Category: Human Resources

Dolliole and Miller Launch Airport Minority Leadership Initiative

Posted on | by ScottElmore

Last month at the 2024 ACI-NA/AAAE Washington Legislative Conference, ACI-NA Chair Kevin Dolliole and AAAE Chair Perry Miller announced a new initiative called Soaring Scholars: Airport Minority Leadership Initiative, which aims to increase the percentage of minorities in leadership roles at U.S. airports. Dolliole, Director of Aviation for Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport and Miller, President and CEO of Richmond International Airport, launched this initiative to recruit, educate, and develop the best and brightest students beginning in high school, through college, and into management training positions at airports across the United States.

It will be established as an independent non-profit organization that will focus on four key strategies.

  • Identify minority high school students who are interested in the airport industry and demonstrate promising leadership talent
  • Partner with colleges and universities to create pathways to assist students in their pursuit of higher education in either aviation or any other relevant field
  • Provide students with leadership development, essential people skills learning, and coaching opportunities
  • Offer scholars internships and management track roles at airports

In the coming weeks, Brad Mims will join as the Executive Director of Soaring Scholars. Mims has served as a transportation professional in government and the private sector for over 40 years. More recently, he served as the Deputy Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, and he currently works with the U.S. Department of Transportation.

Additionally, nine airports will participate in the Soaring Scholars pilot program. These airports will help to develop the key components of the internships and management training program. They also committed to being among the first to provide employment opportunities to the highly qualified candidates developed through this initiative.

The airports are:

  • Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport
  • Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport
  • Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta International Airport
  • Long Beach Airport
  • Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport
  • Richmond International Airport
  • Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport and Washington Dulles International Airport
  • San Antonio International Airport

U of Memphis Aviation Students Learn Resiliency from 9/11’s Aviation Heroes – Explore Lessons at Workshop at MEM

Posted on | by ScottElmore

Today’s aviation students will be tomorrow’s aviation leaders – no doubt they will face challenges in an ever-evolving world.

The Human Resiliency Institute at Fordham University is partnering with Airports Council International – North America (ACI-NA), University Aviation Association and the Memphis Student Aviation Association at University of Memphis, a member of UAA, to offer an expansion of the “Reclaiming the Sky Resiliency Project” to students. The project will give students in aviation programs an opportunity to learn resiliency strengths from the example of 9/11’s aviation heroes, then convene on April 3 for a workshop at Memphis International Airport to explore the lessons.

The program is sponsored by SSP America, a division of SSP Group, a leading operator of food and beverage brands in travel locations worldwide, with other companies that will be joining to provide support for the next generation of aviation leaders.

At the workshop, the students will discuss and explore innovative ways students can apply the lessons as resiliency “tools” to meet challenges in their personal lives and in their budding aviation careers.

As part of their class work, students will have a chance to read the stories of airport and airline employees who came to work in New York, Boston and Washington, DC on the morning of 9/11 expecting a normal day, only to find that “just doing my job” was to become the creed of heroes. The stories of the heroes are chronicled in a book, “Reclaiming the Sky,” by Tom Murphy, an aviation consultant who saw first-hand how his aviation colleagues were responding with courage, selfless and resiliency to the attacks on 9/11 to rebuild their lives and reclaim hope.

The book is being offered as part of an aviation management class by University of Memphis professor Peter Reddan, an Air Force veteran. He is working with Murphy and the Human Resiliency Institute at Fordham to create a module that management professors at UAA’s other 128 member colleges and aviation schools will be able to offer for their students following implementation at University of Memphis.

The “student” category in the project combines with a module for Reclaiming the Sky and this resiliency project that was introduced in 2023 for Young Professionals working at ACI-NA member airports and will be expanded in 2024. In that module, Young Professionals – aviation employees under forty years of age at ACI-NA member airports – gain an opportunity to learn from the example of 9/11’s aviation heroes and explore how to apply the lessons to their aviation careers.

