Trayvon Martin, the Florida teenager whose shooting death by a neighbourhood watch volunteer in 2012 prompted a national debate over racial profiling and civil rights, will be awarded a posthumous university degree in aeronautical science that reflects the 17-year-old’s dream of becoming a pilot before he was killed.

Florida Memorial University announced this week that it would present a bachelor of science degree in aeronautical science, with a concentration in flight education, on May 13 to Martin’s parents during its commencement ceremonies “in honour of the steps he took during his young life toward becoming a pilot.”

His mother, Sybrina Fulton, who graduated from the university with an English degree, and his father, Tracy Martin, will accept the award for their son. The two have turned to advocacy work for victims of violence and their families, establishing the Trayvon Martin Foundation, a social justice organisation with headquarters on the campus.

“Sybrina, our alum, epitomises strength and dignity as she uplifts other victims of violence while effecting change for a more equal and just society,” said Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis, the university president, in the statement announcing the award.

The university, in Miami Gardens, Florida, came up with the idea to give him a degree because this year is the fifth anniversary of his death, and, had Martin lived and completed university in a four-year program, he would have graduated this spring, Ceeon Smith, a university spokeswoman, said an interview Friday.

Fulton thanked the university on her Twitter account for the degree. In an interview Friday, she said that the experience would be emotional but that she hoped it would inspire other students to pursue their academic dreams.

“Of course anybody can imagine that I would much rather be sitting in the audience and watching Trayvon walking across the stage and getting his bachelor’s degree,” she said. He wanted to continue his education either as an aviator or mechanic, she added. “He had not decided which one he wanted to do. That was near and dear to his heart, and it is absolutely something near and dear to Tracy’s heart and my heart.”

The mother of Trayvon Martin (Getty)

Martin was shot dead by George Zimmerman, a neighbourhood watch volunteer, on Feb. 26, 2012, at a gated community in Sanford, Florida. Martin was unarmed at the time, and his death — and the initial absence of charges against Zimmerman — prompted a nationwide outcry.

He was ultimately charged with second-degree murder but was acquitted after a jury in 2013 rejected the prosecution’s contention that he had deliberately pursued Martin because he assumed the hoodie-clad teenager was a criminal and instigated a fight. Zimmerman said he shot Martin in self-defence after the teenager knocked him to the ground, punched him and slammed his head repeatedly against the sidewalk.

Martin’s death inspired documentaries, films, and books that touched on racial bias and gun violence, and put a spotlight on Florida as a symbol of self-defence laws.

In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case Show all 24 1 /24 In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-8.jpg Protesters raise their fists as part of a demonstration against the acquittal of George Zimmerman who was found not guilty in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-6.jpg Demonstrators enter Times Square in New York, during a march against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-5.jpg Throngs of demonstrators arrive in Times Square in New York, for a protest against the acquittal of volunteer neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the 2012 killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-9.jpg A demonstrator chants in New York, during a march against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon16.jpg A rubbish bin is set on fire as part of protests against the acquittal of George Zimmerman in Oakland, California AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-7.jpg A demonstrator protests in Los Angeles on Sunday, a day after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin. Seventeen-year-old Martin was shot and killed in February 2012 by Zimmerman AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-23.jpg A flag burns during a protest after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-20.jpg Americans angry at the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of black teen Trayvon Martin stand on train tracks to block trains in protest in Los Angeles, California Getty Images In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-3.jpg Police officers hold a line against demonstrators on Crenshaw Boulevard near the I-10 freeway during a protest in Los Angeles AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-24.jpg A woman spray paints along Franklin Street during a protest after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-16.jpg A BART police vehicle is vandalized during a protest after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-18.jpg Police officers hold a line against protesters on the 10 Freeway after demonstrators angry at the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of black teen Trayvon Martin walk onto the freeway stopping highway traffic, in Los Angeles, California Getty Images In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-25.jpg A man throws a trash can at the window of a building during a protest after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-15.jpg Demonstrators protest in response to the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-19.jpg Americans angry at the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the death of black teen Trayvon Martin walk onto the 10 Freeway stopping highway traffic to protest the acquittal, in Los Angeles, California Getty Images In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-12.jpg Natasha Cottingham of Oak Park, Michigan, shows her support for Trayvon Martin's family during a rally in protest of the not guilty verdict in the trial of George Zimmerman at Grand Circus Park in Detroit AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-21.jpg JoAnn Vega of Miami puts the finishing touches on the sign she just made before joining a march in protest the day after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin in Miami, Florida Getty Images In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-2.jpg Police officers wait for demonstrators to arrive on Crenshaw Boulevard near the I-10 freeway during a protest in Los Angeles, the day after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the shooting death of Trayvon Martin AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-4.jpg Demonstrators mass in Times Square after a march against the acquittal of neighborhood watch member George Zimmerman in the killing of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-14.jpg Hope Jones of Atlanta steps out of her car with a sign to join demonstrators marching the day after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-13.jpg Sonia Medina of Suwanee, Georgia holds a sign while joining a protest the day after George Zimmerman was found not guilty in the 2012 shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-1.jpg Activists on Union Square stand with a cut out photo of Trayvon Martin in New York AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-10.jpg Karoxa Williams of Jacksonville, Florida holds a poster with a photograph of her son during a rally Sunday to protest the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the shooting death of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in Florida AP In pictures: Protests across America following acquittal of George Zimmerman in Trayvon Martin case trayvon-11.jpg People protest in front of the Guilford County Detention Center AP

Martin’s love for flying was documented in news features after his death, including one in The Tampa Bay Times that said he had attended the George T. Baker Aviation School, and was inspired by his uncle, Ronald Fulton, who had a brief career in aviation, the newspaper report said.

Sybrina Fulton said that Martin had studied with Barrington Irving, the first black person to pilot a plane around the world solo in 2007, in after-school and summer programmes.

Florida Memorial University is a private, historically black institution with undergraduate and graduate degree programmes. Established in 1879, it has about 1,400 students.