Aerospace Workers Landing New Careers : Education: Laid-off engineers and scientists are being retrained to teach math and science.

As an engineer for various aerospace companies, Dennis Mears worked on the space shuttles Columbia, Discovery, Atlantis and Challenger, testing flight equipment and installing high-tech devices.

But about three years ago--when Southern California’s aerospace companies were dramatically downsizing their operations--the 47-year-old Irvine resident lost his job. For more than two years, Mears worked off and on, mostly as a security guard and sometimes as a taxi driver, because he couldn’t find work in his field.

“During that time, my frame of mind ran the gamut,” he said. “I felt everything from very depressed and very disappointed to feeling that it was time to change direction in my life and do something else.”

Mears is now one of 15 scientists and engineers--five from Orange County--participating in a new training program for former defense and aerospace industry employees who want new careers as math and science schoolteachers.

The 13-month program, sponsored by the Washington-based National Research Council, is designed to help public schools fill much-needed math and science teaching positions and lead highly trained scientists to secure jobs.

“It’s meant to give them a new start,” said Maureen Shiflett, who directs the program out of the Irvine offices of the National Research Council. “These people will bring great resources to the schools because they’re highly computer literate, and they can give students good career advice.”

The former aerospace workers, who began attending classes at Cal State Long Beach earlier this month, will train at inner-city schools in Los Angeles during the program.

The Los Angeles Unified School District is a partner in the program, but participants are neither guaranteed nor required to work in the district after their training; the trainees are responsible for finding their own jobs after receiving their teaching credentials.

The prospective teachers--all but one of whom are men--were selected among 65 applicants. Shiflett said the council targeted people with strong math and science backgrounds who have expressed interest in working with young people. The average age of the group is 49.

“At this point in my life, I feel I can be choosy about what I want to do, and I want to do something rewarding,” said Fountain Valley trainee Ernesto Golan, 50, an aerospace consultant. “Teaching is certainly a poorly paid profession, but after spending years in the aerospace industry, where they said, ‘Hey, we don’t need you,’ it’s nice to be doing something where they say, ‘Hey, you’re needed.’ ”

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Nicholas Layana of Fullerton worked as an engineer at Hughes Aircraft for nine years before he was laid off in October, 1993. He started his own real estate business, but he applied for the retraining program because he wanted to find a job that would be more satisfying and secure.

“There was so much uncertainty while I was working at Hughes, and I got tired of that,” he said. “Teaching has always been something I’ve wanted to try, but when I started working in my field, you get to certain comfort level and it’s hard to do anything else. But my wife and both of my in-laws are teachers, so I’ve gotten a lot of support.”

Layana, 36, who has three children, said he also was drawn to the program because it targeted students from poor, urban areas.

“I don’t need to be at a top-notch school,” he said. “Ideally, I want to go to a school where they need the most help.”

The National Research Council, which is a branch of the National Academies of Sciences and Engineering, launched the retraining program with a $5-million grant over five years from the U.S. Department of Defense.

Over a two-year period, the council hopes to train 60 scientists and engineers to become teachers. Southern California was selected as the site of the program because of its diverse student population and its proximity to military and industrial sites now being downsized.

“Everyone in that industry is uneasy about their jobs, so this is a good opportunity for them to get into education,” Shiflett said. “They are not guaranteed jobs, but we’ve been assured that the need is so great for math and science teachers that if these people go through the training with a good record, they won’t have any trouble getting hired.”

Antonio Garcia, principal at South Gate High School, part of the Los Angeles school district, said he supports the program because it ultimately benefits the schools.

“There’s always a need for math and science teachers, because a lot of people who get prepared to teach these subjects end up doing other things,” he said. “They’ll be fulfilling a great need.”

As part of the program, the trainees will earn their teaching credential at no cost and receive a $22,000 stipend for living expenses.

David Hasheminejad, 51, who worked as an engineer for more than 20 years before he was laid off by McDonnell Douglas in 1993, was stonewalled when he looked for similar work.

“The competition was so high that 1,000 people would apply for one job,” the Westminster resident said. “It was very devastating. I feel that there’s a better future in teaching, even though it means I’ll take a substantial cut in pay.”

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Hasheminejad said he was drawn to the program because it was an easy way for him to earn a teaching credential, without the financial burden or uncertainty.

“The program gives you the feeling that you’re not alone, that there’s people who have gone through the same experience,” he said.

Mears, who had been briefly teaching science on an emergency certificate at Los Angeles schools when he was accepted to the program, said teaching has represented “the good, the bad and the ugly” to him.

“The bad is working with kids who you know can succeed who just don’t,” he said. “The ugly is that I’ve never worked so hard in my life. But the good is that I’ve had the highest highs working with kids and seeing them succeed.”