A unique project at a Raleigh high school is showing students that when setting their goals, the skies are the limits.

At Broughton High School’s Transportation Academy, students in the automotive and aerospace technology programs are working together to refurbish a 1972 plane.

A man from Cary donated the damaged Piper Cherokee to the school for instructors to use as a teaching tool.  When the plane meets aviation standards, the school plans to donate it to Bahamas Habitat, a US-based non-profit group that focuses on disaster relief in the islands.

“It’s real cool,” said student Allan Lusk. “I never heard of a high school doing something like that before. It’s really amazing that here at Broughton we get to do this.”

The academy is sort of a ‘school within a school,’ with a mission to prepare and encourage high school students to transition into careers in transportation.

Steve Merritt, who works with the North Carolina Department of Transportation and helped bring the plane to Broughton, said it’s important to attract young people to the field.

“We just added about 2,000 new jobs in North Carolina in the aviation industry,” Merritt said. “There will be a shortage of qualified people to fill those jobs.”

Student Lenny Anderson said he hopes working on the plane will help him get a start on a future career in aerospace engineering.  

“In high school, that’s a pretty good accomplishment,” he said. “I was ready to start working on it as soon as I heard about it.”

Instructors are accepting donations and looking for people who may be able to help with the project. The Transportation Academy is supported by a parent and community non-profit group called the ‘Octane Boosters.’ For more information about the academy or the project, contact Coordinator Karen Padgett at kpadgett@wcpss.net.

Related Links

1. Broughton High School
2. Bahamas Habitat