Lenoir Community College prepares to launch new drone piloting program

July 13--Lenoir Community College will soon be the first community college in North Carolina with a degree program for drone pilots.

The program comes after a series of guidelines were released from the Federal Aviation Administration on the commercial operation of drone use.

While the guidelines themselves can be difficult to understand, Jeff Jennings, program chairman for aviation at LCC, said the general rule he uses is that if someone uses a drone to sell or produce a product, that use is considered commercial and requires special certification from the FAA.

"I know a lot of pilots out there and if you talk to them about drones, they aren't happy," Jennings said.

Jennings said more than 1 million drones were sold in the United States in 2015, and of those sold, nearly a quarter of them are expected to be used illegally, intentionally or not.

"The only way to combat that is through education, and that is what we are trying to do here," he said.

The new Unmanned Aircraft Systems Associates Degree program will go live at LCC in August, and will be a hybrid program, with some classes being offered online while others, including a summer semester course on actually flying a drone, must be done at LCC.

The new degree program will serve as a third track for students looking to study aviation at LCC, which currently offers piloting and aviation management degrees.

"At the start, this is likely to be for entrepreneurs," Jennings said. "I think in the next 10 years there will be more than 10,000 jobs coming in this field."

Drones are already popular tools for amateur and professional photographers and videographers, who will need the FAA certification, but Jennings said the machines also have uses in other fields.

While the class won't be open to the public until August, LCC has been offering a six-week certification course for members of the Lenoir County Sheriff's Department, Kinston Police Department, Kinston Fire Department, local EMS stations and others.

"We would like to one day have and use these devices in our work," said Officer Jothan Nesselrotte, with the LCSO.

"For safety, that is why we are all here, so we can use these devices safely and not put anyone in danger," said LCSO Officer Chris Davis.

For drone users only looking for the FAA certification, Jennings said LCC plans to offer the course once per quarter.

Catherine Truitt, senior education advisor for Gov. Pat McCrory, visited the LCC Aeronautical Extension on Tuesday to learn more about the program.

"I am responsible for all things education ages 0 to 20, and I wanted to come here to find out more about what the aviation center is offering you all as first responders but also about the unmanned drone program," Truitt said to members of Tuesday night's class.

Truitt said the governor has set a workforce goal for the state that would require 67 percent of all North Carolinians to have some sort of post-secondary education by 2025.

"When we look at where our gaps are going to be as far as programs, they are all two-year degree programs," she said. "We are looking for what community colleges need to function and to move forward."

Looking at the future, Truitt said she expects the state to have too many people with master's degrees and not enough with two-year certificates or associate degrees. Part of fixing that involves reaching adult learners and encouraging people to pursue an education after graduating high school, she said.

Dustin George can be reached at 252-559-1077 or Dustin.George@Kinston.com. Follow him on Twitter @DustinGeorgeKFP.

Copyright 2016 - The Free Press, Kinston, N.C.