New museum dedicated to Black aviators opens at Florida Memorial University
The sepia images slowly transition into color images of Black pioneers of aviation along a wall in Florida Memorial University’s William Lehman Aviation Center, home to budding Black aviators in Miami Gardens’ backyard.
That is Oneida Rollins’ favorite thing about the exhibit. “The color combination and the earthy feel of it gives you a sense of the time and how it has changed,” Rollins, chair of the university’s aviation and safety program, told the Miami Herald.
On Thursday, the university opened its new museum Blacks in Aviation: A Legacy Beyond the Skies, an ode to Black aviation pioneers from the first Black woman to earn a pilot’s license, Bessie Coleman, to Miami’s own Barrington Irving, the first Jamaican-American to fly solo around the world.
The museum takes you on a tour of the history of aviation, featuring 10 Black aviators, including astronauts Mae Jemison and Guion S. Bluford Jr., the first Black astronauts to go to space. It also features an exhibit on the Tuskegee Airmen, including replicas of items worn by the airmen.
The sight was one to behold for FMU’s interim president William McCormick, a graduate of the university.
“This is a full circle moment for me,” he said during the ceremony for the museum’s opening. “The [aviation] program started during my senior year at Florida Memorial. I remember all the work that went into getting the funding from the federal government.”
Founded in 1879, Florida Memorial University opened its aviation school in 1988 after Congressman William Lehman fought for funding for the school to be built. The three-story building, also named after Lehman, trains students to be pilots and air traffic controllers, among other professions in aviation.
McCormick said the museum is a reminder of how far Black people have come in aviation.
“The museum is a showcase of trailblazers who started out during a time when Black people were not even considered for aviation,” he said. “Every single day [students] can walk through the halls. They can read, they can see, they can watch all of the activities that have taken place in the field of aviation.”
FMU senior Sarai Stewart said that growing up, she didn’t meet a lot of Black pilots, and the museum is a reminder of what is possible. “I’ve seen our aviation department grow from my freshman year to now, and it’s a complete 180,” she said. “It looks absolutely amazing.”
Rollins echoed those sentiments, saying, “This museum sets the tone because our students want to know where they come from, and then they want to know where they’re going.”
The aviation museum had been in the works for about a year and a half before its completion in October and was a combined effort by FMU staff and students, who helped with the design portion of the museum, Vice President and Provost Jacqueline Hill said.
“It’s such an incredible journey that we’ve had because this is a historical footprint here in our community, being one of the only in South Florida aviation programs to serve African American students and people of color,” Hill said.
The museum’s opening coincided with a $150,000 donation from Miami-based American Airlines for scholarships. Hill sees the partnership as a chance to create a pipeline from FMU to American Airlines.
“I see this as an opportunity for growth and expansion,” Hill said.
IF YOU GO:
What: FMU’s Blacks in Aviation: A Legacy Beyond the Skies Museum
When: 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Where: FMU’s William Lehman Aviation Center, 15800 NW 42nd Ave., Miami Gardens
Info: Visitors can arrange a museum tour by contacting Aviation & Safety Administrative Assistant TyEisha Steel at tyeisha.steele@fmuuniv.edu; https://www.fmu.edu
This story was originally published October 24, 2024 at 3:13 PM.
