Editing United States Air Force Academy (section)

==The Honor Code and character education==
[[File:Air Force Academy Oath of Office.jpg|thumb|right|More than 1,300 basic cadets salute during the ceremonial Oath of Office formation on 26 June 2009. The [[United States Air Force Academy Cadet Chapel|Cadet Chapel]] is in the background.]]

The [[Cadet Honor Code]] is the cornerstone of a cadet's professional training and development – the minimum standard of ethical conduct that cadets expect of themselves and their fellow cadets. The Honor Code was developed and adopted by the Class of 1959, the first class to graduate from the academy and has been handed down to every subsequent class.<ref name="honorcode">"[http://www.usafa.af.mil/information/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=9427 ''The Honor Code,'' ] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100626141648/http://www.usafa.af.mil/information/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=9427 |date=26 June 2010 }}" USAFA Fact Sheet, April 2009, Retrieved 3 April 2010</ref><ref name="Honor Code Handbook">"[http://www.usafa.edu/Commandant/cwc/cwch/HCHandbook_Vol02.pdf Honor Code Reference Handbook- Volume II – The Honor System ] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100728205421/http://www.usafa.edu/Commandant/cwc/cwch/HCHandbook_Vol02.pdf |date=28 July 2010 }}", (646 KB) ''USAFA'', August 2008, Retrieved 3 April 2010 – Although the original code adopted was identical to West Point's Honor Code ("We will not lie, cheat or steal, or tolerate among us those who do."), it was modified slightly in 1960–61 to its current wording.</ref>  The Code itself is simple:

<blockquote>''We will not lie, steal, or cheat, nor tolerate among us anyone who does.''<ref name="honorcode"/>  </blockquote>

In 1984, the Cadet Wing voted to add an "Honor Oath," which was to be taken by all cadets. The oath is administered to fourth class cadets (freshmen) when they are formally accepted into the Wing at the conclusion of Basic Cadet Training.<ref name="Honor Code Handbook"/> The oath remains unchanged since its adoption in 1984 and consists of a statement of the code, followed by a resolution to live honorably (the phrase "So help me God" is now optional):

{{blockquote|''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).''|"Honor Code Handbook"}}

Cadets are considered the "guardians and stewards" of the code. Cadet honor representatives are chosen by senior leadership, and oversee the honor system by conducting education classes and investigating suspected honor violations. Cadets throughout the Wing are expected to sit on Honor Boards as [[jury|juries]] that determine whether their fellow cadets violated the code. Cadets also recommend sanctions for violations. The presumed sanction for an honor violation is disenrollment, but mitigating factors may result in the violator being placed in a probationary status for some period of time. This "honor probation" is usually only reserved for cadets in their first two years at the academy.{{Citation needed|date=February 2010}}

To reinforce the importance of honor, character and integrity to future officers, cadets are given an extensive character and leadership curriculum. The academy's Center for Character and Leadership Development provides classroom, seminar, workshop and experiential-based learning programs to all cadets, beginning when they enter Basic Cadet Training and continuing each year through their last semester at the academy. The center's programs, when coupled with the Honor Code and Honor System, establish a foundation for the "leaders of character" that the academy aspires to produce.<ref>[http://ccld.usafa.org/Project.aspx Center for Character and Leadership Development, Project] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101216065031/http://ccld.usafa.org/Project.aspx |date=16 December 2010 }}, U.S. Air Force Academy CCLD. Retrieved 26 October 2013</ref>