The key ingredient for business success is productivity. Resiliency is key to being productive. Reclaiming the Sky with its focus on developing resiliency strengths gives Young Professionals, and now aviation students, a chance to apply the lessons of the 9/11 heroes to enhance their productivity and achieve success in their careers and lives.

For more information about the “Reclaiming the Sky” Resiliency Project contact Tom Murphy, Director of the Human Resiliency Institute at Fordham University at Tom@TomMurphy.org.

‘Reclaiming the Sky’ Resiliency Project Winners Announced on Sept. 11 Anniversary

Posted on | by ScottElmore

Even 22 years later, the stories of esteemed aviation leaders and their response to the September 11, 2001, terror attacks continue to provide learning opportunities for the benefit of future airport industry professionals.

As we hold space today to remember those we lost and honor those who helped in the aftermath on September 11, we are proud to honor the legacy of so many aviation leaders through the “Reclaiming the Sky Resiliency Project,” an essay contest organized by the Human Resiliency Institute at Fordham University and ACI-NA to engage up-and-coming airport industry leaders.

Through this year’s essay contest, young professionals from across the airport industry were invited to read the stories of aviation heroes profiled in the book, “Reclaiming the Sky,” by Tom Murphy, and participate in a workshop with aviation mentors to explore lessons about resiliency.

Twenty-five openings were allotted for the program. Participants had the chance to learn about the stories of airport and airline employees who went to work in New York, Boston, and Washington, DC, on the morning of 9/11 expecting a normal day, only to find that “just doing my job” was to become the creed of heroes. The stories, including the powerful teachings from Susan M. Baer, the General Manager of Newark Liberty International Airport on 9/11, tell how the front-line aviation employees responded with courage, selflessness, and resiliency that day and in the weeks and months that followed to rebuild their lives and reclaim hope – while helping to get the country moving again.

This year’s winners were Michael Gyan, Project Manager, John C. Munro Hamilton International Airport; Salvatore Mendola, Director, Brands and Concept Development, Areas USA; and Deborah Blass, Arup, Associates, Security and Risk. Their award-winning essays can be read at ReclaimingTheSky.com.

In addition to cash prizes, these three winners will also be recognized for their achievements during the 2023 ACI-NA Annual Conference and Exhibition in Long Beach, CA, on October 3.

The young professionals who participated in the 2023 include Deborah Blass, Arup; Carey Metcalfe, Lee County PA; LaTarryl Hall, City of Charlotte; Ryan Thomas, Parsons Group; Adam Ussher, Dane County Airport; Anna Phillips, Columbus Airport; Michael Hamilton, Savannah Airport Commission; Michael Gyan, John C. Munro Hamilton Airport; Juan Martinez, Chicago Dept of Aviation; Antonette Chambers, Clarksville Airport; Kendall Griswold, GSP Airport; Arjun Nair, Syracuse Airport; Jimmy Vazques, San Diego Airport; Aireyanna Kennedy, Syracuse Airport; Benjamin Torres, San Diego Airport; James Gerrald, Jacobs; Ana Zivanovic, San Francisco Airport; Esther Chitsinde, HDR; Christopher Liese, Munich Airport USA Holding; Anandhi Mahalingam, Transsolutions; Kristin Jewell, Baton Rouge Airport; Julie Seglem, Areas USA; Madison Strong, Tulsa Airport; Roeland Visser, InterVISTAS; Jeff Taylor, Jacksonville Airport, Salvatore Mendola, Areas USA; Brooke Bowman, Areas USA.

Judges for the essay competition were aviation industry leaders Cedric Fulton, Virginia Buckingham, Lysa Leiponis, Eileen Ammiano, John Duval, Kathy Denker, Debbie Roland and Jennifer Juul.

For more information, visit ReclaimingTheSky.com. For aviation companies looking to participate in the expansion in 2024, contact Tom Murphy at Tom@edge4vets.org.

