The first points of the Air Academy Student Handbook are ‘Respect, Dignity, and Courtesy’. And though it is addressed that conflict is inevitable, there are many outdated and downright odd rules. I sat down and had a chat with the school Principal, Mr. Olson, and talked to him about some of these odd and outdated rules.

First off, I’d like to clarify that some of the rules in this story will be shortly revised and removed due to being either outdated or not needing to be there. So, to start us off we have the outdated cell phone rule, as of the time this story was written, it is still technically against the rules to possess and use cell phones on school grounds. However, you have nothing to fear, because Mr. Olson said, “It’s not enforced, and it shouldn’t be, because we are a BYOD school, the culture is changed, the school has changed.” In regards to the cell phone rule. This rule was revised in 2015 and will be revoked shortly.

Next there is the obscure but ever important trespassing rule, you are not allowed to leave school grounds and go onto base grounds. Or as Mr. Olson puts it, “It is, that is kind of a base situation, as you know, AAHS has a lease from the Base, a 100yr lease, and our school is here for what it needs to do, students come to school and are participating in school, and then come home.” This is of course different if you live on base, but otherwise this rule applies, also, it should be noted that 18 year olds leaving school grounds to consume nicotine products cannot use on base property under risk of arrest by the MP patrols in the woods. This rule is ongoing and will not be revoked.

Another rule that could strike somebody as odd is that AAHS students have waived their right to read a letter of recommendation. According to Mr. Olson, “Its kind of up to the individual teacher, for example, whenever I write a recommendation, I am perfectly fine with the student viewing it, but if it is a secure website, you won’t be able to get a hold of the letter.” ‘Secure websites’ are in reference to universities that have a policy against disclosing letters of rec and military academies which classify the documents. This policy will not be changed.

It is stated that school dances are supposed to be ‘G Rated Fun’, I found this to be a somewhat unrealistic expectation. Mr. Olson seemed unsure about it being unrealistic, but rather said, “Yes and no: we try to let students have as much fun as possible while staying within the confines of being socially acceptable.” The current rules are a loosening of the old rules which according to Mr. Olson, “Students protested”. Which after a series of events led to the school relaxing dance rules because, “We would rather loosen up the rules to keep them (students) safe.” This rule won’t be changing anytime soon.

Finally, the assemblies, and the attendance problems surrounding them.  In regards to the assemblies and the required attendance, it isn’t necessarily required, but staff supervision is a required for students to be supervised at all time during school hours. With Mr. Olson saying, “That’s mainly because of supervision, the teachers and staff are in the assembly, so supervision in the rest of the building is only in the assembly. We are bound by law to supervise students during school time”. So if you do have an issue with assemblies because of noise or sensory issues, feel free to seek out a staff member that also stays behind.  All in all, the rules of Air Academy should be respected, even though some may seem zany.