What to Watch from Trump’s US Space Academy Commission

President Donald Trump on Aug. 28 announced plans to establish a U.S. Space Academy to bolster the country’s workforce and educate “the next generation” of space experts. 

The announcement quickly drew comparisons to existing military academies—in a speech at NASA’s Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, Trump himself likened it to the Army’s United States Military Academy at West Point. But the White House executive order issued in conjunction with the president’s announcement indicates the vision is for a new kind of federal service academy, one led by NASA and designed to train space operators and engineers across the civil, military, and commercial sectors. 

“To continue to lead the world in space exploration and technology, while securing and defending our national interests in space, the Nation must prepare the next generation of astronauts, scientists, engineers, operators, entrepreneurs, civil servants, and warfighters and ensure that they are capable of advancing American interests in space,” the order states. “It is my administration’s policy to strengthen the nation’s space workforce by expanding opportunities to educate and develop the next generation of leaders across the space domain.”  

The President doesn’t have the authority to create the academy on his own—that would require an act of Congress—but his order establishes a commission to explore questions around the academy’s structure, potential military or civil service requirements, location, funding, and eligibility requirements. The group will be led by NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman, and other commissioners will include leaders from the White House and the Pentagon, including the Secretary of Defense and the Secretary of the Air Force. The commission is meant to issue a report with recommendations by late December.

As those recommendations take shape in the coming weeks and months, experts say they’ll be watching for more detail on the academy’s mission and scope as well as efforts to garner feedback from members of Congress. They’ll also be tracking the U.S. military’s role in the organization and how it might impact the U.S. Air Force Academy, whose 2026 class included 93 Guardians. A Department of the Air Force spokesperson declined to comment for this story. In a statement, USAFA’s Association and Foundation, its alumni organization, said it will “closely monitor developments” and share relevant information with graduates.

Charles Galbreath, director of the Mitchell Institute’s Spacepower Advantage Center of Excellence, said the concept of a NASA-led “space center of excellence” makes sense given NASA’s deep knowledge and legacy operating in the domain. 

“For decades, NASA has been the repository of knowledge when it comes to space operations,” Galbreath said. “It stands to reason that it would be useful to codify that, to create an academy where NASA experts could pass on that knowledge to the next generation.”

While the President’s order doesn’t specify the primary audience for the new academy, Galbreath said there’s an opportunity to reach a wide swath of the space community—from undergraduates to mid-career operators—with programming that ranges from certifications to academic degrees. For the military, the academy could eventually serve as a means for commissioning officers, but Galbreath said that may not be necessary immediately given the Space Force’s small size.

“At some point in the future, it could grow and become a commissioning source, I suppose,” he said. “But we’re still a long way from that.”

Todd Harrison, a space policy expert at the American Enterprise Institute, said that while he agrees there’s a need to expand the space workforce, it’s not clear that a new federally run academy is the right answer. In an interview with Air & Space Forces Magazine, he cited concerns about operational costs, blurring the line between military and civil space missions, and setting up unnecessary competition with the universities that already exist to train the aerospace workforce. 

Harrison suggested that rather than create a separate academy, the administration could start a scholarship program similar to the Reserve Officers’ Training Corps, or ROTC. In this scenario, the government would offer scholarships to students pursuing relevant, space-related degrees in exchange for a period of service in the Space Force, NASA, or another federal agency. 

“Instead of competing with our world-class institutions . . . you would let them produce the best and the brightest talent with a commitment to go into the government and work for the government for a period of time,” he said. “Establishing a physical academy is going to take years, whereas if you make it a scholarship program, you could literally start awarding scholarships next school year.”

While a scholarship program is one way to address the government’s workforce pipeline, Galbreath argued there’s also value in creating the consolidated hub of space expertise that would come with the academy model. 

“When you have people that are colocated, they’re going to breed new ideas as well,” he said. “If you’re a student and you’re learning about orbital mechanics from a NASA PhD who designed the trajectories for a multi-planetary flyby, you’re getting the best.”

Another key question for the commission is where to locate the academy. Galbreath said it’s worth considering whether the academy should be located in a single campus or dispersed across multiple hubs, adding that cost will be an important factor as the commission considers its footprint. 

Harrison cautioned that opening that discussion—which is often loaded with parochial politics—too soon could muddy the process. In fact, some lawmakers have already started to pitch their districts to house the Space Academy, including Rep. Dale Strong, R-Ala., who said on Aug. 31 that Huntsville, Ala., has been floated as a potential location. Although the commission has months to recommend a location, Trump indicated he may select one sooner. 

Political headwinds may become a problem for Trump’s Space Academy proposal, especially if Republicans lose their majority in either the House or Senate after midterm elections in November. Harrison said there’s likely not enough time for the commission to complete its work and put the decision to a vote before the end of this legislative session. 

But Galbreath noted that creating a new academy could garner bipartisan support, similar to the creation of the Space Force in 2019 during Trump’s first term. 

“It’s really going to come down to the cost-benefit—can they make a compelling case that this Space Academy is going to be worth the investment of time and money and personnel,” he said. “If they can, then I think they’ll get bipartisan support. I don’t think this is one of those areas that you can get unilateral support.” 

Some Democrats, including Rep. George Whitesides, D-Calif., have already indicated they’re intrigued by the concept. In an Aug. 28 post on the social media site X, Whitesides said the idea “deserves consideration” but raised concerns about funding and the lack of congressional representation on the commission.

“I am open-minded to hear thoughtful answers to these questions, but I recommend that Congress be engaged quickly and substantively or else this intriguing idea will be stuck on the launch pad,” Whitesides said.