Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
, immediately north of
Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
. It educates
cadet
A cadet is an officer trainee or candidate. The term is frequently used to refer to those training to become an officer in the military, often a person who is a junior trainee. Its meaning may vary between countries which can include youths in ...
s for service in the
officer corps
An officer is a person who holds a position of authority as a member of an armed force or uniformed service.
Broadly speaking, "officer" means a commissioned officer, a non-commissioned officer, or a warrant officer. However, absent contextu ...
of the
United States Air Force
The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...
and
United States Space Force
The United States Space Force (USSF) is the space service branch of the U.S. Armed Forces, one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and the world's only independent space force. Along with its sister branch, the U.S. Air Force, the Space ...
. It is the youngest of the five service academies, having graduated its first class in 1959, but is the third in seniority. Graduates of the academy's four-year program receive a
Bachelor of Science
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...
degree and are commissioned as second lieutenants in the U.S. Air Force or U.S. Space Force. The academy is also one of the largest tourist attractions in Colorado, attracting approximately a million visitors each year.
Admission is highly competitive, with nominations divided equally among
Congressional districts
Congressional districts, also known as electoral districts and legislative districts, electorates, or wards in other nations, are divisions of a larger administrative region that represent the population of a region in the larger congressional bod ...
. Recent incoming classes have had about 1,200 cadets; since 2012, around 20% of each incoming class does not graduate. During their tenure at the Academy, cadets receive tuition, room and board, and a monthly stipend all paid for by the Air Force. On the first day of a cadet's second class year, cadets commit to serving a number of years as a commissioned officer in the Air Force or Space Force. Non-graduates after that point are expected to fulfill their obligations in enlisted service or pay back full tuition. The commitment is normally five years of active duty and three years in the reserves, although it has varied depending on the graduate's
Air Force Specialty Code
The atmosphere of Earth is the layer of gases, known collectively as air, retained by Earth's gravity that surrounds the planet and forms its planetary atmosphere. The atmosphere of Earth protects life on Earth by creating pressure allowing for ...
.
The program at the academy is guided by the Air Force's core values of "''Integrity First, Service Before Self, and Excellence in All We Do''", and based on four "pillars of excellence": military training, academics, athletics and character development. In addition to a rigorous military training regimen, cadets also take a broad academic course load with an extensive core curriculum in engineering, humanities, social sciences, basic sciences, military studies and physical education. All cadets participate in either
* Bruegmann, Robert. ''Modernism at Mid-Century: The Architecture of the United States Air Force Academy.'' University of Chicago Press: 1995. .
* Celebrating the U.S. Air Force Academy's Golden Anniversary, ''(Colorado Springs) Gazette,'' Special Edition, Spring 2004.
* ''Contrails'' (various years)
* Fagan, George V. ''Air Force Academy: An Illustrated History.'' Johnson Books: 1988. .
* ''Fifty Years of Excellence: Building Leaders of Character for the Nation,'' 2004.
* Lui, Elizabeth Gill. ''Spirit and Flight: A Photographic Salute to the United States Air Force Academy.'' 1996. .
* Nauman, Robert Allen. (2004) ''On the Wings of Modernism: the United States Air Force Academy.'' Urbana:
University of Illinois Press
The University of Illinois Press (UIP) is an American university press and is part of the University of Illinois system. Founded in 1918, the press publishes some 120 new books each year, plus 33 scholarly journals, and several electronic project ...
. OCLC 52542599 *Pendlebury, J. (2018). "This Is a Man's Job": Challenging the Masculine "Warrior Culture" at the U.S. Air Force Academy. ''Armed Forces & Society.' "This Is a Man’s Job": Challenging the Masculine "Warrior Culture" at the U.S. Air Force Academy * Schemo, Diana Jean. ''Skies to Conquer: A Year Inside the Air Force Academy.'' John Wiley & Sons, Inc.: 2010.
* Schifani, Katherine L. "Bring Me Men: Intertextual Identity Formation at the US Air Force Academy." (Masters Theses, U of Massachusetts-Amherst, 2008) online free