Isaac Richmond Nettey has become Kent State’s first recipient of the William A. Wheatley Award for outstanding contributions to aerospace education.

Nettey is the associate dean of the College of Applied Engineering, Sustainability and Technology at Kent State.

He received the award at the University Aviation Association Fall Education Awards Conference Banquet on Oct. 10 in Daytona Beach, Florida. 

The award is presented annually by the UAA, a non-profit organization that represents all aviation programs at universities across the world. In order to qualify for the award, the individual must be a professional educator in the field of aviation for at least 10 years.

Nettey said he was shocked and did not expect to receive the award at the banquet, but is humbled by the experience. 

“I felt appreciated that my work over the years has been recognized by my peers,” Nettey said. “It puts me in the same degree as some of the best educators of aeronautics.”

Nettey has served as the Senior Academic Program Director of Aeronautics at the school. He was also the president of the UAA from 1997-1998 and is recognized across the country for his work in aviation, according to a university press release.

The award is named after William A. Wheatley, a former Dean of the State Teacher’s College at Edinboro, Pennsylvania. Wheatley also worked as the director of the School and College Service Department of United Airlines. He is known for his various publications, teachers’ manuals and other works that helped aviation students in classrooms across the world. 

Contact Andrew Bugel at [email protected].