MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Jorge Guerra teaches aviation students at Florida Memorial University.
“It’s something that I look forward to every day,” he said. Dr. G
However, there’s a major flaw in the field Guerra chose back in the 70s.
“This industry, as great as it is, is lacking in diversity,” he said.
Only a little more than 1% of commercial airline pilots in the United States are Black, according to Zippia.
That statistic doesn’t surprise Pinder, who is a senior at FMU originally from the Bahamas.
“When I was growing up, I didn’t see people that looked like me on TV or in the cockpit,” he said.
That’s no shock for sophomore Sarai Stewart either.
“Currently, I’m the only female flying at school,” she said.
But both agree – there’s a shift happening now – thanks to teachers and programs like theirs.
“I feel that it’s very good that now, a lot of Black females are stepping out of that box and starting to show that yes – I can do this and I will be there,” said Stewart.
FMU told WPTV their aviation program started in 1987. They’ve had about 500 graduates and 85% of them have gone on to land jobs in the industry as airport ground and support staff and commercial airline pilots all over the world.
“Different people from different backgrounds bring other ideas, and it’s not just the one single thought process,” said Guerra. “So, bringing in diversity brings greater ideas and more people contributing to solve some of the problems this industry has.”
Problems like pilot shortages the Cephas might inherit when he graduates next year, but until then, he’s focused on the goal.
“My dream job is to be able to wake up every day and point at a plane and be able to fly it,” he said.
Stewart on the other hand is torn between her perfect positions after graduation – pilot or CEO of a private jet company.
