{"id":57634,"date":"2024-09-16T10:00:00","date_gmt":"2024-09-16T14:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/?p=57634"},"modified":"2024-09-19T10:16:33","modified_gmt":"2024-09-19T14:16:33","slug":"new-scholarship-helps-future-aviators-take-flight-at-emu","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/emu.edu\/now\/news\/2024\/new-scholarship-helps-future-aviators-take-flight-at-emu\/","title":{"rendered":"New scholarship helps future aviators take flight at EMU"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

J. Leonard \u201cLen\u201d Hartman <\/strong>(1931-2022<\/a>) was a man of many talents and interests. The native of Albemarle County, Virginia, worked for the C&O Railroad, was a cattle farmer, and managed a number of rental properties. As a Marine Corps veteran and lifetime member of the American Legion, he attended many military funerals on the honor guard.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Perhaps the greatest love in his life\u2014other than his wife, Frances, and their children\u2014was aviation. Hartman, an instrument-rated pilot since 1959, managed a small airfield east of Charlottesville in the 1960s. He enjoyed flying through the skies above his home \u201clow and slow\u201d in his 1966 Cessna 172, recalled his friend and legal adviser Marshall Yoder<\/strong>. Hartman delighted in taking his family on his flights and seeing the scenery from a fresh perspective.<\/p>\n\n\n

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J. Leonard \u201cLen\u201d Hartman pilots his 1966 Cessna 172. (Photo courtesy of Angela Loeser) <\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cLen was a skilled pilot,\u201d Yoder said. \u201cHe would float down and there would barely be a \u2018thump\u2019 when he\u2019d land.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As he entered his 90s, Hartman stopped flying his plane as often and began talking to Yoder about parting with it. He wanted to leave it in the right hands, where it could do the most good. But, he hadn\u2019t yet found the right cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Yoder told him about the burgeoning aviation program at EMU Lancaster<\/a> and how his plane could greatly impact the next generation of pilots, Hartman found his answer. Before his death in February 2022, Hartman ensured that his beloved Cessna, as well as 25 percent of his estate, would be gifted to EMU. Because the gift was unrestricted, the university and its advancement division could decide how best to use it.<\/p>\n\n\n

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J. Leonard \u201cLen\u201d Hartman, right, with stepdaughter Angela Loeser. (Photo courtesy of Angela Loeser) <\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cLen knew there was a worldwide shortage of pilots, and he knew there would always be people interested in flight,\u201d said Braydon Hoover<\/strong>, who worked with Hartman and Yoder on establishing the endowment. \u201cAnd so, to honor his memory, we decided to put it all into a scholarship named after him.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The J. Leonard \u201cLen\u201d Hartman Scholarship for Aviation will provide more than $17,000 in funds each year, starting in fall 2025, for aviation students at EMU Lancaster who demonstrate financial need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Hartman endowment totals about $345,000, which includes $20,000 from the sale of the Cessna. Hartman\u2019s gift will help EMU live into its vision of opening new pathways of access and achievement, a vision outlined in the university\u2019s 2023-28 strategic plan<\/a>, Pathways of Promise: Preparing Tomorrow\u2019s Unifying Leaders<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt has quickly become one of our larger named endowed scholarships,\u201d Hoover said, \u201cfor one of the fastest growing programs at EMU.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You can contribute to scholarships for future aviators at EMU by donating online at emu.edu\/giving<\/a><\/strong> and typing \u201cJ. Leonard Hartman Aviation Scholarship\u201d or \u201cScholarship for Aviation\u201d into the text field. Contact kirk.shisler@emu.edu for more details on how to support this worthy cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

John Sibole<\/strong>, director of aviation at EMU Lancaster, said the scholarships will allow the program to further diversify its student body and recruit students from new areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe at EMU Lancaster would like to express our sincere gratitude for the implementation of the Len Hartman scholarship fund for our aviation students,\u201d Sibole said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe flight training component of their education is expensive, and these scholarships, which will be awarded in part on a needs basis, will provide new pathways of access into the aviation profession for underserved young people,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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EMU\u2019s aviation program soars<\/h2>\n\n\n
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Will Stover, a third-year aviation student, said he chose to attend EMU Lancaster’s aviation program due to its guaranteed flight slots and access to aircraft and instructors.<\/strong> (Photo by Macson McGuigan\/EMU)<\/strong><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Word is spreading throughout the aviation industry about the strength of EMU\u2019s program and the quality of its graduates. As a result, the EMU aviation program continues to grow in popularity. The program, which began in 2018 with five students, will welcome 24 students this upcoming semester\u2014its largest cohort yet. Current enrollment in the program is at 49 students. A total of 21 students, in three cohorts so far, have graduated from the program to date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Students enrolled in the four-year Leadership and Organizational Management (LOM) major with an aviation concentration earn a bachelor\u2019s degree and the FAA credentials they need to become professional pilots. Students are paired with flight instructors though EMU\u2019s flight training partner Aero-Tech Services Inc.<\/a> at the Lancaster Airport in Lititz, Pennsylvania. While the program provides at least 270 hours of flight time, many students earn up to 1,000 hours by the time they graduate, said Sibole, noting that nearly 100 percent of their students find jobs within their first year of graduating.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One of the benefits of an aviation program the size of EMU\u2019s is that students are given guaranteed weekly flight training slots with access to aircraft and an instructor. That\u2019s something, Sibole said, that isn\u2019t available at a lot of larger schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s a major reason Will Stover<\/strong>, a third-year aviation student, chose to attend EMU.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cYou\u2019re going to be flying pretty much from day one,\u201d he said. \u201cAnd you have guaranteed flight slots, so there\u2019s no question you\u2019ll be flying and you\u2019ll be flying regularly.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When students enter their senior year, they are required to complete a supervised internship with an established aviation organization for a full semester. For many aviation graduates, those internships translate into full-time careers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During her senior year, Ivy Kreiser<\/strong>, a member of the program\u2019s first cohort, interned at Venture Jets<\/a>, a private charter and aviation services company in Lancaster. She landed a job there after graduating in 2022 and now works there as a second-in-command.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Becoming a pilot can be expensive. The affordability of EMU\u2019s aviation program, compared to other schools, was a big draw for her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe EMU program is great because you\u2019re going to get the education you need, the experience you need, and the flight schools you need,\u201d Kreiser said. \u201cYou\u2019re going to meet with professors who will give you the connections you\u2019re hoping for and that you want. And you\u2019re not going to spend as much money as some of the other big programs out there.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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