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Humanities Division

ENGLISH & FINE ARTS

Leaders throughout history have used their skills as readers, thinkers and communicators to effect change. Our department is committed to improving the reading, writing and speaking skills of all cadets.

About Us

The Department of English and Fine Arts believes that critical and imaginative thinking and clear, effective communication are the foundations of outstanding leadership, both inside and outside the Air Force.

Our cadets engage in literary texts spanning three millennia and numerous cultural traditions. They grapple with some of the most perplexing questions of the human condition: What does it mean to be human? What are the sources of human greatness and human depravity? Why do we yearn, through literature and art, to share our stories with others, and why is it vital to listen to these stories in a complex and interconnected world?

Ultimately, we aim to develop warrior-scholars whose conceptions of leadership are buttressed by wisdom—a wisdom captured and communicated by literature and art. Our department enriches the intellectual experiences of all cadets through a variety of opportunities, including:

English & Fine Arts Faculty and Staff

Majors & Minors

English & Fine Arts (major)

Humanities (co-administered major)*
*Restrictions apply

American Studies (minor)

Department News News From Around The Department

June 8, 2020

‘Why limit yourself?’: Cadet combines majors to make Shakespeare more accessible

Ray Bowden, June 8, 2020 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- A cadet’s project has the potential to benefit next year’s crop of English students as they wade through the works of William Shakespeare. Cadet 2nd Class Brynn Sulte, a computer science and English major, created a database to help other students at the Air Force Academy analyze more than 150 sonnets written by the English playwright and poet. “The goal is to make this database available in a classroom setting and develop it more broadly for research,” she said. Daniel Couch, an English professor at the school, said Sulte’s...

Continue Reading ‘Why limit yourself?’: Cadet combines majors to make Shakespeare more accessible

cadet looking at notebook
February 28, 2020

Shining a light on the forgotten story of Fortune Wright

(Masozera with a statue of Frederick Douglass) By Cadet 1st Class Manzi Masozera My family is from Rwanda and Uganda, and I’m a first generation American. I’m also a senior at the Air Force Academy. I chose to major in English because speaking and writing skills are key to being an effective leader; however, I soon realized literature pondered the human condition and grappled with topics like prejudice and inequality. During the summer of my junior year, I conducted research at the National Archives in Washington D.C. where I found the amazing story of Fortune Wright, a soldier, who served...

Continue Reading Shining a light on the forgotten story of Fortune Wright

Masozera with a statue of Frederick Douglass
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