’60 Minutes’ Correspondent Scott Pelley: Aviation is a Miracle

Posted on | by ScottElmore

During the 2022 ACI-NA Annual Conference in Minneapolis, Alessio Olivetti caught up with Scott Pelley, the 60 Minutes correspondent and 2022 annual conference keynote, who shared his experience as tireless traveler and long-time journalist.

 

AO: You travel all around the world. It’s safe to say you’re a frequent traveler. What’s the most memorable airport experience have you ever had?

SP: My most memorable experience would have been at the very beginning of COVID, when thousands of people in the United States were dying every day.

I was covering COVID, and I was flying through Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport. I got off the plane and I was the only person in the terminal. Everything was closed. There were Texas State troopers clearing every plane and taking down the contact information for every passenger who came off.

I could hear the soles of my shoes clacketing on the floor. I was literally by myself walking through Houston Intercontinental, which I came through many times surrounded by tens of thousands of people in the terminal.

It was just such a shocking, remarkable experience to understand better in an airport than anywhere else the effects the COVID was having and would continue to have on the national economy. If Houston Intercontinental is empty of people, the economy has stopped, you can tell.

 

AO: You wanted to become an astronaut when you were a child. The U.S. has been the cradle of the aerospace industry for a century. Why are people fascinated in stories about aviation and lately about space tourism?

SP: People are still fascinated about the courage required to leave the Earth and fly beyond the atmosphere. Even though we have been watching that happen in the United States since 1957, the year I was born by the way, people are still fascinated about the images coming back from space, our astronauts on the International Space Station for example. And now in this all-new world of private companies launching people in space we are beginning to imagine, ‘Hey, it could be me, I could go too!’

In terms of aviation, there is just something about flying. I should be the most jaded airline passenger at all times. I’m a multi-million miler on many different airlines, but I’m still thrilled when I get on a plane and it leaves the ground. It never gets old.

I was on the A380 the other day, which is the size of an apartment building. The engineering involved in building something like an A380 or a 747-8 is a miracle, getting that thing off the ground almost effortlessly. Engineering is far beyond me, but I have so much respect for it.

There is another thing about aviation. People complain insensitively about their flight being delayed, canceled, or their luggage being lost. I get all of that, it’s very frustrating.

But I would argue that aviation today is a miracle. You can literally be anywhere on this Earth in 24 hours. Imagine such a thing.

I’m amazed at the way the airline industry runs all around the world with thousands of operations every day, and virtually accident-free. It’s one of the greatest achievements of man.

 

AO: What’s your favorite interview if you have one?

SP: Now I have a new favorite interview and that’s the one I did in April with Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

I’ve never met a leader of a country who has impressed me more. The courage that he took to stay in Kyiv when the Russians were coming at him in three different directions. And when he walked outside into the courtyard and filmed a video message on his phone.

That moment galvanized the country to resist. It was on the knife’s edge of collapsing until he walked out and said, ‘We’re not going anywhere, we’re all staying here.’

Just an incredibly courageous and impressive man who forced the Russians to retreat from Kyiv and from Ukraine’s second largest city, Kharkiv. He has punched way above his weight leading his people so courageously.

At the end of the interview, I said ‘Mr. President, we wish you all the luck in the world.’ He broke into English saying, ‘Half of it, I think we need half of it.’

A man with 44 million people on his shoulders and he is still having a sense of humor.

Airports Invest in Efforts to Strengthen Airport Industry Workforce

Posted on | by ScottElmore

Like so many other industries in our economy, airports have not been immune to the workforce challenges as we emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic and the booming summer travel season we find ourselves in today.

For airports, it’s a two-fold challenge. Directly, airports are working to ensure they have the right teams in place to manage airport operations and strategic planning.  Indirectly, airports are also seeing labor challenges among their business partners.

