Pan American World Airways teacher, Vol. X, No. 3, January 1954

              TEACHER CONTEST WINNERS CELERRATE GOLDEN ANNIVERSARY OF FLIGHT IN WASHINGTON
The winning teacher contestants were conducted on a tour of the National Air Museum by Dr. Paul Garber
By George Gardner
When the topmost leaders of aviation in the United States gathered in Washington on December 17 to celebrate the Golden Anniversary of Flight, they not only took a look back over the past half century, but also gave thought for the future by having with them 151 of the teachers who now have in their grade or high school classes the next generation of aviation executives, pilots and engineers, as well as the boys and girls who now are acquiring the many other skills that are needed to keep airplanes flying.
These teachers were special guests at the Wright Memorial Dinner. They were greeted there by President Eisenhower. They heard General James H. Doolittle deliver the Fiftieth Anniversary address, and witnessed the presentation of the Collier and Wright trophies, as well as the presentation to Leslie M. Bryan of the University of Illinois of the Brewer trophy for the outstanding contribution during 1953 to the advancement of aviation education.
The Wright Trophy “for public service of enduring value to aviation in the United States” was awarded to Congressman Carl Iiinshaw of California, and the Collier Trophy went to Leonard S. Hobbs, vice president of engineering for United Aircraft Corp., “for design, development and production of the J-57 jet engine, America’s most powerful aircraft power plant.”
At the Wright Memorial Dinner, the 151 teachers wound up a three-day visit to Washington featuring inspection of aviation facilities, discussion of aviation developments, and a measure of routine Washington sightseeing which included visits to the White House, the Library of Congress and the Washington Monument.
Their presence at this “super-institute” was convincing evidence that the Federal Government, including the air services, and the aviation industry appreciate the importance of aviation education. These were not aviation specialists qualified to teach pilots or mechanics. They were teachers of geography, social studies, science and other academic subjects, and the primary, intermediate and secondary levels were represented. They came from public, private and parochial schools. Their common interest was aviation education in the sense of bringing aviation concepts appropriately into relationship with every possible area of teaching, and this can include in greater or less degree every subject taught in school.
Each member of the super-institute was the beneficiary of a scholarship which covered all expenses, and each had won this privilege in a competition in which teachers all over the United States submitted reports
on their own projects for preparation and use of instructional material for aviation education.
The Committee for the Observance of the Fiftieth Anniversary of Powered Flight planned and organized the contest, under the direction of Dr. Herold C. Hunt of Harvard as Chairman of the Education subcommittee and with Harry Zaritsky, formerly of the Civil Aeronautics Administration Aviation Education Division, as contest director. An industry committee carefully examined each entry in the mountain of manuscripts submitted, and picked those submitted by the 151 winners as the best.
Representative study units and other projects will be selected from among the 151 and published so that teachers everywhere may utilize them.
Transportation by air from their home towns to Washington and return was provided by the Civil Air Patrol—a leader in aviation education in its own right through its cadet branch and its summer workshop at the University of Colorado—and Maj. General Lucas V. Beau, CAP National Commander, participated in the super-institute, as did Dr. Mervin K. Strickler, aviation educationist of C.A.P.
Funds for expenses were provided by the air lines of the United States through the Air Transport Association, and the educational services of United Air Lines, Trans World Airlines and Pan American World Airways were represented throughout the three day session by Ray Mertes, Victor Moore and your correspondent.
Howard Sinclair and Dr. Harold E. Mehrens of the Civil Aeronautics Aviation Education Division participated, and the National Council for Aviation Education was represented by its president, Jordan Larson, Superintendent of Schools at Mount Vernon, N. Y., who presided at some of the meetings and helped to assure the success of all of them.
Dr. Hunt presided at the teachers’ section of the Wright Memorial Dinner, which took place in a room adjoining the main banquet room of the Hotel Statler, with closed circuit television providing a link to the main speakers’ table, and with a brief special program of its own featuring Dr. Samuel N. Brownell, the U. S. Commissioner of Education; Dr. Arthur Adams, president of the American Council on Education ; Dr. William G. Carr, Executive (Continued on page 2)