Charlie Kirk Asks Tough Questions at U.S. Air Force Academy Oversight Meeting

By Victoria Manning | Restoration News

Restoration News continues its examination of the civilian boards that oversee America’s five military academies. In this report, we examine the progress made at the U.S. Air Force Academy (USAFA) Board of Visitors.

No longer will the Board of Visitors (BOV) of the Air Force Academy act as a rubber stamp for the superintendent. They’ve started asking hard questions and demanding action. The first meeting was a success, but more must be done.

Restoration of America is committed to supporting and holding accountable the oversight boards of America’s prestigious military academies. The USAFA BOV Chairman, Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX), deserves recognition for his strong leadership at the recent meeting on Aug. 7th. As a graduate of the academy and fighter pilot, Pfluger is the perfect man for the job.

Chair Pfluger kicked off the meeting saying the BOV needs “to hit the reset button on functionality” and how it interacts with the Defense Department and Department of the Air Force. He also said the board would conduct oversight “with a diligence and with an effort level that will be new.” Pluger also permitted public comment at the meeting—rare at a service academy BOV meeting.

Superintendent Lt. Gen. Tony Bauernfeind gave a presentation updating the board on academics, fitness testing, and more. He emphasized, “we are here to forge warfighters to win.” While the brief struck a positive tone, some board members rightly expressed skepticism and posed important questions.

Asking Important Questions

Charlie Kirk, appointed to the board by President Trump, unsurprisingly asked straightforward questions. He asked Supt. Bauernfeind how he could be sure his faculty wasn’t teaching a DEI worldview.

The superintendent responded that USAFA complies with executive orders but admitted he doesn’t have full confidence they have removed 100 percent of DEI materials. Bauernfeind said they eliminated two courses and 10-12 readings and as they continue to find items out of alignment they correct them.

Kirk continued his questioning by turning his focus on the ongoing renovation of the historic Air Force Academy Chapel. Built in 1959, the beautiful structure only took 3 years to construct. Yet, a remodel project that began in 2019 isn’t projected to be complete until 2028.

Kirk said he met with cadets who expressed disappointment that in 4 years at the Academy they will not have been able to step foot in or worship at the chapel. He demanded a checklist of roadblocks from the Superintendent preventing the project from completion. Kirk asserted that the board could help make it happen. The superintendent said he would be happy to “swarm the project” to get it done sooner with the support of the board.

Woke Leaders Still in Power

While the strong BOV leadership and transparency is refreshing, there is more work to be done. Doug Truax, founder of Restoration of America and himself a service academy graduate, submitted public comments to the BOV with his vision of improvements needed at the USAFA.

Doug Truax_Letter to USAFA BOV_August 7 by Jeff Reynolds

Truax highlighted one important item: The need to remove staff members with social justice and political agendas. That issue received new scrutiny after two staff members who presented at the BOV meeting were previously identified as pushing practices not in alignment with Sec. Hegseth’s vision of a warrior focused, anti-woke military. RestoretheMilitary.com has the details. While the BOV can’t directly fire staff, they can certainly make recommendations.

Director of Admissions Col. Candice Pipes gave a presentation to the BOV and it’s shocking she is still in this leadership position. Pipes previously claimed that the Air Force required “radical change” to fix what she called its “racial disparity.”

She also said she pays a “diversity tax” because she is a black woman and encouraged the Air Force to implement more DEI policies and strategies. In 2023, Pipes told reporters that it was her goal to attract more women to USAFA. A short time later, she became a defendant in the Students for Fair Admissions court case that alleged the USAFA deliberately chose students based on race rather than merit.

Brig. Gen. Gavin Marks, Commandant of Cadets, also briefed the board. One wonders if the BOV knew about Marks’ black power salutes he gave while in uniform. He has pushed diversity initiatives, and required 16 hours of DEI training for cadets.

If these are the leaders Bauernfeind finds permissible to brief the BOV and to lead in these important positions, what staff members lurk behind the scenes secretly pushing woke agendas?

Those on the BOV who spoke up and are holding USAFA leadership accountable must be commended and supported, but more must be done. Restoration of America will continue to monitor and report on USAFA and all other service academy BOV meetings.

Next up is the U.S. Naval Academy Board of Visitors’ meeting on Sept. 8th at the Library of Congress, in Washington, D.C.

First published on Restoration News