The aviation field requires on-the-job experience that classroom instruction alone cannot provide. And Sophia Schiappa, ’24, is discovering there’s no better training opportunity than an internship at New England’s busiest airport.  

“It’s such a hands-on industry,” said Sophia, an aviation management major from Wareham who is interning at Logan International Airport. “It’s an environment you have to be in to succeed.”  

Sophia first worked at Logan for Cape Air, which flies from Boston to destinations in New England and upstate New York. In January, she began what has become a year-long internship with Massport, the public agency that runs Logan.   

Sophia works in operations at Terminal E, which handles most international flights. She helps ensure smooth communication and collaboration between Massport, airlines, ground crews and others who help passengers travel to faraway destinations such as Dubai, Tokyo and Paris.   

“I’m kind of like a middleman,” said Sophia, who interned this summer alongside fellow Bear Catherine Cummings, ’23. “I communicate about delays, weather and irregular operations and assist the airlines with whatever they need.”  

Every day brings new experiences and challenges – and that’s just what Sophia is seeking in a career. Her internship even coincided with the construction and opening of a four-gate extension to Terminal E.  

On campus, Sophia is president and co-founder of the Women in Aviation club, which organizes field trips and community service activities. Sophia enjoys helping new students acclimate to BSU and the aviation field.  

“I remember being a freshman at �����ؿ���Ƶ State and feeling a little lost with what I wanted to do,” she said. “Now it feels like I have a sense of who I am.”  

During her internship, she helped run a STEM expo for high school students, an experience that further solidified her plans.  

Sophia aims to continue giving back throughout a career that she hopes leads back to Logan Airport.   

“Being able to support such a major facility in the state of Massachusetts would mean a lot to me,” she said. “Plus, I enjoy what I’m doing. I can blend a personal passion and a career.”

Do you have a BSU story you'd like to share? Email stories@bridgew.edu.

I remember being a freshman at �����ؿ���Ƶ State and feeling a little lost with what I wanted to do. Now it feels like I have a sense of who I am.

For a long time, Emily Hartmann’s singular dream was to become a doctor.

Then she learned about flying.

The Brockton High School freshman was one of seven ninth- and tenth-graders who were part of the inaugural cohort of the Gateways to the Airways program, founded last year by the Department of Aviation Science. The students who enrolled in the free, seven-week program flew drones, sat behind the controls of a flight simulator, visited Logan International Airport in Boston and even took the controls of a BSU training aircraft in midflight.

“I thought it was a really good experience not a lot of students get to have,” Emily said. “It changed my perspective.”

That’s the goal of the Gateways program: to reach out to area high school students, particularly those who are strong in the STEM fields but who ordinarily might not think about a career in aviation; specifically, women, people of color and LBGTQ individuals who are remarkably underrepresented in the profession. Further, those who are already working in the industry face obstacles to future advancement.

“This is a valuable program,” said Dr. Jeanean Davis-Street, dean of the Louis M. Ricciardi College of Business. “And its key goal is to increase diversity in the industry.”

Indeed, it’s hard to imagine an industry less diverse than aviation.

The Numbers

The presentation is an eye opener. Sitting in BSU’s satellite office at Brockton High School as part of the BSU@BHS initiative launched in fall 2019, Loren Herren described the demographics of those working in aviation today. Mr. Herren, who last summer was named special assistant for aviation program diversity, spends one day a week at the local school. During the presentation, he pointed to a particularly telling graphic. It indicated just how few women, people of color, and LBGTQ individuals currently work as pilots or airport and aviation administrators: Each group registers below five percent of the total.

Wait, there’s more. Much more.

“People hear ‘aviation,’ and they think ‘airplane’ or ‘pilot.’ The industry is much broader than that,” Mr. Herren said.

Commercial pilots represent just one of the many career opportunities in aviation. In fact, there are dozens of
aviation jobs that don’t require climbing into the cockpit, from air traffic controller to dispatcher to airport security. And they’re good-paying jobs at that.

In his new position, Mr. Herren is charged with reaching out to the high schools and middle schools in the state, including nearby “gateway” cities – Taunton, New Bedford, Fall River and Brockton (so-designated by the Massachusetts legislature due to their status as midsized urban centers that anchor regional economies). He’s on the lookout for students with an interest in or are adept at STEM subjects who might never have given a thought to a career in aviation. “That’s the message we want to get out, and we want to provide that information to folks, because STEM offers one of the best pathways to take advantage of these opportunities. So if we can get the kids interested, it’s a win-win.”

