SCTCC Aircraft Maintenance Technician Program Taking Off with $1.15 Million Federal Investment

(KNSI) – St. Cloud Technical and Community College is taking off this fall with a new Aircraft Maintenance Technician program, backed by $1.15 million in federal funding.

The program will begin on campus before moving to a hangar at St. Cloud Sky Central Airport in the fall of 2027. SCTCC becomes just the fourth college in Minnesota to offer the program, with an additional $1 million-plus from a Minnesota State Industry Sector Funding Award helping make it possible.

U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar visited the college last week to tour the AMT lab and celebrate the investment. “This is working with the business and student communities to figure out where the jobs are, and that we’re training people for the jobs of tomorrow,” Klobuchar said.

College officials say the AMT program reflects SCTCC’s broader mission of connecting students, including those still in high school, with well-paying, in-demand careers in the region.

The program was developed in partnership with Delta, Sun Country, Cirrus, the Metropolitan Airports Commission, and Minneapolis-St. Paul Airport, among others.

It isn’t the first time SCTCC has tapped federal Congressionally Directed Spending. In 2022, Senators Klobuchar and Tina Smith helped secure nearly $1 million for a Practical Nursing Pathway at the college in response to healthcare workforce shortages.

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