Air Force Academy’s excellent academic programs are at risk if civilian faculty cuts continue (Opinion)

As longtime supporters of our military amenity academies the more than cosigners of this column are alarmed by modern developments that indicate a troubling shift in the direction of the U S Air Force Academy Latest actions as well as internal reports of additional actions being planned indicate that the current Air Force Academy superintendent Lt Gen Tony Bauernfeind is in the process of effecting a massive reduction in civilian faculty at the academy and concomitant reductions in academic majors minors and advanced coursework The Academy has over decades built both academic and military programs that have rightly earned numerous outstanding rankings and distinguished reputations attracting top-tier students and faculty from across the nation and around the world That progress is at exposure of being torn asunder in a short period of time Civilian faculty almost all with PhDs and deep backgrounds in both coaching and related research including a multitude of experienced U S military veterans bring depth balance continuity and forward-looking insights to cadet development Civilian faculty work effectively in close collaboration with active-duty instructors Decimating the civilian faculty ranks in this partnership risks diminishing the U S Air Force Academy s USAFA academic excellence and the expected of its graduates to grow into impactful thought leaders in key areas relevant to the complex and critical war-fighting peace-keeping and humanitarian missions of our modern military It even puts at menace USAFA s basic accreditations in related technical fields Further the proposed reduction to the civilian military faculty ratio is not truly cost-cutting on the contrary according to a Air Force-sponsored inquiry increasing the civilian military faculty ratio is the majority cost-effective approach to delivering its academic programs Achieving major educational institutions like the Air Force Academy which are guided academically by the collective expertise of their numerous senior faculty operate much differently than Forward Operating Bases Profound changes to their educational structure must proceed with transparent dialogue and accountability during predecisional times lest such changes threaten to damage the Academy s proud academic heritage and erode constituents trust With this backdrop the new quiet removal of the word educate from the USAFA mission announcement appears to be not completely an oversight but a further tangible indicator that academic excellence is being devalued in favor of military training and short-term political expediency Does USAFA have any inefficiencies or redundancies Yes Reducing them and holding cadets to an even higher academic standard requires the informed use of a scalpel not a misdirected chainsaw We the undersigned thus urge the Air Force leadership concerned citizens alumni parents and elected executives to seek clarity and ensure that forthcoming major decisions affecting USAFA s academic future remain transparent mission-aligned and in the best interest of our nation This op-ed expresses the respectful views of its more than cosigners whose names are listed below and Thomas Bewley a senior civilian visiting professor in mechanical engineering at USAFA specializing in the expansion and coordination of autonomous collaborative platforms Cosigners include three retired major generals one a former USAFA vice superintendent a retired senior executive provision member four retired USAFA department heads the surviving spouse of the undersecretary of the Air Force retired colonels and retired lieutenant colonels O- s The text of this op-ed was written collectively by several people in this distinguished group Maj Gen ret Richard Beef Haddad USAFA Maj Gen ret Irv Halter USAFA USAFA vice superintendent - Maj Gen ret Sean Lee Murphy USAFA deputy AF surgeon general - Brig Gen ret David S Gibson USAFA permanent professor and head computer and cyber science - Brig Gen ret John Putnam USAFA permanent professor and head biology - Brig Gen ret Michael E Van Valkenburg USAFA permanent professor and head