US Air Force Academy official, Brig. Gen. Susan Desjardins, told lawmakers last week that the academy has “come a long way in addressing sexual assault and violence since the events of 2003 and before.” Desjardins, who is the new commandant of cadets, testified that the school first had “to understand sexual assault as a continuum of inappropriate behaviors,” and sought outside experts in the field to help the school identify the nature of the crimes and methods to use to prevent them. (Read the Air Force news release here.) The latest DOD survey of service academies showed that sexual assault and harassment has declined at USAFA.
Trainees in Basic Military Training and technical school no longer have the option to try alternate PT drills if they fail an initial assessment, according to a policy change the Air Force made in April. The move is part of a larger shift out of the classroom and into hands-on,…