St. Louis Community College has been awarded more than $1.75 million respective funding from Congress and the state of Missouri to enhance its geospatial technology program. Of that total, $1 million comes from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration.
The college also received funds totaling $754,750 from the Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development.
STLCC will focus on three new certificate programs:
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Commercial drone pilot training. Students will receive a certificate and be eligible to take the FAA 107 licensing exam for commercial drone pilot upon program completion.
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A survey technician program will include classroom and field training using state-of-the art equipment and result in a Certificate of Specialization.
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A geographical information systems (GIS) Certificate of Specialization is under development.
The programs will be offered at the Florissant Valley and Wildwood campuses.
A targeted recruitment campaign will prioritize female and Black participants. Women represent only 6.7% of drone commercial pilots (FAA, 2019) and are underrepresented in all STEM careers (27%). Black workers represent only 9% of the STEM workforce (U.S. Census 2021).