Labor challenges, particularly among highly skilled trades and technical roles, remain for airports.  As airports continue their capital improvement programs and deploy innovative technologies to improve the passenger experience, they are continuing to feel the crunch.  Airports have also experienced widespread retirements and people exiting the industry after two very difficult years.

“Our industry is constantly changing — especially in light of the pandemic — and it’s important that we continue to look to the future to identify both the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead,” said ACI-NA President and CEO Kevin M. Burke. “One of the most critical areas that will help shape and grow the airport industry is its workforce — the individuals who keep passengers safe, maintain facilities, and improve the airport experience for everyone who passes through them.

Earlier this year, ACI-NA released a report on factors that will shape the future of the airport workforce. The report identifies key skills that will be required of employees and most industry occupations in the future and provides high-level strategies to address and collectively plan for future workforce challenges.

By outlining key areas in which airports and managers should focus their attention and resources, as well as strategies to meet evolving needs, we can ensure that we are doing everything we can to continue improving the future of our industry and its workforce.

Labor is not just an airport challenge.  Everyone from the airlines to concessionaires and rental car companies to government agencies like TSA find themselves needing talent to keep pace with demand. Airports remain committed to working with their tenants and business partners that operate at the airport to address their own workforce challenges in a collaborative effort to provide a top-notch guest experience for everyone passing through their terminals.

Airports are taking a holistic approach and working closely with their partners to develop new pipelines for talent.  Whether partnering with local trade schools, collaborating with governments and community organizations, or hosting career fairs, airports are bringing together stakeholders to solve the labor challenge together.

In recent years, many airports like Los Angeles International Airport, JFK International Airport, and the Houston Airport System have looked to Edge4Vets, an organization that helps military veterans translate their military skills into civilian roles at airports, to facilitate connections among veterans’ organizations in local communities.  Charlotte Douglas International Airport will join the growing number of airports involved with Edge4Vets later this year. Edge4Vets continues to be a leading organization in providing talent solutions for airports and their partners by leveraging the strengths and skills of military veterans.

“Edge4Vets helps train military service personnel – including veterans, National Guard, transitioning active duty and spouses – for jobs that can lead to aviation careers and give airport HR recruiters access to talent-rich employees who can bring strong values and unique skills to their workforce that have been depleted by the COVID pandemic,” said Edge4Vets founder and Director of the Human Resiliency Institute at Fordham University, Tom Murphy.

For more information about Edge4Vets, visit edge4vets.org. To join the network of ACI-NA airports participating in the national expansion, contact Nancy Zimini or Tom Murphy.

Airports Council Establishes DEI Working Group to Drive Association Efforts

Posted on | by RaechelRucker

Airports Council International – North America (ACI-NA), the trade association representing commercial service airports in the United States and Canada, today announced the formation of its Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Working Group.  Comprised of professionals and DEI experts from across the organization, ACI-NA’s DEI Working Group will help propel the association’s work in this important area moving forward.

“Our industry has a strong record of success in creating opportunities,” said ACI-NA President and CEO Kevin Burke.  “Our industry is a driver of change because of our strong commitments to diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging initiatives and we look forward to the input from our new working group to further advance our industry’s leadership.”

Despite the pandemic that nearly crippled the North American airport industry, airports have not neglected their social responsibility priorities, especially in the areas of DEI.

The North American airport industry has a strong reputation of promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion, and strengthening partnerships with their local communities.  But, this work has not been easy.  In fact, it is quite complex.  That’s why it is necessary to continue learning and listening about the work being done in this area.

The DEI Working Group will take a deep dive into our industry’s commitments to DEI issues and assist the association in developing a clear and actionable approach to one of the most important leading issues of our time.  The working group will help chart a path forward on how ACI-NA as an organization can contribute.

