adopt much that would fit our particular situation-and for this we will ever be indebted. Other features were modified to suit our particular mission or location. The remainder of our program was originated as the situation and mission dictated. What we borrowed from our sister academies in the way of operating procedures is far less important than the ultimate mission which we share in common with them—the development of leaders with character, a high sense of integrity, and a dedicated purpose. The achievements of the graduates of Annapolis and West Point in the past constitute a rich heritage for the newer school to follow. We are proud indeed to borrow from the more senior schools in the achievement of this ultimate goal.

WITH AN all-military faculty, well trained and specially selected from among the best in the Air Force, the Academy is able to offer a curriculum carefully designed to meet the needs of the aerospace age into which the cadets will graduate. We endeavor to achieve three goals through our curriculum: to provide for the general education of the student as a man and as a citizen; to lay a foundation for professional education for career officers; and to provide some specialization in an area related to an Air Force career. The curriculum provides four years of education in the sciences, social sciences, and humanities, plus military training and physical education. Successful completion of this program leads to an accredited bachelor of science degree and a commission as second lieutenant in the Regular Air Force.

A balance in contact hours is maintained between the academic program on one hand and military training and physical education on the other. The prescribed academic curriculum totals 2375 contact hours of instruction over four 38-week school years in the classrooms and laboratories. The combined military training and physical education programs have up to 2325 contact hours of instruction, much of this work being concentrated in the summer training periods. In

This curriculum was designed to provide each cadet with a broad general education and an opportunity to earn an academic major in a discipline or field of his choice. A core curriculum of courses in the basic and engineering sciences, social sciences, humanities, military training, and physical education prepares the cadet intellectually and physically for the responsibilities of commissioned ser

vice in the United States Air Force.

Each cadet is required to complete a major as part of his course of academic instruction. Building upon the foundation of the core curriculum, he selects approximately 41 semester hours of elective courses for one of the 29 subject-area majors offered by the Academy. These majors have been designed with both the interests of the cadets and the

needs of the Air Force in mind. Fifty-five percent of the cadets complete majors in science or engineering, 15 percent in management, and 30 percent in the social sciences and humanities.

A distinctive feature of the Air Force Academy curriculum and an innovation in service academy education is the enrichment program, formally established in 1956. The program has one basic objective: to challenge each cadet to advance academically as far and as fast as he can. It takes into account the differences in ability, preparation, and interests of the cadets and offers each cadet the challenge to live up to his potential in the pursuit of excellence.

As an incentive to outstanding cadets, any who can complete a half-year of graduatelevel study beyond his undergraduate major may compete for the opportunity to obtain a master's degree at a cooperating university in the seven months immediately following graduation from the Academy. At present there are five cooperative master's degree programs: astronautics with Purdue University, applied mathematics with North Carolina State Uni

versity, management with University of California at Los Angeles, physics with Ohio State University, and history with Indiana University.

The athletic program helps fit the cadet for his demanding life at the Academy and gives him the confidence in his own physical prowess and stamina that is conducive to the more important role of leadership. There is a comprehensive physical education program in which all cadets must participate for four years. In addition, an extensive intramural program pits one cadet squadron against another in a wide variety of sports throughout the school year. Perhaps the best known part of the athletic program is varsity athletics, including football, swimming, baseball, and other sports. The recently completed field house enables the Academy to expand its program in basketball and add indoor track and ice hockey. Again, the spirit of competition in the athletic program fosters the qualities of leadership needed by the young officer today.

The other facet of the Academy curriculum is both formal and informal in nature. Designed to be of immediate assistance in developing qualities of leadership in a cadet, the military training program is both academic and practical in nature, the practical taking the form of the cadet-run wing and the field training. The military training program identifies the qualities of leadership and its problems. It offers solutions in a practical way by allowing the cadets themselves to conduct formal and informal classes to train underclassmen. This program, through meaningful assignments, helps to develop useful military skills and places responsibility for the results squarely upon the cadet himself. An orientation to service life and lessons on the customs and courtesies of the service are included in this course in order to make the cadet at home in his chosen service as soon as possible.

