mdc.edu/main/collegeforum MIAMI DADE Student training on MDC flight simulator /MDCollege @MDCollege @MDCollege youtube.com/MiamiDadeColleges COLLEGE Moving Beyond Silicon Valley When it comes to preparing students for aviation and other technology careers, Miami Dade College is ahead of the curve. From cybersecurity to cloud com-puting, data analytics to machine learning, AR/VR to electric vehi-cle technology, the College is the talent pipeline for Miami’s growing and important high-tech ecosystem. f orum March 2021 • Volume 25 • Number 1 So it is not surprising that graduates from MDC’s aviation program can be found piloting for almost every commercial and cargo airline in Miami, and indeed, the world. “We’ve grown with this community, which makes us unique and extremely dynamic,” Villaverde said. “Our students are success stories and go on to operate aircrafts around the world for domestic and international carriers, become flight crew members, aircraft dispatchers or become involved in aviation administration.” The school partners with local flight schools, including Wayman Aviation and the ADF Flight School , to provide practical training and flight hours. It also has training simulators at MIA and Miami Executive airports. More than 300 students have graduated in recent years. “Aviation might be a global industry, but it is really a collection of local networks,” said Alex Farkas, founder and CEO of ADF. “MDC is a central part of our local economy, providing invaluable training and community connections as well as supporting hundreds of jobs, from the local fueling company to operations support staff and office personnel.” Continued on page 12 Helping Dreams Take Flight MDC’s Eig-Watson School of Aviation Grads Master Latest Tech Aviation dreams become realities at Miami Dade College’s Eig-Watson School of Aviation. MDC recently celebrated 60 years of aviation education and workforce training, reinforcing its prominent position as a local and global link to the industry with a continuing focus on the latest technologies. “The aviation industry is constantly evolving, and our students receive the most advanced training available on state-of-the-art simulators,’’ said Orlando Villaverde, the aviation department chairman. “The technology they master in the program prepares them for real-world conditions piloting and maintaining aircraft, and the data analysis concepts are used in control towers, airport management and supply chain logistics.” The College is a pipeline to aviation-related employment throughout Miami, one of the country’s major aviation hubs. Miami International Airport (MIA) is the nation’s third-busiest for international passengers, boasts a lineup of over 100 air carriers and is the top U.S. airport for inter-national freight, according to a U.S. Airport Rankings report. Miami Film Festival Delights Audiences Miami Artists Open, Close Fest With World Premieres Holding strong to tradition with its custom-ary spring time slot, Miami Dade College’s ac-claimed Miami Film Festival presented its 38th annual edition in March in a hybrid for-mat, with both in-theater and virtual presenta-tions. The Festival opened and closed with two world premieres by Miami artists, presented awards to luminaries Pedro Almodóvar and Pedro Almod ó var Ludi Rita Moreno , and celebrated more than 100 films of all genres from 40 different countries. “In this year like no other, we all long for stability and a sense of continuity,” said Festival Executive Director Jaie Laplante. “By redefining Miami Film Festival for the new era of film, we sought to continue our mission of shining a light on the most outstanding creative talents and new works of the season.” The Festival opened with the in-theater world premiere of Ludi , a film directed by Edson Jean , a Haitian-American actor/writer/director and alumnus of Miami Dade College’s New World School of the Arts. Ludi follows a private care service worker in Miami as she desperately Continued on page 13
College Forum Volume 25 • Number 1: Page 1