The high caliber of participants on the working group bring vast perspectives and represent every facet of the North American airport industry.  The group will be chaired by Tanisha Lewis, Vice President of Diversity, Inclusion and Social Impact for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority.  Debi Marshall, Director of Human Resources, Syracuse Regional Airport Authority, will serve as the vice chair. Danette Bewley, President and CEO of the Tucson Airport Authority will serve as the liaison to the ACI-NA Board of Directors.  Solomon Wong, President and CEO of InterVISTAS Consulting, will serve as the associates representative on the working group.

Participants on the ACI-NA DEI Working Group also include:

Barbara Alexander
Shared Prosperity Program Specialist
Port of Portland

Molara  Awosedo
Director, DEI
Greater Toronto Airports Authority

Michelle Brega
Senior Director, External Affairs
San Diego County Regional Airport Authority

Regina Carson
Human Resources Manager
Peninsula Airport Commission

Thiané Carter
Small Business Program Officer
Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority

Loriann Chace
Senior Aviation Economic Develop Specialist
Sacramento International Airport

Christy Cheever
Paine Field / Snohomish County Airport
Airport Administration in Human Resources

Mike Christie    
Vice President, Human Resources
Halifax International Airport Authority

Patti Colbry
Human Resources Director
Tulsa Airports Improvement Trust

Kim dela Torre
Manager of Talent/People Operations
Tucson Airport Authority

Elise Durham
Assistant General Manager, Business Diversity
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport

Meg Gibson 
Manager, Learning & Professional Development
Charlotte-Douglas International Airport

Lorri Graybeal
Human Resources Manager
Roanoke Regional Airport

Louis Gutierrez  
Chief, Human Capital & Equity Officer
Los Angeles World Airports

Teika Jefferson
DEI, Manager
Minneapolis-Saint Paul Metropolitan Airports Commission

Maria Kim 
CFO
Gerald R. Ford International Airport

Andrew Martz 
Assistant Director, Communications & Development
Eugene Airport

Elita McMillon
Assistant General Counsel
Tampa International Airport

Gina Stough
Vice President, Human Resources
Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport

Elise Thomas
Environmental Manager
Fairbanks International Airport

Jonanthan Todd
Manager, Workforce Development
Philadelphia International Airport

Guadalupe Torres
Community Investment Manager
Seattle-Tacoma International Airport

Jayme Verish  
Assistant Airport Director, Operations & Maintenance
Idaho Falls Regional Airport

Solomon Wong
President and CEO
InterVISTAS

Karen Zygun      
Director, Human Resources
Vancouver Airport Authority

Celebrating April as U.S. Airport Professional Appreciation Month

Posted on | by ScottElmore

 

As U.S. Airport Professional Appreciation Month comes to a close, we have been so excited to celebrate the airport industry professionals who are demonstrating their commitment to industry excellence and professional development.  We recently caught up with Sylvia A. Palmer, Vice President, Operations and Regulatory Affairs, at the Airport Consultants Council to learn about her experience in the program.  Sylvia recently completed her USAP studies and is now an accredited U.S. Airport Professional.  She is one of eleven students to be celebrated this first U.S. Airport Professional Appreciation Month!

ACI-NA: Why did you decide to enroll in USAP?

SP: In 2020, as the aviation industry was undergoing massive disruption, I desired a resource that would provide a comprehensive overview of the entire U.S. airport system as we knew it, and the all-encompassing evolution occurring as a result of the pandemic’s wide-reaching impact on the aviation industry.

ACI-NA: How is USAP making you a better airport industry professional?

SP: The USAP program’s detailed and well-constructed modules touched on every aspect of the U.S. airport ecosystem, in a cohesive manner. It helped me understand the changing industry landscape, and operational and management strategies that would help to re-invent the overall airport and travel experience. The program is also helping me better understand how to engage airport development stakeholders and regulatory bodies in the advancement of a more resilient, efficient, sustainable, customer-centric aviation system.

ACI-NA: What would you say to a friend or colleague who expresses interest in USAP?

