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Last updated on Wednesday, March 28, 2018
(INDIANAPOLIS) - Captain Ryan Lynch is one of Indiana’s best-kept secrets. But last week the Center for Leadership Develop decided to shine the spotlight on Lynch, naming him the Achievement in Business and Industry Award recipient for his tireless efforts to introduce middle-school and high-school youth to a range of careers available in the aviation industry.
The Minority Achiever Awards are presented annually to candidates that promote the advancement of young minority Hoosiers through educational and developmental experiences. Marsha Stone, senior director of commercial enterprise of the Indianapolis Airport Authority, says Lynch is a perfect example of what the award represents.
"His passion for aviation and the multitude of opportunities the industry can provide to others has driven Ryan to invest a significant amount of his own time and money into building the ACE Academy into the successful program it is today," said Stone.
Lynch, a native Hoosier and Republic Airline pilot, founded the Indianapolis Aviation Career Education Academy, which hosts summer-career camps for students in grades six through 12, exposing them to careers in aviation, helping them map out an educational path for those careers and connecting them with mentors that can help to guide and encourage them along the way.
Lynch, founded the ACE Academy after facing challenges finding information and resources to guide him into aviation when he was a high-school student.
"As an Indianapolis-native, I wanted help the next generation of kids from my community to realize that their dreams are possible," said Lynch. "It is an unexpected honor to have been recognized with the Center for Leadership Development's Achievement in Business and Industry Award."
To date, Lynch's work has inspired more than 800 Hoosier students to enter into the aviation industry.
This summer marks the seventh year the ACE Academy will host its two camps - one for students ages 10 to 14, and another for students 15-18 years old. Over those seven years, 1,000 students have participated in the camps.
The aviation industry, like many others, is facing a Silver Tsunami - the current workforce is approaching retirement but there are not enough qualified candidates to fill the gap.
Lynch's program is working to address this pending shortage in both jobs that only require a certificate, and jobs that require a college education. He has also established similar programs in Florida and North Carolina. Combined, more than 7,500 of the 10,000 students that have attended the ACE programs were inspired to join the aviation workforce.
For more information on the ACE Academy, please visit indyace.com/.
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