Cloud County Community College has received a $249,928 grant from the Kansas Department of Transportation’s Innovative Technology Program for drone equipment.
The grant will be used for Cloud County Autonomous Innovative Delivery (CloudAID), a five-phase initiative to establish intelligent drone infrastructure across Northwest Kansas in partnership with the City of Concordia and Cloud County. According to Monte Poersch, instructor in Renewable Energy at CCCC, the project will design, test, educate, and deploy a regional drone network serving Cloud County and 25 neighboring counties. The project will focus on healthcare logistics, emergency response, CCCC workforce training, and economic development.
Beginning with campus-based pilot operations and community demonstrations, the initiative will progressively expand to advanced long-range and beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) flights, connecting hospitals, pharmacies, labs, and rural residents.
“Once fully implemented, the program will position Cloud County as a regional industry and educational hub for next generation drone-enabled services, improving access to healthcare, strengthening emergency response, and establishing Kansas as a leader in innovative drone infrastructure,” Poersch said.
Projects selected in this round of KDOT’S Innovative Technology funding include smart signal upgrades, onboard security monitoring, pedestrian safety upgrades, emergency vehicle preemption, and more.
“With projects ranging from bolstering rural health care services to improving safety at intersections – we are making smart, targeted investments to improve quality of life for Kansans across the state,” Governor Laura Kelly said. “This crucial funding will expand the ways Kansans use and benefit from modern, essential transportation technology.”
