Richard Myers, president of Kansas State and a retired four-star U.S. Air Force general, said the name change recognized the niche mission of the Salina campus and the accelerating demands of the aerospace industry.
“The Aerospace and Technology Campus will be a national leader in advanced aviation and aerospace training, education and engineering through research, innovation and instruction,” he said.
The Salina aviation campus became part of Kansas State in 1991. The campus is home to the College of Technology and Aviation, which offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs in addition to technical and graduate-level certificates. Students in the program enroll in departments of aviation, integrated studies and unmanned aircraft systems.
Alysia Starkey, chief executive officer and dean of the campus, said expansion of aerospace and technology offerings in Salina would support business workforce needs of manufacturers in central Kansas.
She said the academic philosophy in Salina would continue to emphasize hands-on instruction.
“Our commitment to student success, personalized education and world-ready learning experiences is embedded in our institutional DNA,” Starkey said. “This approach is at the heart of everything we do.”
Alteration of the name had been considered since 2017 when the campus launched the Global Aeronautics Initiative with the goal of establishing an aerospace and technology concentration.
“Since the closure of Schilling Air Force Base in 1967, the mission of the Kansas State University campus in Salina has been to maintain excellence in aviation and engineering,” said J.R. Claeys, a Republican state senator from Salina. “This rebranding enhances the campus’s ability to support the growth of the Kansas economy.”