SP: I endorse the USAP program for anyone who desires to grow as a leader within the aviation industry. It strengthens the critical skills necessary to effectively manage and lead change in the current dynamic airport environment. Congratulations to ACI-NA for delivering such rigorous professional development, and thank you for the opportunity to participate.

About the USAP Accreditation Program

In 2020, ACI-NA launched an accredited e-learning training curriculum, the U.S. Airport Professional (USAP) Program, to equip students with the leadership and strategic management skills necessary for personal and professional advancement in the U.S. airport industry.  The program was developed in collaboration with U.S. airport industry and professional development experts.

Comprised of seven online courses and a writing assignment, the USAP accreditation program covers the full range of current airport management topics, including leadership development, business strategy, commercial management, finance, operations, safety, security, air service, and more.  Each student who completes the program is permitted to use the USAP credential to demonstrate their understanding of the U.S. airport system.

Learn more about the U.S. Airport Professional accreditation program at www.usairportprofessional.org.

 

Houston Airport System Showcases Edge4Vets “Success Vets”

Posted on | by ScottElmore

By Tom Murphy, Director, Human Resiliency Institute at Fordham University.

As airports strive to rebuild their workforces after the pandemic, there is no better employee than a military veteran. However, studies show that veterans need support to translate their military skills into tools for civilian success. ACI-NA continues work with the Edge4Vets program conducted by the Human Resiliency Institute at Fordham University in New York to accomplish the task.

And it’s working. The Human Resources Department at Houston Airport System (HAS) is leading in the implementation of the online Edge4Vets training for veterans in the Houston community and that is serving as platform for national expansion.

A new video, “Edge4Vets – Success Vets,” profiles two veterans, Chris Mercado and Don Konecki, who took the training at HAS, got hired, and now are performing at a high level.

Research shows that veterans bring unique skills, including a strong work ethic, a desire for responsibility and an ability to work as a team, but often because they don’t possess a strong network of contacts after separating from the military they can have a hard time breaking in.

Chris and Don talk about the frustration of applying for jobs before Edge4Vets and never hearing back – in the video Chris calls looking for a job “like being in a black hole.”

Both attest to benefits they gained from taking Edge4Vets, including instruction to identify their transferable skills from the military, support to articulate their skills in civilian terms and learning how to create a personal “PLAN4SUCCESS” for an “edge” to get hired. In addition, they talk about help they received from HAS HR staff and hiring managers who served as mentors to guide them during the training.

The Edge4Vets online course is being expanded for all airports that are ACI-NA members, and HAS is offering a SPRING 2022 workshop series beginning April 14. The program has the support of colleges in the Houston community, local veterans’ groups as well as University Aviation Association which will be participating in the national expansion of the program.

For more information about Edge4Vets, visit edge4vets.org.

To join the network of ACI-NA airports participating in the national expansion, contact Nancy Zimini or Tom Murphy.

Edge4Vets and ACI-NA Expand Online Training to Accelerate Veterans into Airport Workforce

Posted on | by RaechelRucker

By Tom Murphy, Director, Human Resiliency Institute, Fordham University

Edge4Vets will expand its veteran employment training program offered in partnership with ACI-NA in the spring of 2022 to give a broad array of airports in the U.S. and Canada an opportunity to accelerate veterans into their workforce over the next few years as airports build back talent and the industry continues to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Edge4Vets model of PREP and CONNECT proved effective when it was offered in-person at six airports prior to the pandemic. This fall, the Human Resiliency Institute at Fordham University, which offers Edge4Vets, will roll out its online training product to several ACI-NA member airports in order to lay the foundation for the online approach over the next few years.

The Houston Airport System (HAS) recently served as a successful test case for the online program. Thirty-five veterans participated in the online course. The online model consists of two ZOOM sessions and an online course veterans may take at their own pace to learn how to translate their military strengths and create a personal PLAN4SUCCESS. Edge4Vets also worked with HAS to set up a recruitment program that included outreach to veterans in the Houston community, as well as enlistment of schools with veterans studying on the GI Bill.

