BELLE GLADE, Fla. — With controls in hand and drones in the air, students at Palm Beach State College (PBSC) are learning a skill that could lead to new career opportunities.
WPTV reporter Christy Waite visited the college's Belle Glade campus, where students were putting those skills into practice as part of PBSC's first drone training class.
WATCH BELOW: PBSC students take flight with drone training
The 12-week course combines classroom instruction with hands-on flight experience and helps students work toward earning the FAA certification required for most commercial drone operations.
Student Marina Medina told Waite she believes the technology has a promising future.
"I heard that the drone industry is taking off, and I think it is taking off," Medina said. "It's the future."
The program is about more than simply learning how to control a drone. Instructor Scott Mitchell said the technology has applications across a number of industries, including one especially important to the Glades: agriculture.
"This program is crucial for the Glades area," Mitchell said. "Especially in agriculture, this being a huge sugar cane and sweet corn area and what we can do with mapping and surveying."
While visiting the class, Waite met Alejandro Garza, a student from the Glades area who hopes to use what he is learning to help the agricultural community.
"I want to use my drone license to help the farmers get more yield from their crop," Garza said.
Agriculture is only one potential application for the technology.
Upcoming phases of the program will provide more specialized training in areas including public safety, law enforcement, fire and rescue, search and rescue, emergency response, mapping, infrastructure inspections, real estate photography and other commercial applications.
Students also have access to professional-grade equipment, allowing them to train with technology they may not otherwise have access to on their own.
College leaders say the goal is to help prepare students as the demand for these skills grows.
"Providing students with jobs in high-demand areas as the technology grows," said Andraes Alexander, executive dean of PBSC's Loxahatchee Groves campus and academic dean of the Loxahatchee Groves and Belle Glade campuses.
The program is also receiving support from The Hand Foundation, which is providing scholarships to help make the training more accessible to people in the community. College leaders credited that support with helping reduce financial barriers for students interested in the program.
Enrollment for the current class is closed, but another drone class is planned for the spring along with the program’s second phase. Those upcoming offerings are expected to give students additional training in drone operations, maintenance and more specialized applications.
