Ever since he was a young child, Christian Clements was fascinated by airplanes. He spent hours watching air shows, building airplanes with LEGO bricks, and looking to the sky—wondering how aircraft could stay in the air despite gravity.
ACE Academy students at Burke Lakefront Airport."I always just wondered how they stayed up there because gravity used to push us down," says Clements, a rising high school sophomore in Maple Heights. "I found that answer now."

After spending a week this past June at the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals (OBAP) ACE Academy Cleveland, Clements left with more than just an answer to his childhood question.

The program gave him a firsthand look at the aviation industry through airport tours, hands-on learning, and the opportunity to take the controls of an airplane. Clements flew an airplane, toured aviation facilities across Northeast Ohio, and discovered new career possibilities in an industry he has admired for years.

"I've never flown a plane before," Clements says. "Just holding that yoke and moving it around ... I never had the opportunity."

The weeklong ACE Academy introduces students ages 13 to 18 to aviation and aerospace careers through classroom instruction, field trips, and hands-on experiences. Students learn about aerodynamics, aviation history, and STEM concepts while meeting aviation industry professionals.

The Cleveland program takes place at Burke Lakefront Airport and allows participants the to fly a light aircraft with instructors at the Kent State University School of Aeronautics.

Cleveland ACE Academy director Stephanie Johnson says introducing students to aviation before they begin making decisions about high school courses and future careers is one of the program's greatest strengths.

"I think it's important to get an engaged middle schooler in [the program], because then they have a chance to kind of tailor their high school [curriculum] to that potential career goal," Johnson says. "If there's anything in particular that their high school offers, [something] that might gear them toward improving skills that would help them in a job they find at Ace Academy—I want them to have the earliest possible opportunity to do that."

ACE students prepare to fly.Along the way, the students met industry professionals, explored aircraft and airport operations, and learned about careers ranging from pilot and mechanic to air traffic controller and airport manager.

"A lot of students don't even have a clue about what the opportunities are until we show them," Johnson says.

For Clements, the academy did more than introduce him to new careers—it deepened his passion for aviation. Before attending, he knew about jobs like pilots, engineers, and air traffic controllers. By the end of the week, he was eager to continue exploring the field.

"It's really made me like it more, and want to pursue that more as a career," he says.

The academy's flight day became the highlight of the week for Clements. After years of watching airplanes from the ground, he experienced aviation from the cockpit of a Cessna.

"The view was breathtaking," he says.

During a visit to the Cleveland ARTCC, Clements observed controllers communicating with pilots in real time and even had the chance to read the instructions himself. The experience showed him just how much skill is required in the job.

"The way they just read those numbers and say it consistently... when I did it, it was complicated," Clements recalls. "I couldn't do it. I was thinking, 'How do they do this?'"

Clements isn't the only student whose perspective shifted during the week. Sixteen-year-old Lauren Lugo, a rising junior at Davis Aerospace and Maritime High School, says the academy broadened her understanding of aviation careers.

"I didn't know very much," Lugo admits. "I didn't know as many careers as I do now."

Exploring the opportunities
Lugo entered the program interested in becoming an Air Force officer but says ACE Academy introduced her to possibilities she has never considered before.

ACE students fly their first aircraft.ACE director Johnson says connecting students with professionals is one of the most valuable experiences in the curriculum because it allows young people to see careers through the people already doing them.

"The more [information] you expose a child to, the more they see potential in themselves," Johnson says. "The more opportunities open up for them."

Founded in 1976, OBAP works to encourage and advance minorities in aviation and aerospace through scholarships, mentoring, and educational programs. Today, its Federal Aviation Administration-supported ACE Academies operate in more than 30 cities nationwide—introducing nearly 1,500 students each year to careers across the aviation industry.

For Clements, the biggest takeaway wasn't just learning how airplanes fly. It was discovering opportunities that once seemed out of reach.

"You get a lot of opportunities," he says of the ACE experience. "You do a lot of things that you wouldn't be able to do.” He cites the experience of being on a runway as one of his most memorable. “That's not something that you can just do on a daily [basis]."

Students interested in next year's ACE Academy can learn more and register through the OBAP website, where they can find information about the Cleveland program and nationwide.

For Johnson, the academy’s goal is simple: Give students the chance to discover careers they may have never imagined.

"Be okay with being curious," she says. "Because that's the only way we can find out."