By LESLIE EIKLEBERRY
Salina Post
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and Kansas State University Salina Aerospace and Technology Campus are partnering on a unique program to prepare students to serve as officers and pilots with the NOAA Commissioned Officer Corps.
"K-State is excited that this partnership will prepare graduates with the skills necessary for this type of national service. By participating in this program, students will receive specialized training and education during their undergraduate experience that will allow them to transition directly into their NOAA career upon graduation," Alysia Starkey, chief executive officer and dean of K-State Salina, told the crowd of K-State Salina students and employees, civic leaders, and others.
Officers in the NOAA Corps fly specialized aircraft and support a variety of missions, including hurricane research, reconnaissance and surveillance, marine mammal and snow surveys, coastal mapping, and emergency response. The NOAA Corps is one of the United States' eight uniformed services.
U.S. Senator Jerry Moran (R.-Kan.), who was instrumental in helping the program become a reality, and Rear Admiral Nancy Hann, deputy director of the NOAA Corps and NOAA Office of Marine and Aviation Operations, were on the K-State Salina campus this afternoon to sign the program agreement with Starkey.
Moran, who is the ranking Republican on the committee that appropriates funds for NOAA, said it was fortunate for him that his path crossed with Hahn during a trip to Lakeland, Fla., to see where NOAA's aircraft operations are headquartered.
"During that conversation and others, we worked to see what is it that Kansans can do to be able to help NOAA in its very important mission of providing us with information, with research, with predictions, with responses so that we can better protect life and property," Moran said.
Because of legislation that Congress passed within the past year, NOAA can begin training its pilots on the K-State Salina campus, which also provides students the opportunity for experience and potential careers that they might not otherwise have had, Moran said.
"What we come here to celebrate today is the opportunity to combine (what) an asset in Kansas - Kansas State Salina - and NOAA can do as a partner to make things better for both NOAA and Kansas State, its faculty, and its students," Moran said.
Under the agreement, NOAA and K-State Salina will develop an undergraduate program to equip students with the science, technology, engineering, and math skills required to join the NOAA Corps. The program, which will be housed at K-State Salina, will include dynamic flight training, according to information from K-State Salina.
Currently, most NOAA Corps officers begin their careers serving aboard a NOAA ship with the opportunity to pilot NOAA aircraft after their sea tour if they meet the appropriate requirements. Students who successfully complete the program at K-State Salina and the subsequent basic officer training at the NOAA Corps Officer Training Center in New London, Conn., will immediately begin supporting NOAA flight operations, according to information about the new program.
Hann said that K-State Salina is a great fit for what NOAA does.
"Looking at the students, this is such an exciting opportunity for you. I remember when I was in your position and thinking about the opportunities that I've had being a NOAA Commissioned Corps officer. Flying for NOAA is truly phenominal," Hann said.
The admiral spoke about the ever-increasing need for weather data.
"Sen. Moran mentioned that we fly the tornado research which is absolutely valuable to those forecasts. We fly research that informs the water forecast, so it determines when the reservoirs are opened and closed. We fly hurricane research," Hann said. "The demands that we've seen for the data with NOAA aircraft has never been higher. I never imagined that I would see anything like this in the course of my career. I think hurricanes alone had 100 percent increase in demand in five years."
Speaking to the student pilots in attendance, she added, "The senator kind of gave you a spoiler alert. We do all the things they're going to tell you in flight school not to do. We fly into tornadoes. We fly into hurricanes. We fly 500 feet off the water because that's where the data is needed to make really critical decisions and protect people."
According to information provided by NOAA and K-State Salina, a call for applications will be issed once the new program is fully developed. In the meantime, the NOAA Corps continues to accept applications from anyone who meets the service's basic eligibility requirements and is prepared to serve their country in uniform.