CURRITUCK, N.C. — North Carolina is known as the birthplace of flight, and on Wednesday morning, ground was broken for a facility that will give Elizabeth City State University Students the opportunity to create more history in the skies.
The facility, dubbed the ECSU Currituck Flight Training Center, is near the airport in Currituck. The university has offered an aviation science program for a while now — but this year, the program saw a 48% growth in student enrollment, becoming the largest major at ECSU.
With this $8.1 million investment from the state legislature, ECSU will be able to move their more advanced students to Currituck, while the beginners train at the airport in Elizabeth City. Some of their 19 aircrafts and six FAA approved flight simulators will be moved over as well.
Watch related coverage: HBCUs train future aviators amid pilot, air traffic controller shortage
When News 3 spoke to ECSU’s acting chancellor, Dr. Catherine Edmonds, she discussed the need to grow the percentage of Black men and women in aviation.
According to a study done by Embry-Riddle University, another University that specializes in Aerospace, only 3.9% of pilots and plane engineers are Black.
Edmonds told News 3 that not only is ECSU the most affordable collegiate flight program in the nation, but they also offer the NC Promise Scholarship, which gives students the chance to major in aviation for just $500 per semester.
“That’s accessibility, that’s affordability, and it’s also providing and filling a gap that we know exists,” she said.
Watch related coverage: Celebrating the day Wright brothers made aviation history 121 years ago
The College of the Albermarle will be involved as well, as they run a plane maintenance program. Students can also transfer credits over to ECSU if they are interested in attending that University to further their education.
The facility is due to open some time in 2026.
