Cadet 1st Class Ian Black will salute the newly sworn-in President Barack Obama in the nation's Capitol on Jan. 20. Cadet Black is this semester's cadet commander for Cadet Squadron 4, and will lead 92 of his squadron's fellow cadets in the 56th Inaugural Parade. During the ten-day inaugural period leading up to Jan. 20, more than 5,000 service personnel will provide ceremonial support to the 56th Presidential Inaugural. - continued - 8 January 2009
Academy Among Nation's Top 100 'Best Value Colleges'
The U.S. Air Force Academy was named as one of the nation's top 100 best value colleges for 2009 today by The Princeton Review. The Best Values College List features 50 public and 50 private colleges. The Princeton Review selected these institutions as its 'best value' choices for 2009 based on its surveys of administrators and students at more than 650 public and private colleges and universities. The selection criteria covered more than 30 factors in three areas: academics, costs of attendance, and financial aid, using the most recently reported data from each institution for its 2007-08 academic year. - continued - 8 January 2009
The United States Air Force Academy named USA Cycling Collegiate Club of the Year
The United States Air Force Academy (Colorado Springs, Colo.) was named USA Cycling Collegiate Club of the Year. The school hosted the Front Range Cycling Classic Road Race and Time Trial and co-sponsored the USA Cycling Collegiate Track National Championships. - continued - 24 December 2008
Air Force Academy graduates will pilot two upcoming space shuttle missions. NASA announced the crews for space shuttle missions STS-130 and STS-131 Dec. 5, which include the Academy's latest astronauts and one Colorado Springs native. The STS-130 mission will deliver a third connecting module to the International Space Station and a seven-windowed cupola to be used as a control room for robotics. - continued - 17 December 2008
Acro team Logs 50 Sorties In 3 days, Sets Championship Ops Tempo
By Ann Patton, Academy Spirit Staff. The 16-member Academy Acrobatic Sailing Team finished the season in style during the Tequila Cup competitions last month in Tucson, Ariz. Cadet 1st Class Phil Wilson swept first place in all three contests in which he competed this semester. - continued - 8 December 2008
Renewable Energy Future Planned For Academy, Academic Research
Though it is located in the semi-arid desert of Colorado, Academy officials are eyeing "Green Energy Opportunities". "The ambitious effort involves reducing energy demand trends and evaluating and implementing alternate power technologies," said 10th Air Base Squadron's Russell Hume, who is spearheading the efforts. The Air Force spends $5 billion yearly on energy, 80 percent of which supports aviation operations, and is the largest energy consumer in the U.S. Government. - continued - 8 December 2008
Most Air Force Academy aficionados know the date President Dwight Eisenhower authorized the establishment of the Air Force Academy: April 1, 1954, also known as Founders Day. Far fewer people, however, can identify perhaps the second most significant date in Academy history, when President Gerald Ford opened the service academies to female cadets. For the record, President Ford signed Public Law 94-106 on Oct. 7, 1975. - continued - 8 December 2008
Fulbright award returns professor to Russia
Academy Professor of Computer Sciences Dr. Barry Fagin is off again for Russia in January under a second Fulbright Scholarship award. The Russian-speaking professor spent August 2001 to January 2002 as a visiting professor of computer science at St. Petersburg Technical State University. - continued - 2 December 2008
Commandant's Challenge
Commandant's Challenge is underway now through Tuesday. The cadet-led event will cap the fall semester military training and test the Cadet Wing's leadership, physical fitness, military knowledge and field readiness capabilities.
The preparation, begun last year, has gone well. - more - - continued - 2 December 2008
Air Force scored two power-play goals in the second period and held off American International College for a 3-1 win in an Atlantic Hockey Association game Saturday at the Olympic Ice Center in Springfield, Mass. Air Force earned its second road sweep of the season and improved to 6-0 overall and 4-0 in the AHA. - continued - 3 November 2008
Footprint Shrinks With Fuel Dependency Decrease
There are many practical things a consumer can do to take responsibility and lower environmental impact. The less our reliance fossil fuels becomes, the better off we will all be as a country. A carbon footprint is the impact combined actions have on the environment. Emissions of carbon dioxide are part of how the carbon footprint is measured. There are many day-to-day things we can do to reduce carbon footprints, and to decrease personal consumption of natural resources. - continued - 3 November 2008
'89 Grad Completes 100th Combat Sortie
An F-16 pilot with the 332nd Expeditionary Fighter Squadron flew his 100th combat sortie, an armed overwatch mission over Baghdad recently. Lt. Col. David Serage's accomplishment highlights a 19-year Air Force and Air National Guard career that began as a childhood dream. "I've always wanted to be a pilot." Colonel Serage said. "My Mom said, when I was about 5 or 6, I started talking about flying. He kept his vision in mind, even though he didn't know quite how to fulfill it until he got into high school. - continued - 3 November 2008
The Academy spent almost a million dollars on quality of life initiatives for fiscal year 2008, and is looking to keep the improvements rolling. Toward that end is the Academy's Quality of Life Initiatives for this fiscal year, the Academy allocated $900,000 for facility repairs and purchases of equipment and furniture. - continued - 3 November 2008
Warfighter's Edge Goes AF-Wide:
Academy program helps aircrews better prepare for training, combat sorties. A U.S. Air Force Academy program went Air Force wide recently, enhancing the situational awareness of aircrew preparing for training and combat sorties. That program is Warfighter's Edge - better known as "WEdge" - and is the latest product of the Academy's Institute for Information Technology Applications, exposing real time data never before possible in a briefing room. - continued - 3 November 2008
Big Brothers Big Sisters Impacting Children's Lives:
The bigs and littles don't get measured by their height but by the size of their hearts. As Pikes Peak Big Brothers and Big Sisters buddy up with their smaller charges, their littles, they bring friendship, mentoring and healthy opportunities for fun and growth. The local chapter expects to serve 500-plus youngsters for this calendar year. - continued - 3 November 2008