Mr. Herren, a pilot and flight instructor who previously served as BSU’s chief flight instructor, is also working with organizations such as the Boys & Girls Clubs of America and Girls Inc., as well as other area schools. He hopes 2020 will see an expansion of Gateways to the Airways. Funding for the program’s launch was provided in partnership with the New England Chapter of Tuskegee Airmen Inc. and Empower Yourself LTD. Most of the program’s sessions are held at BSU’s Flight Training Center in New Bedford.

In December, a luncheon and graduation ceremony were held on campus to celebrate the students’ successful navigation of the program. The members of the event’s panel discussion and other speakers each sent the graduates a message: Yes, you can do this.

Kevin Scott, a Brockton High sophomore, took that message to heart. “There are a bunch of opportunities in aviation,” he said. “If you push yourself and learn all about it you can, you can become whatever you want.”

As for actually flying a plane?

“It was fun,” he said.

Matthew Elkins, ’20, recently made institutional history as the first �����ؿ���Ƶ State University student to earn Top Pilot honors at a National Intercollegiate Flying Association regional competition. He did so at the 2019 NIFA Regional 7 SafeCon competition hosted in late October by BSU at the New Bedford Regional Airport.

“It means a lot to be the first pilot from �����ؿ���Ƶ to have received this achievement and I am very proud of the accomplishment, but I am also very proud that our team got second place,” said Matthew, who serves as team co-captain.

The Flying Bears, as they’re better known, emphasize the importance of teamwork, which has contributed to the team’s success in recent years.

The second-place finish at the regional event earns the squad its seventh trip to compete in the championships, scheduled for May in Oshkosh, Wisconsin.

"The students are very dedicated and work hard at their craft,” said Michael Farley, aviation professor. “They support each other to make sure each student has a chance to be successful.”

SafeCon competitions host a variety of events, all focused on safety. These competitions help up-and-coming pilots prepare for their futures flying the friendly skies. Some of the events include simulated comprehensive aeronautical navigation, ground training, short-field landing and computer accuracy.

Co-captain Tyler Harrington, ’21, earned two medals and one trophy at the October competition, but it’s not the accolades that inspire him, it’s being part of the 16-member BSU Bears Flight team.

“I am honored to be captain of such a great team. This is truly a unique team where every member contributes in one way or another,” Tyler said. “I couldn’t be prouder of what this team has accomplished over the years and during this competition. I look forward to nationals in May and am excited to see what the team can further achieve.”

For more information on the BSU Bears Flight team visit, /department/aviation-science.

If you have a BSU story you'd like to share email stories@bridgew.edu 

It means a lot to be the first pilot from �����ؿ���Ƶ to have received this achievement and I am very proud of the accomplishment, but I am also very proud that our team got second place.

Little did Nick Gosselin know that his decision to attend a meeting to learn more about the �����ؿ���Ƶ State University flight team, would lead to soaring through the Alaskan skies.

Gosselin arrived at BSU from Newtown, Connecticut, to study aviation management. To immerse himself in campus life, he went to the meeting where he also learned of a summer work program in Alaska.

“I almost didn’t go, I remember thinking I had something better to do,” the 2018 graduate joked.

But, as it is often in life, a seemingly innocuous choice led to success. He ended up taking part in the program and for three summers worked for PenAir in King Salmon, Alaska, as an operations and ramp agent.

When he was back on campus, Gosselin continued to build his résumé by towing banners for a company on Cape Cod. He also began leading piloted skydiving expeditions.

Those experiences led him to his current position as a pilot for Grant Aviation in Bethel, Alaska. His job entails flying a small-engine plane to remote villages in the state’s back country.

“The only way to access them is by air,” Gosselin said.

Not only does he transport people but also brings groceries and supplies.

“We transport everything, even the kitchen sink,” he said.

Working in Alaska, sometimes referred to as the crossroads of the world, is a dream come true for the young pilot.

“Flying up here is something else,” Gosselin said. “It’s a beautiful state and a different world from back home, especially in the more rural parts.”

Gosselin credits BSU for helping him earn his wings and encourages others to take advantage of the many opportunities his alma mater offers.

“Coming from Connecticut I didn’t know anyone in the aviation industry. I can’t think of any other way that door would have opened if I didn’t go to �����ؿ���Ƶ State,” he said.

And, just like he learned, going out of your comfort zone can sometimes yield amazing results.

“Dabble in everything, even if you don’t like it and it doesn’t stick it might teach you something,” he said. “You never know where you’ll meet that friend or come upon a crazy experience like being able to work in Alaska.”

Do you have a BSU story you'd like to share? Email stories@bridgew.edu  

Coming from Connecticut I didn’t know anyone in the aviation industry. I can’t think of any other way that door would have opened if I didn’t go to �����ؿ���Ƶ State.