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NEWS RELEASE

Volusia County Middle-School Girls Attend Embry-Riddle’s Women in Aviation Day Program

Daytona Beach, Fla., April 3, 2008 -- More than 400 female middle-school students from Volusia County visited Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University on Tuesday, April 15, for the annual Women in Aviation Day program.

Accompanied by their school counselors, the girls participated in activities designed to motivate them to pursue education and careers in math, science, aviation, and aerospace.

The morning kicked off with an activities fair/static display that engaged the students in navigation exercises and in airplane, flight, and robotics simulations. At innovative demonstration tables, the girls interacted with Embry-Riddle faculty and students while replicating special activities that occur in Embry-Riddle classrooms. After lunch, Embry-Riddle president Dr. John P. Johnson gave a welcome address.

The guest speaker was Judith Rice, the president and CEO of Careers in Aviation, an aviation scholarship endowment that inspires American youth to achieve their dreams in the aviation/aerospace industry. Rice is also the director of the National Conference on Aviation & Space Education and the Leadership Conference on Aviation & Space Education.

Previously, she was the deputy director of aerospace education for the Civil Air Patrol (CAP) and the executive director of youth education for the Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA). While with CAP, EAA, and former employers Pitsco Inc. and 4-H, Rice traveled to nearly all 50 states to present teacher aerospace workshops and youth aerospace programs. For the EAA she coordinated KidVenture, the largest air show in the nation for youth.

Rice, who lives in Palm Coast, Fla., and owns a Grumman TR2 airplane, currently holds a private pilot, instrument rating, commercial, and is continuing toward her CFI. In recognition of her service and leadership in aviation education, Rice has received numerous awards and honors; in 2007 alone she was presented with the Air Force Association Exceptional Service Award and the Dr. Mervin Strickler Aviation Education Leadership Award.

The day ended with the announcement of the results of the Women in Aviation/Aerospace Essay Competition, which attracted nearly 75 entrants. Victoria Pitenis of Ormond Beach Middle School was first, Mariposa Anderson of Bet Sefer Heritage School was second, and Nellie Avakian of Hinson Middle School was third. The girls won prizes, with Pitenis receiving free enrollment in the Aviation Career Exploration Camp operated by Embry-Riddle’s Summer Academy, worth nearly $1,300.

Support for Women in Aviation Day is provided by Embry-Riddle’s Summer Academy Office. For more information, contact Pamela Peer at (386) 226-7945 or send an email to summer@erau.edu.

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the world’s largest, fully accredited university specializing in aviation and aerospace, offers more than 30 degree programs in its colleges of Arts and Sciences, Aviation, Business, and Engineering. The university educates more than 34,000 students annually in undergraduate and graduate programs at residential campuses in Prescott, Ariz., and Daytona Beach, Fla., through the Worldwide Campus at more than 130 centers in the United States, Europe, Canada, and the Middle East, and through online learning. For more information, visit www.embryriddle.edu.

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Administrative Offices: 600 South Clyde Morris Blvd., Daytona Beach, FL 32114