Roslyn Littman "Roz" Schulte (March 4, 1984 – May 20, 2009) was a United States Air Force officer killed in action in the U.S. war in Afghanistan, making her the first female United States Air Force Academy graduate to be killed by enemy action and the second female graduate killed in action.[1] She was posthumously awarded the National Intelligence Medal for Valor and the Hawaii Medal of Honor.[2]
Roslyn Schulte | |
|---|---|
 Roslyn L. Schulte at the US Air Force Academy | |
| Nickname(s) | "Roz" |
| Born | March 18, 1984 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S. |
| Died | May 20, 2009 (aged 25) Kabul, Afghanistan |
| Place of burial | |
| Allegiance |  United States of America |
| Service |  United States Air Force |
| Years of service | 2006–2009 |
| Rank |  First Lieutenant |
| Unit | 613th Air and Space Operations Center |
| Battles / wars | War in Afghanistan |
| Awards |  Bronze Star Purple Heart National Intelligence Medal for Valor |
Early life and education
editBorn on March 18, 1984, in St. Louis, Missouri, Schulte grew up in suburban Ladue, Missouri, and graduated from John Burroughs School in 2002. She was Jewish.[3] Schulte served as an intern to former U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard of Colorado in 2005.[4] She graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy and was commissioned in 2006, part of the first class to have entered the academy after the September 11 attacks.[5]
Military service
editSchulte was assigned to the Pacific Air Force 613th Air and Space Operations Center at Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii, and was sent on deployment as an intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance operations officer. Three months after she arrived in Afghanistan, she was killed by a roadside bomb near Kabul.[6]
In addition to the Bronze Star and Purple Heart, Roslyn was awarded the Air Force Commendation Medal, Joint Service Achievement Medal, Air Force Combat Action Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Afghanistan Campaign Medal and NATO Medal.
National Intelligence Medal for Valor citation
editSchulte was posthumously awarded the National Intelligence Medal for Valor on January 25, 2010, the first named female recipient. Her citation noted "her courageous efforts to teach Afghan military officials how to gather and interpret military intelligence" and said, "She died in Afghanistan en route to a Bagram Airfield meeting on the very issue that powers the IC: sharing intelligence."[7]
Schulte was buried in her home state at New Mt. Sinai Cemetery in Affton, Missouri, a suburb of St. Louis.
Legacy
edit
Two buildings near Kabul were renamed in Schulte's honor. At Camp Eggers, one of the buildings was designated "Roz's House"; at Sia Sang, a building was named "Schulte's Place."[citation needed]
In 2010, the Air Force Academy created the Lt. Roslyn Schulte Cadet Award to recognize a cadet who "embodies the same impeccable character, unwavering leadership, and spirit of service that distinguished Lieutenant Schulte."[8]
In 2011, Goodfellow Air Force Base dedicated a training facility building in Schulte's honor.[9]
The conference room in the ISRD of the 613th Air and Space Operations Center at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam, Hawaii is named after Schulte.[10]
A conference room at 25th Air Force has also been dedicated in her honor.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Intel officer killed by bomb in Afghanistan, Air Force Times, May 22, 2009.
- ^ 2010 Hawaii Medal of Honor recipients, House of Representatives of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session, 2010.
- ^ "Profiles of Our Fallen". 10 February 2011.
- ^ AFA grad dies in Kabul SAD MILESTONE The death is the first combat- related fatality of an academy alumna, by Joey Bunch, Denver Post, May 22, 2009.
- ^ Local military graduates are part of first post-9/11 class, By Michael Beder, ST. LOUIS POST-DISPATCH, June 1, 2006.
- ^ Female Air Force Academy graduate dies in Afghanistan, CNN, May 22, 2009.
- ^ ODNI posthumously awards 1st Lt. Roslyn L. Schulte, Office of the Director of National Intelligence, January 25, 2010.
- ^ SCHULTE AWARD CEREMONY TO BE HELD ON MAY 25, US Fed News, US Air Force Academy Press Release, May 22, 2010.
- ^ "Wing names building after fallen ISR Warrior: remembering 1st Lt. Roslyn Schulte", Goodfellow Air Force Base Public Affairs, May 9, 2011.
- ^ 94th AAMDC Soldier Remembers a Fallen Airman