Aviation High Takes Off
This morning Aviation High School celebrated groundbreaking of their new $43.5 million facility across the street from the Museum of Flight in South Seattle.
The school, opened by the Highline School District in 2004, is a great example of a STEM focused high school. Â Highline is the district south of Seattle and it took years of political negotiation to craft the agreement that allowed one district to open a school of choice within the boundaries of another.
Principal Reba Gilman planned, fund raised, opened and created industry partnerships for this school. I had the good fortune to serve on her board when she ran a three district skill center.  Running a skill center with a variety of prof-tech programs gave her a grounding in applied learning and STEM that she has put to good use at Aviation.
Highline superintendent John Welch was my CFO in Federal Way. Â In his second year in public education he won a national award for a budget that the community (and I) could understand. Â He participated in the Broad Academy and joined Highline eight years ago. Â In his third year as superintendent, he was named state superintendent of the year. Â He’s been a thoughtful system and community leader. Â His predecessor gets credit for approving this school, John gets the credit for the groundbreaking today.
Aviation is a great example of community as school. Â It leverages a county airport, a museum, and a cluster of business partnerships. Â The new facility is expected to be open for students in 2013.

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