Welcome to the Air Force Institute of Technology

In a ceremony held on Thursday, 14 December, the Air Force Institute of Technology broke ground on a new building. G. Richard Freeman, Technical Director of the Air Force Center for Systems Engineering at AFIT, served as Master of Ceremonies.

Freeman introduced several of the distinguished guests in attendance, to include Congressman Dave Hobson; Brig. Gen. William Germann, Command Surgeon, Air Force Material Command; Col. Karen Cleary, Vice Commander, National Air Space Intelligence Center; George Mooney, Director, Center for Systems Engineering; Col. Ken Fielding, Commander, 554 Electronic Systems Group; Mark Wilson, Former Director, Center for Systems Engineering; Dr. Robert Calico, Former Dean of AFIT's Graduate School of Engineering and Management; and Dr. Peter Torvik, AFIT Foundation President. Brig. Gen. Paula Thornhill, AFIT Commandant, served as presiding officer.

"Groundbreakings, to me, are as exciting if not more exciting than actually cutting the ribbon," Thornhill said. "Today I see possibility, vision, and reality. And that's what groundbreakings are all about. As we're here today, we're seeing the nexus of all three of those at the same time. For AFIT itself, and particularly for the Air Force Center for Systems Engineering at AFIT, we're seeing the reality of something that our Chief of Staff and our Secretary have placed very high importance on. We're seeing emphasis, in a physical sense, on the importance of systems engineering to our Air Force and to our military-not a small thing to put emphasis on. For AFIT, we're seeing something even a little bit bigger. We're seeing the nexus of vision and reality when it comes to what the Air Force and the Department of Defense expect from us in the 21st century."

Thornhill then introduced Hobson as a man who has had a vision for AFIT longer than many in attendance had been affiliated with it. "He has helped us, he's pushed us, and he's brought us along so that we think and see things bigger than what we are and who we are," she said. "He's helped us see possibilities where previously we might not have seen possibilities."

Congressman Hobson echoed Gen. Thornhill's excitement about the significance of the groundbreaking. "This is a testament," he said, "to the persistence and the excellence of the people at AFIT-those who have worked to make AFIT such a valuable opportunity for our young people. Without you, we wouldn't be here today. AFIT is an asset that must be kept, and what we're doing here today is a further testament to the persistence, the excellence, and the character of the people here. We're going to have a facility to enhance what was here before. In my opinion, the future of this country, and the Air Force, is in science and technology. And the engineering attitude that goes on at this facility, and this base, is what's going to continue to make the Air Force an outstanding part of our defense and of our nation."

Hobson concluded by thanking everyone for their impressive work, noting that he was proud to have played a part in it.

This project will increase AFIT's overall footprint by 50,000 sq ft. The new building will support the growing AFIT curriculum by housing the faculty and staff of the Center for Systems Engineering, and it will also house classrooms and laboratory facilities that will enable AFIT's graduates to conduct state-of-the art, interdisciplinary, Air Force-sponsored research.

This new building, scheduled for occupancy in the summer of 2008, will help AFIT provide better education for its resident students, conduct critical Air Force research projects, and provide graduate education to airmen around the world-officers, enlisted, and civilians.