EAA wants to offer everyone between ages 8 and 17 an opportunity to fly in a light plane with a qualified pilot—for free! The program is called the "Young Eagles," and over two million such flights have been made since 1992. More than 30 Chapter 563 pilots have flown over 1700 children.
EAA wants to interest children in aviation. Some of these children will pursue aviation as a hobby or as a career, but in either case it helps children focus on constructive activities.
In 2024, the chapter returned to a more regular schedule. We use EAA's registration system for Young Eagles flights, and our 2025 events will be posted there and on the calendar section of this site's home page.
EAA offers a number of flight training scholarships. Chapter 563 is active in the Ray Scholarship program, having mentored high school students every year from 2019 through 2024. We also provide a very limited number of flight scholarships directly.
The EAA is one of the organizations which administers grants for the Ray Foundation, and the chapter is often asked about the selection process for their flight training scholarship.
In late winter, EAA headquarters informs chapters if they have been awarded a Ray scholarship. If our chapter receives one, we will begin our selection process in March. We look for teens who have recently begun flight training with a local flight instructor. The instructors are our guides in finding students who have the drive and enthusiasm to finish the program in the one year the program allots. Having passed the FAA medical test is also required. Teens who have been active in our chapter will have some priority in the selection process, and financial need might also be considered during the interviews which are held.
Other scholarship opportunities can be found outside of EAA, such as those at AOPA.
Each year the chapter provides scholarship funding to students pursuing a career in aviation at the Illinois colleges Lincoln Land and Lewis.
Each year we also cover half the fee to send a teenager to the EAA Air Academy at their annual international fly-in in late July.
Chapter 563 has in the past sponsored an aviation Explorers Post for local youth. Many years this group would travel to Oshkosh, WI in July to help prepare the grounds for EAA's main fly-in. Recently, though, not enough kids have signed up (the minimum number is five), but if you are interested, contact us by e-mail. Instead, the chapter has been working with the Flight Club at Dunlap High School.
The chapter is looking for high school students who'd like to try their hands at building an airplane:
The Youth Programs committee is requesting your support for the Young Eagles events. We are also open to Eagle flights at the same time. EAA requires all pilot volunteers working with youth to go through training and a basic background check, both via their web site. Once certified, please send a note to the youth coordinator. Your certificate will be valid for three years.