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The Air Force Academy had its highest number of reported sexual assaults in at least 16 years, according to a Pentagon report released last week.

The Department of Defense annual report on sexual harassment and violence at the military’s service academies for the 2020-2021 academic year shows the Air Force Academy atop the nation’s two other major military schools in the dubious rankings, with 55 sexual assault reports against cadets. That’s up from 41 in the prior academic year.

The Pentagon study showed the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. had an even steeper climb in reports from 30 to 50 while reported sexual assaults remained steady at the Naval Academy in Maryland, with 34 reports in each of the past two academic years.

One reason for the more than 30% change in reported sexual assaults at Air Force and 60% change at West Point could be because many cadets were sent home in 2020 as COVID-19 began to take off.

“Preventing sexual assault remains one of our highest priorities,” Elizabeth Foster, executive director of the Pentagon Office of Force Resiliency said in a statement. “No one should experience sexual assault. While we continue efforts to stop these behaviors at our academies, we encourage survivors to come forward and make reports so we can connect them with recovery care and aid efforts to hold offenders appropriately accountable.”

Sexual assault reports at the Air Force Academy climbed the last three academic years from 23 in 2018.

In the most recent year, 28 Air Force cadets filed “unrestricted” reports, which can lead to criminal investigations, and 27 filed “restricted” reports, which allow the victim to get help but don’t lead to a criminal probe.

Sexual harassment claims were up at two of three service academies from the previous year, their study found.

Air Force jumped from five in 2019-2020 to 12 in 2020-2021. West Point jumped from four to 15, while Navy remained stable at three.

“Any instance of sexual harassment or sexual assault is counter to the development of leaders of character at our academy, and to our fundamental priority of dignity and respect for all,” academy Superintendent Lt. Gen. Richard Clark said in a statement. “We are not yet where we need to be, and we continue to work on evidence-based prevention and response programs to get this right and end the degrading behaviors of sexual harassment and assault. No cadet, airman or guardian should ever experience sexual harassment or assault while serving our nation.”

Two years ago the Air Force changed policies to encourage cadets to report sexual assault. The Safe to Report regulation gave cadets who report sexual assault amnesty for minor misconduct infractions like underage drinking or being outside cadet-area limits. The academy also took steps to educate its newest cadets on sexual assault prevention before they arrived at the academy with a pair of at-home education programs.

This past academic year, victims in 22 reports said they came forward due to the protections of the new amnesty policy.

The Pentagon study highlighted work at the academies to combat sexual assault and harassment.

The schools were asked to find key influencers who would combat “incorrectly perceived norms around help-seeking and bystander intervention.”

The Air Force Academy met that requirement by having some of its peer influencer programs including Teal Ropes, PEERs and Diversity and Inclusion Ropes address misperceptions around sexual assault, answer questions and offer survivor resources.

The academies were also asked to use peer groups to encourage victims to report and get help.

“This year we found that there are influential academy students that make a daily difference helping others. But some still appear hesitant to act and intervene,” said Nate Galbreath, acting director of the Department of Defense Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office. “We must do more to ensure that our future leaders have the resources and information to step up and take action to make a positive difference.”

The Air Force Academy Teal Rope program reported 108 trained cadets. “Teal Rope cadets have a visible and accessible presence among the cadet population, which may help to decrease the stigma of asking questions related to help-seeking and support,” according to the report.

“The academies must ensure cadets and midshipmen receive an educational experience that is free from sexual assault and harassment and continue to develop future leaders who will ensure climates of dignity, respect and inclusion,” Foster said.

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