Air traffic control class in Queens includes Long Islanders who could address nation's controller shortage

When Yanni Agrotis was growing up, his father, a former flight instructor, would take him to the shadow of the air traffic control tower at Republic Airport in East Farmingdale to watch planes take off and land.

Knowing of his son's love of flight and his search for a career path last year, he told the now 28-year-old Melville man about a new enhanced air traffic controller training program at Vaughn College, near LaGuardia Airport in Queens.

The program is designed to help address a nationwide shortage of air traffic controllers. Vaughn offered the program to nine students who graduated Tuesday, authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration to bypass the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City, and place new controllers at radar terminals and airport towers around the country.

Agrotis completed the two-semester program after spending five months at the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City last year. He said he plans to work in a control tower in Tallahassee, Florida.

"The pressure is definitely the feeling of knowing there are lives on the line and one mistake, or a series of mistakes, could cause an issue," Agrotis said. "So, being on your toes or being alert, you have to be awake, and you have to really know that this is such a big responsibility. But I think at the end of day you're going to feel rewarded for doing it."

"It feels like I jumped over a huge hurdle," Agrotis said. "I felt like I was waiting for something big to happen and I think that finally happened."

All nine students in the inaugural class graduated Tuesday and will be placed in airports and FAA radar facilities, based on need, test scores and preferred location.

New graduates will only be placed at smaller airports, among them Long Island MacArthur and Westchester. The new controllers will undergo additional training and gain experience before stepping up to locations such as Kennedy and LaGuardia airports or radar centers for New York airspace in Ronkonkoma or Westbury, Vaughn College President Sharon DeVivo said.

Vaughn’s enhanced training program was approved by the FAA in April 2025 and the first class started in September. Vaughn students train for eight months, rather than the usual 12- to 15-week course at the FAA Academy, DeVivo said.

"We’re so thrilled for them to be on to their next chapter. Real world experience and their attention to the material made a big difference for these nine," DeVivo said.

The eight-month program was accredited by the FAA, which reviewed its curriculum. Courses were taught by instructors, including several former air traffic controllers, who used technology and simulators mirroring the FAA Academy to teach students how to navigate airspace and runways.

Students have longer to review the course material and spend more time in flight simulators, using advanced technology that makes Vaughn’s program possible, DeVivo said.

"One of the reasons we were able to do this is there has been so much progress in simulations. We’re doing everything they’re doing in Oklahoma," DeVivo said. "We were able to recreate that environment up to FAA standards. The biggest advantage has been the time we’ve been able to spend with students and developing that relationship and trust."

Morris Johnson, 25, of Central Islip, earned his bachelor’s degree in aviation from Farmingdale State College, and had started at the FAA Academy in Oklahoma but didn’t qualify. He joined the program at Vaughn College and now hopes to stay on Long Island.

"The simulator and the real world is totally different. I learned to be mindful that I can’t be fixated on one thing," Johnson said. "This was truly a blessing. I didn’t think I’d go back to school after Farmingdale, but I realized I have to learn and grow."