Kudos to 5th Congressional District U.S. Rep Jeff Crank for his bipartisan bid to secure more funding for civilian staff at the Air Force Academy. The signature Pikes Peak region higher-ed institution — a linchpin in our nation’s defense — warrants the effort.

The Republican Crank of Colorado Springs and Colorado’s junior Democratic U.S. Sen. John Hickenlooper are calling for $10 million from unobligated operations and maintenance funds within the Department of the Air Force to help cover the pay shortfall for civilian staff at the academy. 

Writing to Secretary of the Air Force Troy Meink, Crank and Hickenlooper acknowledge the need for wise resource management and fiscal constraints, welcome priorities under President Donald Trump’s administration. But they warn that rushed civilian staff cuts hurt “academic continuity” by increasing class sizes, shrinking course offerings and eroding accreditation in technical disciplines.

The additional funding would go to ensuring staffing decisions, such as additions or cuts, more thoroughly factor in such variables as course enrollment and departmental needs.

“To be clear, our request is not a demand to block all restructuring; rather, it is an effort to preserve institutional stability while change is considered,” their letter states. 

Crank’s call for the funding comes in the wake of the Air Force Academy’s number of employees — including contractors, research technicians and various support roles — who work under the dean of faculty falling by 15% year over year, from 895 positions to 759. 

Combined with retirements and resignations at the academy — attrition pushed by the Trump administration in their efforts to cut costs — some departments at the academy might be down as many as 14 staff members come the fall semester, The Gazette reports.

The $10 million is estimated to restore 40 to 45 positions. If anything, more funding is needed to sustain civilian staff on an ongoing basis.

The staff cuts were also highlighted in the academy’s Board of Visitors’ semiannual report to the secretary of defense, which called for an audit of the faculty to determine if the school is properly staffed and to determine how many more staff are needed to raise enrollment from about 4,000 cadets to 4,400.

The academy’s enrollment was reduced because of budget cuts and increasing it again would bring it into parity with the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and the Naval Academy, the report said.  

Let’s hope Crank’s request moves quickly.

Rebuilding the Air Force Academy’s staff after the cuts will take some time, in part because hiring cycles for colleges and universities tend to be long. Interviews for open positions are usually conducted in the winter. Then offers are sent out in the spring, and new faculty members are brought on board over the summer in time for the fall semester, as one faculty member explained the process to The Gazette’s news staff. 

Crank no doubt understands rebuilding the Air Force Academy’s staff will take time. That’s all the more why he wants to take the first step now. 

Fundamentally, we must ensure the academy remains an academic powerhouse — and that it continues to develop the unmatched warriors who will lead our nation’s Air Force.

Now more than ever, ensuring the preparedness of future cadet classes is vital to our national security.