The online course will be offered in the spring of 2022 for HAS as well two to three additional airports to build a network of airports participating in the program. The goal is to grow the Edge4Vets system of PREP and CONNECT and offer the program to dozens of airports simultaneously over the next few years. Buffalo Niagara International Airport has committed to join HAS for the spring offering, and two other airports are currently exploring the procurement process. Beginning in the spring of 2022, Embry–Riddle Aeronautical University will work with Edge4Vets to publicize the training workshop series to its student and veterans studying aviation world-wide and give them an opportunity to connect to jobs at airports in the ACI-NA/Edge4Vets network.

Edge4Vets teaches veterans how to translate their military strengths into tools for civilian success, and then connects them with human resources professionals at participating airports to learn about career opportunities. They watch videos, do exercises and create a personal PLAN4SUCCESS with statements in four areas: Vision, Values, Skills and an Action Plan.

For more information on Edge4Vets and the online training system of PREP and CONNECT, please visit Edge4Vets.org.

To learn more about how your airport can participate in the expansion of this program, please contact Nancy Zimini, ACI-NA’s Chief Administration and Operations Officer at NZimini@airportscouncil.org.

ACI-NA Joins Collaboration to Honor Aviation Heroes of 9/11

Posted on | by RaechelRucker

By Tom Murphy, Director, Human Resiliency Institute, Fordham University

The airport industry is no stranger to adversity. We have faced many challenges over the years, though none can stand against September 11, 2001 and the COVID-19 pandemic. These crises, nearly two decades apart, represent the greatest disruptions aviation has ever seen. However, resilience is the hallmark of the airport industry. We always respond, no matter the challenge and that spirit will never give way to defeat.

The 20th anniversary of September 11, 2001 is drawing near at a time when the airport industry is moving steps forward on the path to recovery from COVID-19. This presents an opportunity to reflect on the obstacles that resulted from September 11th, learn and apply those principles to the existing crisis.

Fordham University’s Human Resiliency Institute is working in partnership with other aviation industry organizations, including ACI-NA, to give today’s aviation workers and students an opportunity to learn resiliency lessons from September 11th’s aviation heroes.

The project, Reclaiming the Sky Resiliency Essay Competition, will be part of a tribute to aviation workers on the 20th Anniversary of September 11th later this year. This project draws on the courageous stories of airport and airline workers in Boston, New Jersey, New York, Washington, D.C. and Shanksville, PA, profiled in Tom Murphy’s book, Reclaiming the Sky: 9/11 and the Untold Story of the Men and Women Who Kept America Flying.

The essay competition will kick off on Wednesday, April 21 with a webinar featuring representatives from several organizations and others in aviation to collaboratively put a focus on the courage of aviation workers on September 11th and make “Never Forget” into an action statement.

In addition, ACI-NA’s Human Resources Committee will assist in leading an awareness campaign at its member airports to promote this project.

The essay competition is divided into three categories: Airport Workers, Airline Employees (including flight attendants and pilots,) and Students. The award in the Airport category will be named for the late Susan Baer, former General Manager of Newark Liberty International Airport on September 11, 2001 where Flight 93 departed. The Airline category will be named for Ken and Jennifer Lewis, husband and wife flight attendants who perished on Flight 77 that crashed into the Pentagon. The Student category will named for Marianne MacFarlane and Jesus Sanchez, two United Airlines agents at Boston Logan International Airport who perished on Flight 175 that crashed into the South Tower. Honorable Mention awards will be named for Betty Ong, the American Airlines flight attendant who called in from Flight 11 to report the hijackers. Awards of $1000 will be presented for each category.

Essays will be accepted online at reclaimingthesky.com until Tuesday, August 10. The announcement of the winners will be made in early September as part of the commemoration of the 20th anniversary of September 11, 2001.

For full details on the project, and to register, please visit reclaimingthesky.com. Program details can also be seen in a video clip here.