Keijerian Graham Flies Solo in Airplane Just Before Graduation

2013 Aug 8

Keijerian "KJ" Graham of Waynesboro, PA, achieved the first step towards his dream of becoming a pilot for Southwest Airlines when he completed his first solo flight on May 24, 2013, only one day before graduating from Randolph-Macon Academy.

Graham began flying his sophomore year at Randolph-Macon Academy, which is the only high school in the contiguous United States with a flight program in which the planes are school-owned and the flight instructors are school faculty members. For his first solo, Graham successfully completed three take-offs and three landings alone in a Cessna 172 airplane at Front Royal-Warren County Airport in Front Royal, VA.

"It's a dream come true," said Graham. "Ever since I was two years old, I've loved planes." He recalled going to the airport with his grandmother just so he could watch planes take off and land. "This is my only goal in life. I didn't want to be a basketball player or a football player, an astronaut, or the president. I'm never going to give it up. I just love it."

Graham has kept himself busy this year, playing varsity football, basketball and baseball--in fact, he was named to the All-Conference First Team for Baseball in the Delaney Athletic Conference. He was also a peer tutor, active in the community service program, and was a member of the National German Honor Society.

Graham, who graduated from Randolph-Macon with 70 other seniors on May 25th, plans to attend Fairmont State University in the fall and continue flying.

Randolph-Macon Academy (R-MA), founded in 1892, is a college-preparatory, coeducational boarding school for students in grades 6 through 12. Students in grades 9-12 participate in R-MA's 91st Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC), and have the opportunity to fly in a unique flight program. R-MA is affiliated with the United Methodist Church and is located in Front Royal, Virginia.

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