Democratic lawmakers urge DOD to provide details on Air Force Academy faculty cuts
Proposed civilian faculty cuts at Air Force Academy raise alarms over critical engineering programs
Air Force Academy cadets watch the deployment of Falcon SAT-X on SpaceX’s Falcon 9 from the Department of Astronautics Space Systems Research Center. The satellite launched at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California in November 2023.
The prospect of laying off civilian faculty members at the Air Force Academy is driving concern from faculty about the future quality of the school’s engineering programs.
An internal academy communication last week said Superintendent Lt. Gen. Tony Bauernfeind was proposing cutting civilian faculty positions. All of those staff members have doctoral degrees because the institution only hires civilian faculty with doctoral degrees.
A letter the academy released publicly this week did not mention layoffs, but stated the institution was preparing to operate in a new fiscal environment and needed to be prepared to backfill civilians planning to retire or resign.
In response to questions from The Gazette, AFA staff said the academy has been operating above its civilian pay budget for the past several years, and will take necessary measures to be within budget.
On April 7, the Department of Defense reintroduced a resignation program similar to the Fork in the Road program introduced across the federal government earlier this year. The Department of Defense offered to pay civilian employees through Sept. 30 if they resign and gave them until Monday to decide.
The Department of Defense is aiming to reduce its civilian workforce 5%-8%, according to a news release.
However, instructors are concerned cuts to civilian faculty could harm cadets’ readiness to work on programs aimed at modernizing the Air Force with new weapons systems.
In a few years, pilots of F-35s could have a team of drones flying alongside them, taking on more risky tasks.
It’s a vision that will take highly educated Air Force officers to ask contractors questions and oversee the process to developed the unmanned systems that will be used in the next war.
Newly commissioned officers will also need the skills to keep the Air Force’s large collection of aging airplanes flying
At the Air Force Academy, a mix of military and civilian professors, including veterans, ensures graduates have those technical skills, professors said.
Air Force Academy Superintendent Gen. Lt. Tony Bauernfeind released a letter about potential staff reductions.
“One of the roles that civilians play is keeping the education they are getting here relevant to what they would need as they move forward to leading Air Force relevant research,” said a professor who declined to be named for fear of retaliation.
The school employs 491 faculty members, with 308 uniformed members and 183 civilians, the internal communication said.
If the academy cut many civilian positions, without replacing them, it could force the school to cut some majors, the internal academy communication said. In the recently released letter Bauernfeind said he has not directed any changes to majors and the school was planning contingencies to backfill civilian employees preparing to retire or resign.
Should changes to majors happen, the academy will work with individual students, the academy said in an email.
The academy said on its website that about 60% of cadets graduate with degrees in science and engineering. The remaining 40% graduate with degrees in social sciences and humanities.
Some of the key engineering degrees include aeronautical, astronautical, computer, systems and mechanical engineering and all are accredited by ABET, formerly known as the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, according to the academy’s website.
The loss of professors holding doctoral degrees could lead to programs losing their accreditation and make it tough to attract top engineering candidates, professors said. There is also fear that the top freshmen and sophomores might transfer out of the programs, they said. The instructors spoke on the condition of anonymity to avoid retaliation.
The loss of accredited programs also could hurt cadets’ chances at getting into graduate school, professors said.
The superintendent said in his letter he had not directed any change in accreditation and administering accredited degrees is part of the school’s mission. The academy said in an email the accreditation is a sign of the quality education available at the academy.
Universities and colleges must earn program accreditation through outside observation.
The accreditation process through ABET examines numerous aspects of a program, including the qualifications of faculty members and whether they are sufficient to achieve the student learning outcomes.