The Emil Buehler Trust, familiar to anyone who attends Sun ‘n Fun regularly, has awarded the Bergen Community College Foundation a $2 million grant for the development of an aviation degree track, the Paramus Post reported on June 8. Half of the money will go toward equipment for the Bergen Community College’s new Science Laboratory wing in Paramus, New Jersey. The rest of the grant will pay for the instrumentation of an aeronics laboratory and for flight simulators to help prepare students for careers in aviation, avionics and airport management.
“This endowment from the Buehler Trust is an historic moment for the Bergen Community College Foundation and the College, blazing a pathway to career opportunities for County students in the aviation industry,” said Dr. G. Jeremiah Ryan, president of Bergen Community College. “Through this grant, Bergen Community College has been entrusted with continuing Emil Buehler’s legacy of flight innovation and education.”
Under the grant, Bergen Community College enters into an official partnership to provide a transfer program to Vaughn College, which is in Flushing, NY. Students who earn an Associate’s Degree at Bergen Community College can transfer to Vaughn College and pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in aeronics, avionics and airport management. Another partner, Cessna Aircraft, is providing internship and career opportunities to Bergen students.
Bergen Community College has a longstanding relationship with the Emil Buehler Trust, named for Emil Buehler, an aviation visionary, architect and engineer who emigrated to the U.S. from Germany after a career as a World War I fighter pilot. Buehler operated his own school of aeronautics at New Jersey’s Teterboro Airport, ran a seaplane base on the Hudson River, built airports and skyscrapers, and advanced the science of aviation, including the early years of NASA’s shuttle program, before his death in 1983 at the age of 84.
The grant allows Bergen Community College to expand the selection of science courses it offers, while providing a more technologically advanced learning environment for its growing student enrollment. Since 1985, the Emil Buehler Trust has donated nearly $400,000 in grants to Bergen Community College, which helped establish the Emil Buehler Trust Observatory.
“As one of the Trustees of the Emil Buehler Trust, I am very proud to convey the $2 million grant for the development of an educational and flight training program at Bergen Community College,” said Robert D. Boyle, President of Boyle & Company, PA, based in Hackensack, and Trustee of The Emil Buehler Trust.
“Vaughn College is thrilled to work with Bergen Community College, with the generous support of the Emil Buehler Trust,” said Dr. John C. Fitzpatrick, President of Vaughn College. “This support provides the resources that our two institutions need to launch what we anticipate to be a long and fulfilling relationship for the students of northern New Jersey.”
The Emil Buehler Trust was established in 1984 to perpetuate the memory of Emil Buehler and his commitment to aviation science and technology. To Buehler, the majesty and mystery of flight was more than a private interest. It was a vision to be shared – during his lifetime and beyond. It is this same vision that is perpetuated today through the continuing philanthropic involvement of the Buehler Trust. From 1985 to date, the Emil Buehler Trust has given more than $30 million to various charitable entities in the fields of aviation, science and technology.
For information: www.bergen.edu
To read the full article: http://www.paramuspost.com/article.php/20090608075140134
