Dr. Jeffrey L. LaPoint has more than 40 years of professional and academic experience in aviation, spanning military service, airline training and higher education.
He earned a Doctor of Education in Educational Leadership from the University of Phoenix and a Master of Aeronautical Science with a concentration in Aeronautics from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
A retired U.S. Air Force officer, LaPoint also spent 28 years as a flight crew training instructor for American Airlines, where he trained pilots on Airbus A320 and A330 aircraft. His instruction included simulator and flight training device operations, integrated procedures training, flight procedures, aircraft systems and crew resource management. He also taught courses on the Federal Aviation Administration’s Future Air Navigation System (FANS) for international pilots.
LaPoint’s academic experience includes serving as an assistant professor of Aerospace Studies at East Carolina University and as an adjunct faculty member teaching aeronautics, strategic leadership, private pilot ground school and computer technology courses.
During his U.S. Air Force career, LaPoint served as a Minuteman III intercontinental ballistic missile launch officer and earned an Outstanding Performer rating during a standardization evaluation. He was also inducted into Strategic Air Command’s 200 Alert Club in recognition of outstanding performance. He is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Squadron Officer School, where he earned Right of Line honors, as well as the Air Force Academic Instructor School and Strategic Air Command Central Flight Instructor Course.
LaPoint accumulated more than 2,000 flight hours as a combat crewmember aboard KC-135A and KC-10A aerial refueling aircraft. His military decorations include the Air Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Air Force Achievement Medal, Combat Readiness Medal and Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, among others.
He holds Federal Aviation Administration certificates as a private pilot, small uncrewed aircraft systems (sUAS) remote pilot, instrument instructor and ground instructor.
D. - Doctoral in Educational Leadership, University of Phoenix-Wyoming
M.A.S. - Master of Aeronautical Science in Aeronautics, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
B.S. - Bachelor of Science in Social Psychology, Park University
B.S. - Bachelor of Science in Professional Aeronautics: Flight Operations Administration, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
Remote Pilot - Federal Aviation Administration
Ground Instructor - Federal Aviation Administration
Private Pilot - Federal Aviation Administration