Page 28 - World Airnews Magazine June 2020 Edition

Safety in African Aviation

WOMEN IN
AVIATION 18 - 20 November

THEIR FIRST FEMALE SIAA 2020 Johannesburg
South Africa
AEROSPACE ENGINEER Africa's Aviation Safety Conference

By Krista Kano

theMe of 7th edItIon:

hree years ago, Sydney Bihn was one year
Taway from graduati ng with a degree in middle "MAturIng SAfety MAnAgeMent SySteMS (SMS) & StAte SAfety progrAMS (SSp)"
childhood education from Kent State University.

That year, the junior created a lesson plan that
incorporated women of science to account for their
absence in many textbooks for one of her course
assignments. As her fellow teachers-to-be present-
ed their own lesson plans, Bihn sat in the classroom
wondering if she could have been a Mae Jemison, a
Marie Curie or a Jane Goodall.
“Later on it dawned on me that I was only 21 and it

was not the time to say ‘I could have’ when I still can,”

said Bihn, originally of Sylvania who is now living in
Streetsboro.
Not long after, Bihn, 24, changed her major to aero-

space engineering, and recently graduated as the first
woman in Kent State class of 12 theoretical engineers.

“Being the first woman, it’s a cool title but I definitely

would have preferred having more women to work

with. I’ve learned that women in the field are truly
remarkable. There seems to be more and more in the

classes to come, and it’s definitely a benefit to the Sydney Bihn is Kent State University’s first female graduate

in the new aerospace engineering programme
other women in the program and to the program itself.
Maybe it’s a nice title for me, but I would give that up

in a heartbeat to work with more women every day,” those side comments about switching majors so late and wasting

Bihn said. time and money, but in the end it was a leap of faith. No matter QueStIonS we'll be lookIng At:

Kent State has long offered hands-on engineering programmes, how much research you do, you don’t know until you try,” she said.

but the aerospace engineering - which focuses on mechanics of air- Her final push was when she was on a website for female engi- • SAfety In the poSt CoronA SCAle up

craft and space craft and the technology that goes in them - is the neers and her father texted to tell her that he had run into some • deployIng SAfety dAtA ACroSS the regIon

university’s first theoretical engineering programme. The universi- nuns whose advice to her was, “Dream big.”

ty has since added more engineering programmes, but they have “So he sends that text and then this ad came up on the forum • SMS outperforMIng SSp - how to work together
not yet graduated students. for a movie called ‘Dream Big: Engineering Our World.’ I thought
Blake Stringer, the founding faculty member of the programme, maybe I need to take a chance and have a little faith that this is • gettIng SAfety dAtA out of AvIAtIon orgAnISAtIonS

explained that he started planning the programme in 2013 and what I’m supposed to be doing. It was definitely a fearful decision, • how CAn AfrICAn StAteS rAISe theIr CoMplIAnCe levelS?

wanted to offer aerospace engineering as no other nearby public but sometimes you have to take a risk.”

university offered it and because the programme would align well Her big risk has paid off. • whAt Are the Core reASonS for A low level of CoMplIAnCe?

with Kent State’s strong aeronautics programme, which teaches In the last three years, Bihn has held engineering internships at

the operational side of aviation. At many institutions, aerospace Prince and Izant Companies in Parma and at Kitty Hawk in Moun- • prIorItISIng ICAo StAndArdS to AChIeve A MInIMuM level of SAfety?

engineering is a subset of mechanical engineering. tain View, California as part of the Brooke Owens Fellowship and

Stringer met Bihn around 2016 when she requested a meeting has been a research assistant focused on wind-tunnel experimen-
to discuss the engineering programme. Bihn had been considering tation on different airplane

transferring to the University of Toledo or the University of Akron wing shapes.
for mechanical engineering, but began leaning toward aerospace She’s also served in leadership positions for various organisa- exchanging bright ideas for

engineering at Kent State when Stringer said he would help her tions, from local to international, all while maintaining a

finish the programme in three years. 3.93 GPA. More information & registration at:
“We came up with a plan, and now she’s one of our top students “She has really got the whole package,” Stringer said. “She knows safety
in this year’s graduating class in that major,” Stringer said. how to master the course material. She knows how to get help www.2gether4safety.org

Even with Stringer on her side, Bihn said the transition was when she needs it. She knows how to network and make connec-
terrifying. She tried to approach the situation as methodically as tions in the industry. She knows what she wants to

possible and used campus resources, spoke with professors and do. She’s a self starter and she goes after

advisors, shadowed engineers at her father’s company and looked it. That’s why she’s been as successful as she has. She may talk
into the possibility of graduating with her teaching degree and about mentors, but she has a drive and she’ll do really well be- Brought to you by: In association with: Gold sponsors include:

then getting a master’s in engineering. cause of it.”

“I went through all of these avenues to make it work so that I After graduation, Bihn will move to Gilbert, Arizona to be an

wouldn’t feel like I was throwing away three years of education. associate manufacturing engineer at Northrop Grumman Space

That scared me. My parents were supportive, but you still get Systems. Q
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