NASA backs Embry-Riddle push for AI-ready aerospace engineers

NASA has selected an Arizona initiative to receive $300,000 in funding for AI workforce development in aerospace engineering, with Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University set to create AI-focused curricula and project-based learning experiences.

The work sits inside the Arizona Artificial Intelligence Workforce Development Cooperative, funded by a $600,000 NASA grant and administered by the University of Arizona. The structure is deliberately broad: aerospace companies, universities, and community colleges are involved in collaboration.

“Incorporating AI education into aerospace engineering is essential to preparing students for the changing workforce, and this collaboration between Embry-Riddle and the Arizona Space Grant Consortium shows that leaders in Arizona are responding to this need,” said Dr. Jeffrey Miller, dean of Embry-Riddle's College of Engineering.

Students inside the loop

The instructional model is not being built only for students; it is being built with them. Embry-Riddle will pair paid undergraduate students with faculty mentors to provide feedback on AI curriculum development. That feedback loop is aimed at keeping instruction current as tools and expectations shift.

Dr. Elliott Bryner, associate professor and chair of the Mechanical Engineering Department, framed the effort as a chance to influence more than a single campus.

“This project puts Embry-Riddle on the leading edge of AI curriculum and training development and allows us to shape the direction of the efforts in Arizona to have a modern, highly trained and prepared workforce in the age of AI,” Bryner said.

Michelle Coe, program manager for the Arizona NASA Space Grant Consortium, pointed to the direct role of students in refining what they will later be taught.

“Having the students who will take these courses and benefit from this information be a part of these efforts is unique. I hope it creates a clear pathway for students to understand how to use AI effectively and ethically,” Coe said.

Hands-on, then handed off

The project will also develop a laboratory for hands-on education in robotics, cybersecurity, data science, and other AI-related fields. The bigger play is transferability: the initiative aims to share its modules, credentials, faculty training resources, and project-based learning laboratory with other schools.

“The bottom line is that what we're really trying to do is make sure that as all the state's universities and community colleges institute the programs that we all know we need, there is enough communication between groups,” said Dr. Timothy Swindle, director of the Arizona Space Grant Consortium and principal investigator.

The target outcome is explicit: prepare students for high-wage, high-tech careers in Arizona's aerospace industry during a time of AI-driven workforce changes.

“Our efforts are to help students and graduates understand AI, its capabilities, and its role in their work and lives,” Bryner said.