Jetrader - Summer 2016 - 49

Generation

I

It has been a little over a year since I
have had the honor of chairing the ISTAT
Foundation and time has been flying (pun
intended!). I continue to be impressed by
just how diligently my fellow trustees work
to keep the aviation community engaged
in and apprised of all the efforts of the
Foundation. In this article, I am pleased
to update you on the organization's recent
activities, as well as to bring you up to
speed on some exciting new initiatives
under way for 2016.
I would first like to thank one of our
outgoing trustees, Dana Lockhart; as
a past scholarship committee chairman, it was under Dana's leadership that
the Foundation was able to elevate our
Scholarship Program. Thank you, Dana! At
the same time, I would like to welcome our
newest Foundation Trustees who joined
the board in March of this year; Murrae
Ross-Eskell, Andy La Stella, Eddo Weijer,
and Mohamed El-Borai, and our recently
reelected Foundation Trustees, Peter
Huijbers, Sigthor Einarsson, and Julian
Balaam. I am sure you'll agree with me
that the wealth of knowledge, energy, and
commitment brought to the table by these
seven individuals is impressive!
However, it isn't just our trustees that
work tirelessly to make a difference. We
have over 35 committee members that work
behind the scenes to help the Foundation
achieve its goals. Thanks to the efforts
of this committed group this past year,
the Foundation reached a number of milestone achievements. In 2015, the Grants
Committee gifted funds to more non-profit
organizations than ever before, while our
Humanitarian Committee has expanded its

reach to five different continents. While
the final awards haven't been made at the
time this article is being written, we are
on track for the Scholarship Committee to
award the largest number of scholarships
in our history, significantly exceeding two
million dollars in funds awarded since 2006.
These scholarships, through the generosity of ISTAT, our members, the Roundtable
donors, and corporate sponsors, help combat the growing cost of higher education
for our students. The Internship program
is also in full swing, with a number of students already at the desks of our member
companies. I look forward to sharing more
about the success of our Scholarship and
Internship programs in a future edition
of Jetrader.
Finally, the ISTAT University program
graduated its first class in December 2015,
with another cohort that followed this past
January. Students have praised the quality and depth of the course material, and
I am looking forward to the September
2016 launch of ISTAT U 2.0. This internetbased curriculum will provide the same
real world practical knowledge that is otherwise unavailable to students studying
at universities around the globe. ISTAT
U 2.0 is now accepting applications from
university students. If you know a student with an interest and passion for our
industry, please share this exciting news
about ISTAT U! Check out our website at
www.istat.org/istatu for more information
on how they can enroll.
The Foundation is doing more than ever
before and we are working hard to find
new and unique ways to communicate with
you and to the industry at large. While I
Jetrader  *  Summer 2016 49
http://www.istat.org/istatu
Jetrader - Summer 2016

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