An update about Build &
Soar, the educational initiative
Hope you're
enjoying the summer! I'm
writing with an update about Build &
Soar, the educational initiative Barrington
launched this spring though his nonprofit,
Experience Aviation, as a follow-up to his
historic round-the-world flight. Last week
CNN interviewed Barrington, two students,
and a program instructor for a segment about
Build & Soar that was broadcast
on CNN American Morning and Headline News
in 34 markets nationwide, reaching 2.8 million
viewers.
As you know, Barrington's personal goal
in making his record-setting flight in 2007
was to show other youth Particularly inner
city kids That anyone with a dream who
is willing to work hard can achieve what
seems impossible. With the Build &
Soar program, he's giving them a chance
to show the world what they can do!
This spring,
with the support of The Children's Trust
and NASA, instructors from
Experience Aviation offered a 9-week, after-school
Discover Aviation course to middle
and high school students attending F schools
(schools with poor F-CAT scores) in Miami.
Several of the students who took part (about
half boys and half girls) had failed in
school or had shown little interest in their
studies. With Barrington as a mentor, they
worked to bring their GPA's up to 2.0 to
qualify for the summer portion of Build &
Soar where they would learn about aircraft
systems and actually construct an aircraft,
one piece and system at a time.
Beginning June 9th, 60 inner
city and foster care students, supervised
by instructors from the George T. Baker
Aviation School, began building an aircraft
they call Inspiration II that Barrington
has promised to fly as a testament to his
faith in their abilities. Scheduled for
October 1st, this test flight will be captured
by the local and national media and attended
by busloads of students from area schools.
Watching the plane take off will be the
experience of a lifetime for the young people
who build and painted the plane, many of
whom are now talking about pursuing careers
in aviation or aerospace. You'll hear a
few of them speak on camera in the CNN piece.
In the words of another student, a 15-year-old
boy: "I was a troubled student but
now I have a reason to do well. Barrington
believes in me; he showed me I didn't need
to be "average." Instead I can
be exceptional like him. First I want to
train to become a mechanic, then a pilot.
I have a future now."
Barrington's goal for Experience
Aviation, which he founded three years ago
at age 21, is to continue to offer programs
like Build & Soar that positively
affect the lives of young people during
their impressionable middle and high school
years. We value the generous support of
friends and sponsors whose contributions
are helping students accomplish what seemed
impossible. If you would like to help Barrington "take
today's youth to a higher plane" through
mentoring, career guidance, and hands-on
programs, please visit
www.experienceaviation.org and click
on "Be a Sponsor." Any support
you can offer will be most appreciated.
We do hope you will join
us in Miami on October 1st when Inspiration
II takes flight. In the meantime,
thank you for interest in Experience Aviation
and Barrington's ongoing efforts to enable
students to build and soar!
