In December of this year Jim Jackson, who developed what is arguably one of the most successful and innovative aerospace education programs at the high-school level, will be retiring after 33 years of teaching at Mundelein (Ill.) High Schooll. MHS boasts the only aviation curriculum in the country that includes building real aircraft in addition to ground school and flight-simulator instruction. The program has been in operation since 1980 and has won numerous state and national awards.
To date, students enrolled in aviation technology I and II have built an Acro Sport biplane, a Kitfox, a Lancair 360 and a Montana Coyote. They are currently putting the finishing touches on a Super Lancair ES. The sponsor of the latest Lancair project and Jackson intend to fly it to the North Pole during the summer of 2003 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the first successful heavier-than-air powered flight.
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