FSF Restructures Academic Membership Category

ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Flight Safety Foundation today announced that it has restructured its Academic membership category to better serve students interested in aviation and that Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University has signed on as the first new Tier One member in the revitalized category. Tier One, the highest membership level in the category, extends the Foundation’s member benefits and resources to more than 1,000 students at the academic institution.

Previously, membership benefits in the Academic category applied to faculty at the member institutions, but under the revised structure, membership benefits will be extended to students at member schools and training organizations.

With the evolution of the Foundation’s website as a portal for all matters pertaining to aviation safety, students and faculty will have instant access to key safety articles, Foundation news, seminar proceedings and projects that will be useful to them in their academic teachings and studies. They will have 24/7 access to the information they want. Now that AeroSafety World has become an online resource through the digital subscription and mobile app, academic institutions will receive, as part of their membership, additional subscriptions for interested students.

“Flight Safety Foundation is committed to inspiring and educating the next generation of aviation professionals,” said Jon Beatty, president and CEO of the Foundation. “With our newly enhanced Academic membership, we can provide access to a breadth of aviation information, safety guidelines and tools and resources. This not only prepares students for a career in aviation, but it also allows them to connect and network with other industry professionals.”

“We are very excited to partner with Flight Safety Foundation. Safety is at the forefront of all our programs at Embry-Riddle and the access to resources that come with this enhanced membership will greatly benefit our students, faculty and staff,” said Dr. John Watret, chancellor of Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University-Worldwide and a member of the Foundation’s Board of Governors. “The opportunity to expand our connections with safety industry leaders will provide our students hands on experiences with safety issues that correlate with their courses of study, better preparing them to enter the workforce.”

Additional benefits include opportunities for students to build their professional portfolios by providing editorial content to AeroSafety World or for use elsewhere on the Foundation website, opportunities for the academic institution to promote its program to Foundation members through the monthly Member Newsletter, which is emailed to more than 3,500 member contacts, and scholarship opportunities for students at academic member institutions.

The Foundation also welcomed Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology (RMIT) University, based in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, as a Tier Two member in the new category. Tier Two members receive benefits for 500 to 1,000 students.

“It is an exciting time for RMIT University and our aviation programs,” said Professor Adrian Mouritz, acting pro vice-chancellor, College of Science, Engineering and Health, and vice president, at RMIT University. “Our partnership with Flight Safety Foundation (FSF) is strategically significant as it provides our students and staff with opportunities to connect with expert aviation professionals around the globe and share a platform to help improve current transport safety challenges. At RMIT, we strive to collaborate with safety industry leaders, to share leading safety practices and champion, along with Flight Safety Foundation and its members, better aviation safety outcomes. This important partnership will also ensure RMIT students have access to FSF resources to help prepare them for their aviation careers.”

Academic members under the previous structure will be given the opportunity to enroll in the new category based on the number of students in their program. Membership dues are based on the number of students in the academic program who will receive online and mobile app subscriptions to the Foundation’s members-only magazine, AeroSafety World.

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About Flight Safety Foundation
Flight Safety Foundation is an independent, nonprofit, international organization engaged in research, education, advocacy and communications to improve aviation safety. The Foundation’s mission is to connect, influence and lead global aviation safety.

Media Contact:
Frank Jackman
Vice President, Communications
+1 703.739.6700, ext. 116
jackman@flightsafety.org

Membership Contact:
Louise Martin
Director, Membership
+1 703.739.6700, ext. 112
martin@flightsafety.org