities. “Our job is simply to remove barriers standing between them and the cockpit. Watching them progress from a discovery flight to real flight training – and in Joey’s case, from high school scholar to college aviator – is exactly why this program exists.
DreamFlight’s Flight Training Scholarship program is designed to enable students aged 14 to 18 by removing financial barriers that keep many young Kentuckians out of the cockpit. Eligible students first take part in a DreamFlight Discovery Flight or Discovery Event, allowing the organization to gauge each student’s interest, teachability, and potential for success before being awarded up to $6,000 in training.
Scholarship funds cover flight training from zero hours through near-solo flight status at a partnering flight school, training together in small peer groups – an approach that builds camaraderie and accountability alongside flying skill. Along the way, scholars are connected to DreamFlight’s broader network of mentors and local aviation community support, setting them up for continued success whether they pursue a pilot’s license, further postsecondary aviation training, or a career elsewhere in the industry.
DreamFlight Charities is a Frankfort-based nonprofit that uses aviation as a transformative tool to inspire and empower students throughout the Commonwealth. Through discovery flights, scholarship opportunities, aviation camps, and programs like their student-oriented OpenSkies Flight Club, DreamFlight works to inspire a passion for aviation, enable students by removing financial and circumstantial barriers, and encourage their growth within and beyond the cockpit – all while advocating for a stronger aviation community across Kentucky. Learn more at www.dreamflightcharities.org.
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DreamFlight Charities
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