The flight program launched this year after TWU landed a $15 million gift from the Doswell Foundation last year. As the only flight school and four-year aeronautical degree option in North Texas, it creates a pipeline for students in aviation, said Clint Grant, the school’s director. Only 5.2% of certified airline pilots are women as of December 2023, per the FAA. TWU officials said they hope to offset the disparity, Grant said.
“To our knowledge, TWU is the only public four-year university ... that is primarily women-focused and offers a flight program,” Grant said.
What to know
TWU selected Grant to start and head the program after he helped start the aviation flight program at Tarrant County College in 2012 and served as the dean of aviation, business and logistics. A private pilot himself, Grant also brings decades of knowledge to the position with an aviation technology degree from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and experience in aviation maintenance at Delta Air Lines.
Since taking the position at TWU, Grant has secured an FAA certification for the school—which is required for colleges to train pilots—hired an associate director and chief instructor for the program and established a partnership with the US Aviation Academy, which operates out of the Denton Regional Airport, Grant said.
Through the program, students can choose a bachelor’s in aviation sciences with two tracks: professional pilot training or aviation management, Grant said. The professional pilot track is targeted to students interested in airline piloting, which requires certified flight instructor training. The management track is intended to certify students as commercial pilots while teaching flight operation management skills rather than instructor training.
“If students wanted to fly in the corporate or private industry or work for law enforcement, they wouldn’t need to become instructors, so the management track is for them,” he said.
Students will study aviation sciences, which lay the basic framework for pilot training, at the university with US Aviation Academy instructors leading the flight instruction. Students spend time at both TWU and the Denton Regional Airport over the course of the program and have access to any available plane in the academy’s 70-unit fleet at the Denton airport, Grant said.
The program launched with 24 students, two of which are male. The enrollment is just shy of the 25 student cap, which mirrors the limit at most flight schools, Grant said. TWU leases planes from the academy funded through program tuition and tracked through logged flight hours, Grant said.
“I am thrilled to see ... a program that not only offers innovative pathways in aviation but also empowers women ... in this field,” said Lori Walker, Flower Mound Chamber of Commerce president. “[We’re] proud to support initiatives that strengthen our local economy and inspire the next generation of professionals.”
The impact
The university program can take longer to complete than a dedicated flight school since students do complex coursework alongside flight hours and continue training after graduation while working as certified flight instructors, Grant said. Students can earn around 300 flying hours over the course of their degree.
“As opposed to just hitting on ... what you need to pass the exam, we have a full-blown course in aerodynamics, meteorology, systems, advanced systems and navigation,” Grant said.
Pilots must obtain an Airline Transport Pilot Certification to fly commercially, which requires 1,500 flying hours. Pilots graduating from a four-year program can apply at 1,000 hours, said aviation freshman Danah Alramahi.
“Building up those hours is what holds back a lot of people, and college programs can help ... overcome that barrier, “ Alramahi said.
A degree can also give people options to branch out within the aviation field, she said. Having a program nearby also benefits local students, Alramahi, a Coppell resident, said.
The context
The U.S. aviation industry has long had a gender disparity among pilots. Over the last decade, the number of certified women airline pilots has grown around 1%, per FAA data.
TWU staff said they hope the program can help combat the disparity, Grant said.
“Some women want to become pilots, but maybe they’re intimidated by the [gender] ratio,” said aviation freshman Sydney Greiner.
Onward and upward
Aviation program staff are working on creating a seamless transfer pathway into TWU for TCC aviation students. TCC’s program also operates in partnership with the US Aviation Academy and will provide the largest funnel of students, Grant said.
Eventually Grant hopes the university has its own flight center at the airport and TWU-owned aircraft while running 250 students through the program at any given time, he said.
