Nunez Aerospace Students Speak at National Career Pathways Network Conference

Two current students and one graduate from Nunez Community College’s Aerospace Manufacturing Technology program addressed a packed ballroom at the New Orleans Sheraton to share their perspectives on the education to industry pipeline.

Nunez graduate Emily Cleland and current students Rachel Madron and Chris Mondy spoke with panel facilitator Marc Goldberg on a panel titled Voices from the Pathway as part of the National Career Path Network’s (NCPN) Connect Conference on Feb. 19. Before a crowd of hundreds of professionals, Cleland, Madron and Mondy spoke about the experiences and advantages of attending a community college in preparation for a career in the aerospace industry.

Nunez was the only college represented on the NCPN stage thanks to the keynote speaker for the Connect Conference, Dr. Annette Parker. Parker began her work life on the manufacturing floor of a General Motors plant before eventually retiring as president of South Central College in Mankato, Minn. She had previously visited the Nunez campus and asked that students from one of the college’s manufacturing majors speak at the conference to drive home points made during her remarks.

Podcaster and higher education consultant Marc Goldberg was chosen to lead the panel due to his work’s emphasis on elevating student voices in shaping higher education and workforce development.

As a panel of three, the Nunez students embodied a broad spectrum of the student experience. Emily Cleland is a young mother who is the only woman in her department at her current industry job. She shared an anecdote about bringing her children to class while she was attending Nunez, and the Aerospace instructors keeping the kids occupied with math problems on the white board while Cleland completed her assignments.

“I thought it would be cool to be able to tell my kids one day that mommy builds rockets,” Cleland said, drawing a round of applause from the crowd.

Chris Mondy is a Dual Enrollment student at Chalmette High School who is on track to earn both his high school diploma and his associate’s degree this spring. Rachel Madron is a deaf student who learned about the Aerospace program at a high school college fair. She was drawn to the program’s focus on making components by hand that require extreme precision, with measurement accuracy required to fall within tiny fractions of a millimeter.

The Nunez students praised the Aerospace program faculty for the instructors’ depth of experience and passion for teaching what they learned over decades in the industry. They also highlighted the college’s course schedules and modalities, which allow students to balance competing responsibilities while seamlessly transitioning to the workforce or further education.

Speaking of Nunez’s Aerospace faculty, Interim Program Chair and Instructor Duane Jardine and Instructor Lloyd Norton, the students noted that they felt prepared and confident thanks to the quality of the instruction at Nunez. They used the pair as an example for other educators in the room to emulate by treating students with empathy and working with them to overcome possible challenges like childcare and transportation. They reemphasized how important it is for instructors to be passionate about the subjects they teach.

The students also encouraged colleges to focus on processes and policies, including onboarding, highlighting tools and resources for student success, and providing high school students with more career exploration opportunities, including dual enrollment pathways.

Registration for the Summer and Fall 2026 semesters at Nunez is open now. Find more information about the Aerospace Manufacturing Technology program at Nunez.edu.