What We Do:
The Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) facilitates projects between Air University (AU) organizations and external sponsors, ranging from formalized Research Task Forces and media like the Wild Blue Yonder blog and podcast to one-off requests for expertise, coordination, and event planning.  Our approach is to help solve problems by figuring out how to “get to yes” and then passing on that process to others, whether it is responsive contracting and financial support or making use of AU assets like AUTV.  We do our best to direct traffic and make matches for whatever comes up as an opportunity to promote AU scholarship. 

Our Mission:
We’re the connective tissue that gets AU scholarship from the schoolhouse to decision-makers and sponsor’s requests to responsive subject matter experts.

Our Vision:
To be the one-stop entry point for requests for AU brainpower.

Our Team:

Air University offers sponsors the chance to leverage the career-spanning population of students, full spectrum of MOS and expert SME guidance to work on problem sets of importance to the DAF.  The backbone of a Research Task Force (RTF) are two-term elective courses taken by a mixed group of AWC and ACSC students, recruited early in the school year and selected by faculty for what they bring to the discussion. This joint, collaborative environment allows researchers to bring their expertise and experience to formal academic scholarship guided by available AU faculty.  Sponsors interested in providing data sets, financial support, access to their own SMEs, outbrief slots, or multi-year iterative topics are welcome to contact us for further discussion. 

A RTF requires:

• * A sponsor 
• * Available faculty with appropriate expertise
• * Non-duplicative student interest at both ACSC and AWC (so no JADO RTF that competes with JWSS/JADS)
• * Specific problem set and desired deliverables.
• * External funding (if necessary).

If your organization is interested in sponsoring an RTF or other AU scholarship, please contact us at OfficeOfSponsoredPrograms@au.af.edu. 

Multiple RTFs study questions and develop research answers for specific leaders. Our research task forces, housed at the Air War College and at Air Command and Staff College, include the following for AY24:

• * Ideas & Weapons (AFRL)
• * Resiliency Research Task Force (HAF A1Z)*
• * Russia Research Task Force (EUCOM/Russia Strategic Initiative) 
• * PACAF Campaign Planning (PACAF A3/6)
• * Taiwan Deterrence (INDOPACOM J5)
• * Innovation (HAF/CVK)
• * Immersive Learning and Simulations (AFAMS) 

Past Research Task forces include: 

• * Arctic Strategists Research Task Force (AY22)
• * Military Basing in the Indo-Pacific Research Task Force (INDOPACOM J5) (AY22)
• * Deterrence Research Task Force (DRTF) (AY22)
• * Vigilance Horizons (ISR) Research Task Force (AY22)
• * Cyber Research Task Force 

The Office of Sponsored Programs work with a number of DoD partners to support scholarship at Air University. 

• Air Force Agency for Modeling and Simulation (AFAMS)  - sponsor of the ILS RTF. 

Here are some examples of the completed projects that the Office of Sponsored Programs supported or launched. For more on what types of services the OSP can offer, please click on the X tab. 

• Summer Workshop on Teaching Space (July 26-30, 2021) - facilitated coordination with MGMWerx to host the event. 
• Holm Center's Purple Project (July 2021) - organized staff rides for ROTC cadets. 
• AU Research Showcase (7-8 June 2021) - hosted event to promote research conducted by students across AU with the support of MGMWerx.

• TTX for AETC on DAF/AF/SF issues (April 2020) - organized AU experts to craft briefs for TTX prep.

The Office of Sponsored Programs also oversees the AU Research Topics List, which is comprised of questions given to Air University by organizations with the USAF and other DoD organizations. To facilitate the iterative process of research, each question also includes a list of reverent work that has been recently by AU students that is hosted in the AU Library's databases.

We accept topic submissions on a continual basis. If you would like to submit a topic, please contact us at AUResearch@au.af.edu. Be sure to include a short title, the question(s), the name of the organization or commander requesting the topic, and a POC with their contact information. You may also include a short background paragraph to provide context to the question(s).

The OSP collaborates with authors, from cadets, to practitioners, to academics, to ensure peer-reviewed content relevant to the DOD and researchers worldwide is added to the Wild Blue Yonder Digital Journal. We also produce Podcasts, available here: https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/Wild-Blue-Yonder/.

Wild Blue Yonder is an online journal and forum focused on military-related thought and dialogue. The journal seeks to foster discussion and debate among practitioners and academicians. We want to hear your ideas on how to reshape the way we think about air, space, cyberspace, and the multi-domain. Our articles bridge the gap between academic thought and practical operational experience. 

Consider submitting an article or podcast idea today!  Submission requirements here: https://www.airuniversity.af.edu/Wild-Blue-Yonder/.

What is Adjunct Contract Professional (ACP)?

• The program is a CSAF-sponsored collaboration with Air University to leverage the knowledge, skills, and experience of select retired senior leaders and SMEs

• Two general requirement areas:
     1) Assist with the development of Airmen
     2) Assist with Air Force improvement initiatives

• Deliverables focused on research, “red-teaming,” writing, teaching, consulting, curriculum development, and mentoring.

• HAF originated the program in 2017 in collaboration with Air University through a commercial contract with Flatter, Inc. to perform a broad range of Adjunct Professor duties that are within the scope of functions outlined in DoDI 1402.06

Who is ACP?

• Just under 60 senior leaders and SMEs participate.

• Primarily General Officers, but also some 0-6 officers, senior civilians, and non-DoD experts.

• ACPs have expertise in numerous areas, including Joint Staff Strategy, Command and Control, Air Superiority, Cyberspace Superiority, Global Integrated ISR, Global Position Attack, Rapid Global Mobility, Theaters of Operation, Electronic Warfare, Operational Test and Evaluation, Acquisitions, Logistics, etc.

Important to Note:

• HAF annually promotes ACP program to every MAJCOM, HAF directorate, select FOAs, select DRUs, and several Air Force initiatives like Air Force Futures, Chief Data Officer, and Enterprise Capability Collaboration Teams (ECCTs)

• Primary users have been AF/A1, AFIT, ACSC, AWC, Eaker, as well as SeCAF, CSAF, CSO, AF/CC, AF/REG, AFDW, USPACOM, 505 CTS, HQ AF Space Command, A5/7, SAF/IG, USAFWC, HAF/DS, AFRL, IMSC, and AU/SJIOAC.

• ACP is distinct from the “Senior Mentor” program (aka HQE-SM – Highly Qualified Expert-Senior Mentor) run by Air Combat Command, which by public law delineates specific tasks which can only be performed by the Senior Mentors (such as non-Academic wargaming)

• By contract law, participating organizations cannot by-name request a specific person in the requirement specification.

Contact Us:

• For information about the ACP program, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the government contracting officer representative, Col Jeremy Holmes, email: Jeremy.Holmes@us.af.mil.