chemistry - SES Col ret Donald Erbschloe command pilot chief Scientist of USAF AMC USAFA tours Col ret Dale Andrews USAFA Col ret Carlos Bertha tenured philosophy professor at USAFA - Col ret Eileen Bjorkman USAF Test Pilot School executive director AF Test Center - Col ret Grace Battaglia Blevins-Holman USAFA Col ret Michael A Cox USAFA Col ret Robert Fredell USAFA endowed professor of engineering -year faculty member Col ret Eric D Garvin USAFA Col ret Brian Marshall USAFA Col ret David B Porter USAFA permanent professor and head behavioral science and leadership - Col ret Angela Suplisson USAFA USAFA Erdle Chair professor aeronautics Col ret Robert Wright USAFA Lt Col ret Christina Bell USAFA Lt Col ret Walter Benson aviation cadet class - pilot class G KC- C- C- HH- Lt Col ret Harold Bidlack associate professor of political science -year USAFA faculty member Lt Col ret Daryl G Boden USAFA Dept of Astro - Lt Col ret Lawrence M Butkus USAFA engineering faculty Lt Col ret Nelson English USAFA Lt Col ret Harry Gross USAFA assistant professor astronautics - Lt Col ret Dexter R Handy USAFA Lt Col GS- ret Timothy Harris Lt Col ret Barbara Hunter career field management lead for USAF scientists and engineers Lt Col ret Robert Levinson USAFA Lt Col ret David Maher USAFA Lt Col ret Emily Marr USAFA USAFA instructor of biology Lt Col ret Andrew Schlachter USAF intelligence officer adjunct professor Lt Col ret Kenric Smith USAFA fighter pilot Lt Col ret Xavier Streeter USAFA Lt Col ret Edward Tomme USAFA USAFA professor of physics - - Lt Col ret Jason Williams USAFA squadron commander - Lt Col ret Sandra Wilson USAFA USAFA faculty - - - Commander ret Jeremey Biehn fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives Maj ret Jack Barker USAFA USAFA behavioral sciences assistant professor - Maj ret Cecil D Stevens Jr USAFA Maj Althea Johnston Ridenour USAFA C- evaluator pilot - Maj J Downs USAFA Capt Dan Bewley aviation cadet class - C pilot class G C WB C Pilot USAF Capt Dave Chapman USAFA F- fighter pilot Capt David A Clark USAFA United Airlines ret Capt Lillian Costello USAFA Capt Dominique Dalton USAFA USAF RPA Pilot Capt Robert Doby USAFA intelligence officer Capt Patrick Madden USAFA T- instructor pilot - Capt Allante Staten USAFA USAF force advocacy officer Capt Freddie Stewart Jr USAFA David Albert USAFA principal director space control and counterspace - Clare Shannon Bar USAFA GPS operator analyst - Thomas Bewley UCSD professor USAFA DFME distinguished visiting professor - Michael Boyle Allie Thompson Stacy Brodzik USAFA Aaron Byerley USAFA professor emeritus USAFA deptartment of aeronautics Hannah Campbell USAFA Michael Challman USAFA Christina Crockett Kimberly Green Davis USAFA USAF pilot David Dye USAFA Adolphus Evans Amy Gillentine strategic communications supporting USAFA office of research - Reggie Jones USAFA Megan Kahn USAFA AD - Guard Reserve - USAFA English Department - Anne N Knowler USAFA engineering mechanics Lorna Kollmeyer Daniel Laird USAFA AF intel analyst - Luis F Linares USAFA USAFA faculty of foreign languages - Darren McKnight USAFA former USAFA professor of physics Markus Moeder-Chandler UCCS director of military leader expansion Garrett Ogden USAFA admissions liaison officer Alex Parmater USAFA Hunter Parnell USAFA USAF intel officer - Jeffrey Quiggle USAFA USAF - James Rice USAFA Don Richardson Tiffany Robinson Michael J Sailor USAF scientific advisory board member - Michelle and Jeff Secor Kathryn L Smith USAFA Sarah Stover surviving spouse of USAFA Alumn AOC AMT faculty Sally Sunkara Vivian Teets retired Lockheed Martin engineer surviving spouse of U S Sec of the Air Force Peter Teets Jocelyn Watson USAFA USAF maintenance and acquisitions officer - Michael L Mikey Weinstein USAFA founder and president military religious freedom foundation Jason Williams USAFA Yoram Yadlin senior engineer ret at the Boeing Company Lynne Abraham-Yadlin proud parent of USAFA grad at present earning PhD at Harvard Sign up for Sound Off to get a weekly roundup of our columns editorials and more To send a letter to the editor about this article submit online or check out our guidelines for how to submit by email or mail