Commercial drone program provides job opportunities to local students

SAN ANTONIO – The Dee Howard Foundation is bringing a commercial drone program to different schools around Bexar County.

“The Dee Howard Foundation’s Mission quite frankly has always been to help bring opportunities to our youth and not just today, but into the future,” said Tyler Schroeder, chairman of the Dee Howard Foundation.

Schroeder, who also works at Boeing, said the program is in 12 schools across eight school districts.

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“As part of the program not only are they earning a part 107 license, which allows them to commercially fully operate a drone, which there is a whole list of benefits that come with that, including the ability to go commercial and earn money while using that drone. But it also exposes them to a whole world of aerial systems and the regulation that comes with that,” Schroeder said.

Michael Sorola teaches the program at South San High School and also had to get his license to teach the course.

“It’s opened their eyes to the aerospace industry. Careers that they could do. Before we are so close to Port San Antonio and Lackland, and they see on a daily but that’s other people to do, for smart people, doing this has opened their eyes to other things they can do in aerospace,” Sorola said.

With the drone industry booming, the program is providing many opportunities to local students.

“It’s a great experience to have. Something like this to know is also great to have, especially because more and more the world is becoming more technological, and lots of things are advancing, and this kind of thing is revolutionary. To know something like this and expand your knowledge on different types of technologies, I think it’s amazing,” Joselyn Vieales, a student said.

Senior Jesus Munoz is one of the students that earned his drone pilot license and has big plans for the future.

“I want to have a little side job. A little side hustle. Becuase since I am going to the Navy, it’s going to be hard to have a specific footprint in a specific place. I want to have a website, wherever I go to have something,” Munoz said.