by Marc S. Posner
The Cypress College Foundation recently received its largest donation ever of $1.2 million, a gift that will support and expand the institution’s Aviation program.
The donation, gifted by a donor who wishes to remain anonymous, will fund a new cabin simulator and high-powered drone, as well as the expansion of an aviation simulator lab, allowing for more students to participate in the program.
“We thank our anonymous donor for this exceptional gift,” said Cypress College President Dr. JoAnna Schilling “Empowered by this generosity, Cypress College can continue transforming the lives of our students by creating access to train our future aviators with the best-in-class equipment to safely pilot various types of aircraft. This gift will be felt far beyond Cypress College as our pilots go out into the world to serve aviation needs with their exceptional training.”
Five years ago, this same anonymous donor contributed $1 million to the Aviation program for state-of-the-art flight simulators, effectively eliminating the cost of thousands of dollars in flight time fees each year allowing students to take many steps forward to fulfill their dreams of becoming pilots. Until now, that donation was the largest ever received by the Foundation.
The donor is a retired businessman, investor, and pilot who said he was motivated to donate to the Aviation program because of the work of Department Chair Ed Valdez, who has robust experience as an Airline Transport Pilot with type ratings in the Boeing 727, 737, 757/767, A319/A320 and Gulfstream’s G2, G3, G4 and G5 aircraft. The Aviation program also attracted the donor to give, thanks to the quality of the program and its proximity to several airports, including Long Beach, John Wayne, and Fullerton.
“A huge advantage we have here is the Los Angeles airspace,” the donor shared back in 2018, following the first donation. “This is the most complex airspace in the world. Pilots come from across the globe to train here.”