 |
| Library > History > 50 Years of Education > Establishment |
|
Establishment of Air University
The War Department established Air University to correct many of the problems and deficiencies of the pre-war military educational system. The schools which comprised the old system had operated independently and were poorly coordinated in terms of scope, doctrine, and curriculum. Unlike the architects of previous and existing military educational institutions, the founders of Air University sought to break away from the traditionalism, rigidity of thought and doctrine, and the formalization of instruction that had often characterized military education in the past.
Gen Carl A. Spaatz, Commanding General, Army Air Forces, and Maj Gen Muir S. Fairchild, the first AU commander, might be called the "founding fathers" of Air Force professional military education, wanted to establish a progressive, forward-looking institution that could keep the Air Force's thinking fresh and projected at least five years into the future. "We must guard rigorously against . . . accepting answers from the past instead of digging them out of the future," Maj Gen Fairchild explained. "This is not a post-war school system--it is a pre-war school."
This far-reaching educational system became operational in April 1946 when the AAF transferred the School of Aviation Medicine at Randolph Field, Texas, from Air Training Command to Air University. Three months later, on 1 July 1946, Air University also assumed jurisdiction over the AAF Special Staff School. The AU professional military education (PME) system, however, did not become operational until the fall when the first students began classes at the Air War College and the Air Command and Staff School at Maxwell. A third PME institution, the Air Tactical School (not to be confused with the Air Corps Tactical School), began classes the following year at Tyndall Field, Florida.
The ensuing years at Air University were marked by considerable organizational growth. In July 1949, for example, the Air Force established the Human Resources Research Institute at Maxwell and assigned it to Air University. Shortly thereafter, the Air Force Institute of Technology (located at Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio), the Air University Library, and the Extension Course Institute became AU subordinate units, as the command moved closer to becoming the center of Air Force education. The decade ended with Air University nearly doubling its size and number of subordinate units.
This period of growth and stability was suddenly interrupted on 25 June 1950 with the outbreak of the Korean War. USAF commanders argued that personnel of the caliber of those associated with and attending Air University were needed more for operational commitments and that Air University should be closed. However, with the ill-fated decision to close the Tactical School still fresh in their minds, USAF leaders decided to simply reduce the command's operation rather than shut it down completely. As a result, the Air War College and the Air Tactical School were suspended, and the length of the Air Command and Staff School was reduced to less than four months. In addition, the Air Force reduced the Air Force Institute of Technology's resident and civilian institutions student enrollment to an absolute minimum.
At the same time, Air University reorganized and consolidated many of its programs and activities. The Air Command and Staff School (ACSS), for example, became an intermediate headquarters with its regular course redesignated as the Field Officers Course. The Air Tactical School's professional military education program for junior officers was reassigned to the Air Command and Staff School headquarters, renamed the Squadron Officer Course, and moved from Tyndall to Maxwell. And, with the exception of the comptroller and logistics courses, HQ USAF directed that all of the professional continuing education courses of the USAF Special Staff School at Craig Air Force Base, Alabama, be assigned to this new headquarters and relocated to Montgomery, Alabama.
In addition to the consolidations and relocations, Air University continued to grow. The Gunter AFB branch of the School of Aviation Medicine became a part of Air University on 11 October 1950. Air University also established the 3870th Special Activities Group on 1 May 1951 and redesignated this organization the Research Studies Institute on 25 May of that year. Similarly, the command began offering two key weapons systems courses during 1952 and 1953, respectively. The Air Force Reserve Officer Training Corps (AFROTC) also joined the AU family on 1 August 1952.
All of these changes placed a heavy strain on facilities at Maxwell. As a result, in early 1951, AU officials began planning for a new academic center to accommodate the command's expanding educational and research requirements.
The initial phase of this effort involved the construction of four separate classroom facilities, an administrative building, and five student dormitories. All of these structures were ready for occupancy by the end of 1955. A library building and a student officers' mess hall constituted the second phase, which the command completed in the fall of 1956. Chennault Circle, as this complex was later designated, gave Air University a modern, integrated academic center with facilities and a professional atmosphere commensurate with its significant educational and doctrinal development mission.
In the meantime, several key changes took place within Air University. On 1 November 1954, Air University redesignated the Air Command and Staff School as the Air Command and Staff College (ACSC). At the same time, a major reorganization within this institution resulted in the Field Officer Course being renamed Command and Staff School and the Squadron Officer Course being redesignated Squadron Officer School. In addition, Air University created a separate Weapons Courses Branch within the college.
Five years passed before Air University experienced further major organizational changes. Then, on 1 July 1959, the Squadron Officer School was separated from the Air Command and Staff College and became a separate, independent unit reporting directly to HQ Air University. Similarly, on that same day, the ACSC Weapons Courses Branch, which had grown to nearly 15 courses, became the Warfare Systems School (WSS), a separate AU subordinate unit. The Academic Instructor Course, which had also reached division-level within the Air Command and Staff College by the mid-1950s, became the Academic Instructor School (AIS) at that time, adding another subordinate unit to the growing list of AU field organizations. However, Air University lost one unit during the year when, on 17 November, the Air Force redesignated the Gunter branch of the School of Aviation Medicine as the Aerospace Medical Center and transferred it to Air Training Command (ATC).
|
|
|
|
|
