The Park City School District will launch an aviation maintenance program for high school students next year using funds obtained through a statewide grant program focused on technical education.
Park City High School already has an aviation program as part of its Career and Technical Education classes, which lets students learn how to pilot aircraft through a flight simulator lab, as well as a drone program for students to build drones and obtain their license. Students also have opportunities to take technical education courses on construction management, architectural design, health sciences and other specialized fields.
“We’re hoping to address an underserved market of students,” said Trip Marshall, an instructor for Park City High School. “There are a lot of kids who love to work on things and love aviation, but they aren’t necessarily interested in being a pilot. This will help bring in those types of students who want to make a good living by working on things or kids going into aerospace engineering so they can understand how aircraft work structurally.”
Marshall said he viewed the aviation maintenance classes as an extension of what the district currently offers, and he expects the new program to launch in the spring of next year.
“What we’re going to do depends on what curriculum we wind up adopting,” he said. “We’ll have some classroom time where they learn shop techniques … and we’re hoping to have actual aircraft components for them to work on. We haven’t decided on anything as to the scale of that, but it could be something as simple as sheet metal fabrication and simple projects to actual aircraft components, including engines, airframes and avionics.”
The program’s classroom education is similar to what industry workers call their “generals,” or the classroom instruction on aviation maintenance that is required to obtain proper licensing, Marshall said. Students will learn basic aviation maintenance laws and how to read plans and schematics.
The maintenance classes are important to offer for students’ immediate education, but it’s also key in combating a growing shortage of aviation professionals in the United States, which has affected mechanics, air traffic controllers and pilots.
“Nationwide, there are about 20,000 to 30,000 unfilled positions projected by 2028,” Marshall said. “Think about how annoyed we get with delays at the airport because we can’t get on the plane on time, or there’s no aircraft available. Maintenance has a direct impact on air travel, on air cargo and on global economies, and mechanics are required, not just needed or wanted.”
Marshall said the classroom instruction will be based on the Federal Aviation Administration’s guidelines for teaching about “experimental, homebuilt aircraft.” He said he may need to take a few personal development courses to supplement his own certifications, but he is qualified to teach the class, which means the district will not need to hire another staff member with an aviation maintenance speciality.
The district is funding the high school class and its equipment through the Utah Board of Education’s Catalyst Center Grant Program, which was created by the state Legislature last year. Thirty-five applications for more than $200 million in requests were submitted last year for 2026’s funding round.
Specifically, the school district received $391,500, which Marshall said will cover at least the first few years of the aviation maintenance program.
“The Catalyst Center grants are looking for opportunities to allow students to close the gap between the theoretical, the classroom and the practical workspace, or what I guess we would call the ‘real world,’” he said. “It gives students the opportunity to explore careers, gain skills with hands-on experiences and work on projects that are shaped by industry partners.”
“I also want to thank the community for the support they’ve had for the aviation department here at the high school,” Marshall said. “It’s inspired us to grow and expand. The kids are loving the program, and they work really hard. I would say the rigor in the classes is very high, and I appreciate the community support to keep us going. We love what we do, but we love that the community likes it as well.”