Scandal doesn't deter these Air Force cadets

By Jon Sarche
Associated Press

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Amid the investigations and public criticism over the sexual assault scandal at the Air Force Academy, cadet Nicole Helmers is more worried about the five grueling weeks of basic training she and other freshmen will undergo this summer.

Nicole Helmers says she is nervous about starting out as a freshman cadet at the Air Force Academy this week, but the butterflies have nothing to do with the sexual assault scandal boiling at the elite school. Helmers, 18, is more worried about how she'll bear up through five grueling weeks of basic training before classes begin.

Jessa Flatebo also will be among the 222 women in the class of 2007. Associated Press

Helmers said she and her parents are confident and comfortable with her choice to attend the academy, and she's sure she can avoid the situations that might have led to some of the problems.

"The bad press overshadows the good things, and there've been tons of good things," she said. "Any time you have boys and girls together with a little bit of bad judgment, stupid things happen, and stupid things did happen."

The academy has been scrutinized since publication of complaints by some female cadets that their allegations of sexual assault or abuse were downplayed and that they were punished for reporting them. The academy's four top commanders have been replaced.

The report on the first investigation, issued last week by a team of Air Force officials, maintained there was no systemic acceptance of sexual assault and no avoidance of responsibility when female cadets reported attacks. It recommended a series of changes, some of which the academy has made.

Another investigation, by an independent panel that Congress ordered Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld to appoint, is to begin work today. That probe is likely to take a harder look because its assignment includes finding which academy leaders, if any, were to blame for fostering an environment that led to the problems.

On Friday, the congressional panel lost two members who were criticized as unsympathetic to victims. That encouraged women's advocates who said the Air Force report was a whitewash.

Amy McCarthy, who cited skepticism of assault claims, resigned. And Pentagon employee Anita Blair, criticized by women's groups who said she opposed the integration of women in the military, was replaced by another Defense Department worker. McCarthy's replacement was not immediately announced.

Investigations by the Air Force inspector general and the Defense Department also are under way.

Many of the incoming cadets have been preparing to attend the academy for years and had received a nomination and applied to attend by the end of January, before female cadets began reporting that they were punished for rules infractions or ignored after complaining of sexual assault.

The freshmen, known as doolies, face three weeks of early wake-up calls, running, pushups and other training, to be followed by a march to Jack's Valley north of the academy. They will camp there for two weeks, running obstacle courses, undergoing team-building exercises and puzzling through mental challenges.

The training is designed to bond the class into a unit in which cadets can rely on others for support, and to build lasting friendships. The five-week regimen is officially called Basic Cadet Training, but cadets call it "The Beast."

"Of course I'm nervous about the physical training," said Helmers, a Colorado Springs resident who has followed news reports about the scandal. "I'm not sure if the nervous is bigger than the excitement. To undertake such a huge challenge just lights a fire in you that gets you all anxious, all excited and nervous in one."

For aspiring fighter pilot Anna Schwisow, 17, of Melba, Idaho, that regimen prompts more anxiety than the scandal.

"It had my parents worried, but not me. I know that kind of thing can happen everywhere," she said. "I'm a little nervous for basic training, but I think everybody is."

Beginning this year, female cadets' dormitory rooms will be clustered, and 24-hour security will be established. Medical personnel will be trained to respond to assault cases; cadets raising sexual assault allegations will receive amnesty for rules infractions; and cadets will be expelled for underage drinking.

Helmers said the changes will improve women's morale and safety.

"I'm not trying to support how the academy handled the situations that did arise, but I think the public is refusing to look at all the changes that have been made," she said.

Cadet Jessa Flatebo, 18, said the academy is likely to be one of the safest college campuses in the country because of all the scrutiny.

"They don't want that kind of publicity anymore," said Flatebo, of Garner, Iowa, who wants to be an astronaut.