June 13, 2023

The breakdown: Class of 2023 stats

The most diverse class in U.S. Air Force Academy history, the Class of 2023, graduates June 1, 2023 at Falcon Stadium. Cadets wearing a silver sash are commissioned into the U.S. Space Force and those wearing a gold sash are commissioned into the U.S. Air Force. (U.S. Air Force photo by Trevor Cokley) By Randy Roughton U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. - More than 900 Air Force and Space Force cadets graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy in a ceremony at Falcon Stadium June 1. In all, 806 Class of 2023 cadets were...

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September 29, 2023

English professor motivated by her love of storytelling

Lt. Col. Jessica Lopez is a Class of 2004 graduate and a U.S. Air Force Academy Department of English and Fine Arts assistant professor and deputy head of the Department of English and Fine Arts. (U.S. Air Force photo by Trevor Cokley) By Randy Roughton  U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications  U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo.– U.S. Air Force Academy assistant professor Lt. Col. Jessica Lopez flew in multiple military operations all over the world, but one passion led her on a different career path. She loves stories. ‘Stories matter’ “Stories matter,” said Lopez, a Department of English and Fine...

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October 26, 2022

12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year Visit the Academy

Cadets from the falconry club pose for a photo with members of the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year at the U.S Air Force Academy Sept. 27. The falconry club participates in a wide variety of community events, sharing the academy story with local schools and civic groups, as well as at Academy sporting events such as Falcon football. (U.S. Air Force photo by Trevor Cokley) By Cadet 1st Class Trevor Holley U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – Cadets got the unique experience of interacting with and learning from the 12 Outstanding Airmen of the Year for 2022 at the...

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December 12, 2017

‘All I wanted was to succeed’: USAFA Prep School NCO reflects on career

Master Sgt. Nicholas Roberts, an Academy military trainer, AMT. (U.S. Air Force photo/Ray Bowden) By Ray Bowden, Dec. 12, 2017 U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. -- When Master Sgt. Nicholas Roberts tells you “Wherever the Air Force needs me, is where I’ll go,” you get the idea he’s serious. Since enlisting in 2000, he’s bounced around the World like a lottery ball, deploying to Southwest Asia seven times and on contingency operations in other far-flung places. Nick is a military trainer at the Air Force Academy’s Preparatory School but late next year he reports for flight sergeant duty at the 820th...

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March 2, 2020

United States Air Force Academy Coronavirus Updates

Throughout the pandemic, the United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) has not wavered on its mission to educate, train and inspire men and women to become officers and leaders of character. As one of the first and only universities in the nation to have its entire student body return to campus, our cadets, faculty and staff have shared the responsibility of keeping our community healthy and safe. We remain committed to an in-person academic and extracurricular experience for Spring 2022. We are slowly reopening the installation services, activities and workplaces, including welcoming back the general public to visit. You may...

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November 4, 2021

How a group of Academy grads are providing humanitarian relief after Afghanistan

Major Jessica Gronert, USAFA Class of 2009, in Jerash, Jordan. Photo courtesy Maj Jessica Gronert. By Rachelle Stoll, Strategic Communications The sudden abruptness of the Afghanistan withdrawal left so many American and coalition veterans with what could only be described as an all-encompassing gamut of human emotion. For who bore the sword that delivered the blow? The little boy and little girl, who grew up having seen two towers in a once-boundless American sky, crumble mercilessly to the ground. The young man and woman with pimples on their cheeks and fire in their eyes, saying “send me!”  Going--maybe not with...

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February 16, 2022

Getting cadets to graduation: A senior NCO speaks out on his special duty as an academy military trainer

Master Sgt. Brian Kelsey, an academy military trainer at the Air Force Academy, is shown here in his Vandenberg Hall office. Story by Ray Bowden, Photo by Trevor Cokley U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. - If you’re assigned to cadet squadron 12 at the Air Force Academy and need advice, talk to Master Sgt. Brian Kelsey. If you want to chat about skiing, rock climbing, his four children or woodworking, he’s good with that, too. Kelsey is the squadron’s lead academy military trainer, one of more than 100 enlisted airmen leading, training and serving as military role models for the school’s...

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April 6, 2022

Cadets launch the future of space imagery

Falcon Neuro is hosted on the STP-H7/8 external payload in outer space. The payload was photographed by external cameras on the International Space Station. (Photo credit: NASA) By Public Affairs/Strategic Communications Photos by Joshua Armstrong/Trevor Cokley U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – Cadet research projects at the United States Air Force Academy are frequently launched into low-Earth orbit, giving cadets ample opportunities to learn space by doing space. An ongoing project is Falcon Neuro, with cadets and faculty using neuromorphic cameras attached to the International Space Station to study lighting across the Earth and electrical discharges in space known as...

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July 20, 2022

Academy illuminates impact of interstellar mission

The general public are given an opportunity to learn about space exploration at the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado July 18, 2022. The academy planetarium hosts a variety of educational experiences for the public as well as cadets. (U.S. Air Force photo/Rachelle Stoll) Story by Staff Sgt Seth Stang U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – Through cutting-edge facilities and educational experiences leaders at the Academy seek to engage and inspire future space explorers. Future Guardians, Airmen and faculty, along with members of the general public, have a variety of resources and opportunities to learn about...

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September 15, 2022

Academy Astro, Aero Engineering programs ranked top in U.S.

Two U.S. Air Force Academy cadets discuss course work in the Astronautical department. (U.S. Air Force photo/Trevor Cokley) U.S. Air Force Academy Strategic Communications U.S. AIR FORCE ACADEMY, Colo. – U.S. News and World Report ranked the Academy one of the nation’s best undergraduate educational institutions in the publication’s 2022 annual report. The Best Colleges Rankings report rates the Academy as third in the Top Public Schools category and names the Astronautical Engineering and Aeronautical Engineering programs as the best in the nation (at schools where a doctorate is not offered). The report rates the Academy 18th overall in the National...

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