Tag Archives: honor code

BGen Kristin Goodwin and the USAFA Honor Code

We will not lie, steal, or cheat, nor tolerate among us anyone who does.
– US Air Force Academy Honor Code

Integrity first. Service before self. Excellence in all we do.
– US Air Force Core Values

BGen(S) Kristin Goodwin, soon to be the newest Commandant of Cadets at the US Air Force Academy, commissioned into the Air Force with the Academy Class of 1993.

The policy known as “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” was instated in February of 1994. Anyone who entered the military prior to that date answered a question about homosexuality during Read more

USAFA Investigating Mass Cheating Allegation

The US Air Force Academy announced it was investigating a mass cheating incident involving 40 cadets (of 500 in the course):

The Air Force’s Academy identified approximately 40 of its 500 fourth class cadets (freshmen) enrolled in Chemistry 100 (a core freshman course) for suspected Honor Code violations. Portions of a lab report assignment were allegedly copied and not documented either from previous semester reports or current student reports; this assignment is worth 50 of 3000 points.

The timing of the potential scandal is poor, given the spate of other ethical failures occurring in the active duty military right now.  It will certainly give rise to some interesting discussions in the coming days, however.

(Earlier reports implicated 11 cadets.)

Also at the Colorado Springs Gazette and Air Force Times.

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USAFA Cadets Lied, Broke Rules as OSI Informants

A fascinating article by the Colorado Springs Gazette accuses the Air Force Office of Special Investigations (OSI) of encouraging misconduct while using cadets to inform on their peers — and then disavowing them when they were no longer useful.

Eric Thomas, 24, was a confidential informant…OSI ordered Thomas to infiltrate academy cliques, wearing recorders, setting up drug buys, tailing suspected rapists and feeding information back to OSI. In pursuit of cases, he was regularly directed by agents to break academy rules…

Through it all, he thought OSI would have his back. But when an operation went wrong, he said, his handlers cut communication and disavowed knowledge of his actions, and watched as he was kicked out of the academy.

The Gazette claims to have obtained documents validating the cadets’ claims.

A lengthy article, but interesting.

Repeated at the Stars and Stripes.

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USAFA Says “So Help Me God” is Optional

In an anticlimatic but optimistically predicted result, LtGen Michelle Johnson declared that the “so help me God” portion of the USAFA Cadet Honor Oath is optional:

“Here at the Academy, we work to build a culture of dignity and respect, and that respect includes the ability of our cadets, Airmen and civilian Airmen to freely practice and exercise their religious preference – or not.” said Lt. Gen. Michelle D. Johnson, Academy Superintendent. “So, in the spirit of respect, cadets may or may not choose to finish the Honor Oath with ‘So help me God.'”

The current USAFA Athletic Director, Dr. Hans Mueh (BGen, Ret), was part of the faculty that decided on “so help me God” in 1984, when it was created in response to a cheating scandal:

“To add more seriousness to the oath, we decided to mirror the commissioning oath and add the words, ‘so help me, God,'” Dr. Mueh said.

Michael “Mikey” Weinstein, the “religious freedom” advocate who Read more

“So Help Me God”: Weinstein Gets USAFA Poster Pulled in 68 Minutes

Michael “Mikey” Weinstein, outspoken critic of Christians in the US military, once bragged he’d called the Pentagon and had a poster pulled off the wall of an Air Force base chow hall in less than an hour.  Last week, he tried again, and he did it in 68 minutes.

Pam Zubeck, a “journalist” with the Colorado Springs Independent — local to the US Air Force Academy — has long been an ally of Weinstein in his crusade against the Academy.  Last week, she helped his cause when USAFA sent the CSIndy some photos of the USAFA Prep School, one of which was a photo of a poster hanging on a wall.  The picture of the F-100F on static display in front of the Prep School contained the following quote [emphasis added]:

We will not lie, steal [or cheat,]* nor tolerate among us anyone who does.  Furthermore, I resolve to do my duty and to live honorably, so help me God.

USAFA Photo

Zubeck was clearly concerned about Read more