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The Editor's Vault: The best is 'nyet' to come

  • Published
  • By Annette Crawford
  • Air Force Recruiting Service Public Affairs
JOINT BASE SAN ANTONIO-RANDOLPH, Texas --  Editor's note: April 1 marked the 60th anniversary of the establishment of the U.S. Air Force Academy, which was created when President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed Public Law 325. I was stationed at the academy from 1983-87, and this article was originally published in the academy newspaper on July 11, 1986 (just a few weeks after the Air Force Recruiting Service commander, Brig. Gen. John P. Horner, graduated).
In the following article, the dean of faculty, then Brig. Gen. Ervin J. Rokke, talks about the cutting-edge move the academy was undertaking with the Class of 1990 - issuing them personal computers. Twenty-four years later, cadets are issued laptops with swivel screens.
Rokke retired as a lieutenant general in July 1997. His last assignment on active duty was as president, National Defense University, in Washington, D.C. He currently serves as the senior scholar for the Air Force Academy's Center for Character and Leadership Development.

Learning to speak Russian will be just the start of a new and challenging assignment for the dean when he leaves the Academy next week. But Brig. Gen. Ervin J. Rokke is used to changes and challenges - he's seen many during his short three-year tenure as dean.

"Some of those changes reflect the aspirations and goals of my predecessors. Some reflect goals of my own," said General Rokke. "The major change was the curriculum revision which we just completed, and which, I believe, will result in an improved cadet learning experience."

The dean explained that the core curriculum was reduced by seven courses. Those courses were then transferred into electives associated with, in most cases, academic majors.

"What we really achieved was a curriculum in which cadets have greater control over their academic destinies while they're here. I think that's important," he emphasized. "Cadets learn more when they're in courses they have selected."

"Most assuredly, we have not destroyed the notion of a strong core curriculum," General Rokke added. "We have retained a balanced intellectual development program. As in the past, it's in the core where cadets find the breadth of intellectual experience, which is going to serve them well when they go out into the Air Force."

Another change involves the Computers in the Dorm project, which was started by Brig. Gen. William A. Orth, General Rokke's predecessor.

"I'm really excited about this program and the success we've had with it. The Class of 1990 will be issued their own personal computers, which will be tied into an Academy-wide network. That's a remarkable achievement, given the complexities of creating so large a computer network.

"Projects don't normally come in under budget and on time. This project is both under budget and on time. That speaks well for the many people who were involved in the program," said the dean.

A major project that is on track for 1990 is the extension of Fairchild Hall, which will increase the building by approximately 240,000 square feet.

"From an academic perspective, this will allow us to solve a serious overcrowding problem. More cadets these days are majoring in the basic sciences and engineering than in the past," said the general. "Because of that, we're facing a square footage crunch. With the new addition, we'll have more space for our laboratories. The commandant will have additional dedicated space for his staff, and the cadet clinic will also have more room. So we've solved a lot of problem with this extension."

While the Colorado mountains and the modern world will just be a pleasant memory when the dean and his wife live in Moscow, those aspects won't be what he'll miss most.

"The most exciting part about this institution is not its marvelous facilities, but rather, the cadets. They seem to get better every year. During my time here, the most enjoyable experiences I had were when I was teaching in the classroom."

That will be one point that General Rokke would like to stress to his successor.
"I would urge him to keep one foot in the classroom and maintain contact with the cadets, because that's the most enjoyable part of the job," he said.

"My successor will be moving into a very exciting and demanding job. There are always challenges at the Air Force Academy; everything we do can be done better," he stressed. "The quality of the permanent professors, tenure professors and faculty is as good as I've ever seen. They're a marvelous group of people - dedicated and hardworking.
"Whoever the dean turns out to be, I'm sure he'll soon figure out he's working with the finest undergraduate faculty in the country," praised the general.

General Rokke explained that a selection committee will convene in late fall to pick a new dean. They will make a recommendation to the superintendent and the secretary of the Air Force sometime next spring with an announcement in the summer. Until that time, Col. John T. May will be the acting dean, and Col. Kenneth H. Fleming will be the acting vice dean. (By law, the new dean will be selected from among the 19 permanent professors assigned to the Academy.)

"Serving as dean is truly a marvelous opportunity," said General Rokke. "Whoever takes over this job is privileged. In particular, I've enjoyed the relationship that exists among the various Academy mission elements.

"There's always talk about the so-called terrazzo gap. Well, I don't see one. On the contrary, I have found that all of the mission elements under General [Winfield W. Scott Jr.]'s leadership have worked together as a team, and I salute General Scott for that. He's created an environment where that sort of relationship exists and where the mission elements have felt comfortable trying new approaches. I've sought to create the same type of atmosphere among my department heads. I want them to come up with interesting, innovative approaches. And they have done just that."

"The Editor's Vault" takes a look at articles written by retired Master Sgt. Annette Crawford throughout a career in public affairs that began in 1982. Stories are run exactly as they were written at the time of publication.