The air racing team known as the Racing Aces has created a $5,000 scholarship for women seeking flight training or other kinds of aviation training or education.
The Racing Aces—Dianna Stanger, Joyce Wilson, and Erin Cude—took the top prize in the 2014 Air Race Classic women’s air race. The team said it is funding the new scholarship with winnings and sponsorships to underwrite aviation education for women.
The scholarship funds may be used toward anything directly aviation related. This includes flight training, including advanced ratings and certificates, as well as air traffic controller or mechanic training.
Qualified applicants should be planning a career in any area of aviation, and must be accepted and enrolled full-time in an accredited U.S. college or university, or enrolled in a flight school.
The deadline to apply is Nov. 30. Complete information and requirements may be found on the website. The scholarship will be awarded at the Women in Aviation International Conference, March 5 through 7, 2015, in Dallas.
“We are racing for women’s education in aviation,” Stanger said. “Today only 6 percent of pilots in the United States are women. There should be so many more—it’s a great career opportunity and we believe women can contribute so much to aviation as pilots or in any capacity. This scholarship will hopefully encourage more women to pursue an education in aviation whether it’s as an air traffic controller, mechanic, or pilot.”
The Racing Aces previously won the Air Race Classic in 2012. Team members Stanger and Victoria Holt subsequently awarded a $5,000 scholarship to Whitney Brouwer, then a senior flight science major at LeTourneau University in Longview, Texas.