In addition to this academic side of the military program, the Academy Commandant assigns chosen cadets to positions of squadron, group, and wing leadership. Here, under the stress and strain of daily problems, leadership skills are polished and perfected.

The military training program is designed

not only for leadership training but for career motivation. We must insure that the finished product of four years of intensive training is not only a competent member of the Air Force but a highly motivated officer, capable of inspiring others in the service of their country. This requires a motivation on the part of the cadet which will survive the rigors of cadet life and carry over into his daily performance on active duty.

The cadet's assumption of command positions within the wing creates a feeling of loyalty to his fellow cadets and to the wing as a whole. This same loyalty is a vital aspect in the character of the officer product which the Academy graduates. It goes hand in hand with the professional quality we seek to inculcate in all our graduate officers.

Finally, our military training program is designed to stimulate the cadet to learn more about his chosen profession; to excel in every activity, whether it be professional or recreational; to expand his interests in areas related to his military profession so he will be better prepared to cope with problems of ever increasing complexity and involvement; to think creatively, while at the same time to respect time-proven solutions; and to have pride in the Academy and in the military profession, a pride that evolves from the confidence that he is prepared to meet the challenges of a demanding profession and that the profession is useful, honorable, and highly respected by those whom it serves.

PROBABLY the most important facet

of the cadet's total experience at the Academy is the Cadet Honor Code. It is expressed in the simple statement, "We will not lie, cheat or steal, nor tolerate among us anyone who does." From the time late in summer when basic cadets become officially Fourth Classmen to the time when they are commissioned in the Regular Air Force, the Code permeates all cadet activities-on the playing field, in the classroom, off base and on, in official and unofficial activities. It is essential that the officer who will lead other Americans into battle be a man of honor.

A cadet is expected to have complete integrity in both word and deed; he does not quibble, nor does he use evasive statements. The Code belongs to the cadets. Maintaining its high standards is the responsibility of each man. A cadet is expected to report himself or to confront any other cadet who he believes has violated the Code and to ensure that the violation is reported. The Honor Code is a tool for self-discipline by the cadets themselves. It is not used as a regulatory device by the Academy administration.

Cadets regard the Code as only a minimum standard. In practice it is the foundation for a larger ethical code that serves the cadets as members of the Cadet Wing and as officers in the future. Academy graduates cherish always the experience of having lived under the Honor Code. To them, the ingrained habits of integrity associated with Academy life are a source of pride and a trait of character which helps them cope with the complex problems that face a career officer in the Air Force. The Honor Code is already a tradition at the Academy and forms a basic component of the Academy philosophy.

WE CONTINUE to devote our best abilities and time to making the Academy programs responsive to the needs of the Air Force and the nation. The critical situations existing in Southeast Asia and other trouble spots in the world emphasize the need for well-trained and highly dedicated junior Air Force officers. These conditions give a sense of direction and urgency to the efforts of the faculty and staff. In June 1968 the Air Force Academy graduated its tenth class. It has been a fruitful

decade. Starting as a vision, the Academy has become one of America's great educational institutions. Its graduates have reflected glory on themselves, the Academy, the Air Force, and the nation. Whether the Academy staff and faculty are doing a good job will be determined in the difficult days ahead when the Academy graduates are called upon to make decisions both on the battlefield and at the conference table. We must prepare our graduates to shoulder grave responsibilities.

Secretary of the Air Force Harold E. Talbott expressed the job of our Academy in magnificent fashion in his remarks to the cadets when he dedicated the Air Force Academy on 11 July 1955:

Flying, especially military flying, makes great demands on character. A man aloft in the great wilderness of space knows a loneliness of the spirit as well as of the body. There is no hand to touch, no shoulder on which to lean for even a moment's respite. There is no one from whom to seek advice, no one to share responsibility. Only the compulsion and discipline of duty drives a man to the completion of his task. So it is the man and not the machine we must think of when we speak of air power. Thus it is to the human element that the Air Force Academy is dedicated and especially to the leadership we must have if our country is to survive.

These words are a challenge and an inspiration to us at the Academy in our constant struggle to make the Air Force Academy a great educational institution, responsive to the ever changing needs of the Air Force and the nation.

United States Air Force Academy