OREANDA-NEWS.  Boeing [NYSE: BA] this week is bringing tomorrow’s aviation leaders to today’s largest gathering of flight training professionals in the United States, in the hopes that the groups will inspire each other.

Boeing Flight Services, a business unit of Commercial Aviation Services, invited two Washington state high school students to attend the World Aviation Training Symposium (WATS) which is underway this week in Orlando. Both juniors, the students were selected based on compelling essays they submitted as part of a program sponsored by Boeing and Washington Aerospace Scholars.

“We have an obligation to attract and excite new generations of young people about working in our industry,” said Sherry Carbary, vice president, Flight Services. “We know there is going to be an exponential demand for aviation professionals over the next 20 years. Showcasing our industry to some of our most promising students can only reinforce their drive and enthusiasm, and send them back to their communities and classrooms as energized ambassadors for careers in aviation. We need that edge if our industry is to thrive in the future.”

One of the students, Kim Rangel, is a junior at Bellingham High School in Bellingham, Wash. Born in Cueramaro, Mexico, Rangel is interested in a career at NASA. “Since my first language is Spanish, I would love to learn how my native language can be integrated into my future and digest the opportunities that are present or await Spanish-speaking pilots,” she said.

Coincidentally, WATS 2013 is focused on the Americas, and is holding several Spanish-language sessions.

The other student hosted by Boeing is Navid Azodi, a junior at Kentwood High School in Covington, Wash. Azodi has collected models of Boeing airplanes since childhood and is deciding among three career paths: designing airplanes, building airplanes or flying airplanes–but he’s currently leaning toward flying.

“I know airplanes will be a large part of my future,” he said. “From pretending to fly miniature 747 airplane models in my bedroom when I was eight years old, opportunities such as this will allow me to one day be a pilot and fly a real 747 in the skies.”

Boeing continues to inspire the pilots, engineers and scientists of tomorrow through innovative initiatives and programs designed to help them prepare for technical jobs and careers. By supporting parents and teachers, and by investing in the areas of math, science and literacy, Boeing is helping prepare students to meet future challenges.

Washington Aerospace Scholars (WAS) is an educational program for high school juniors from across the state of Washington, emphasizing science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). Students must have a minimum 3.0 (out of 4.0) cumulative grade point average to apply and participate in a NASA-designed curriculum and a summer program at the Museum of Flight in Seattle. Boeing has provided grant funding to WAS since its inception in 2006.