ACSC traces its roots to the Air Corps Tactical School (ACTS) located at Maxwell Field from 1931 to 1942. After World War II, as the independent Air Force was formed, grew, and developed, the requirements and expectations of the school evolved to fulfill the service's educational needs. The vision of pre-World War II leaders has withstood the test of time. Although more than eight decades have passed since the founding of the ACTS, the present 10-month curriculum still focuses on expanding understanding of air and space power and on the growth of midcareer officers. In 1962, the school became known by its current name, Air Command and Staff College.

Mission Educate and develop air-minded joint leaders

Vision A world-class PME institution inspiring lifelong learning & leadership excellence in the profession of arms.

The purpose of the Teaching Airpower History Workshop is to equip civilian academics with the background to integrate the history of airpower into their undergraduate and graduate courses. We will accomplish this by having subject matter experts present modules on topics ranging from airpower in the First World War to commercial airpower in world history to suggestions on integrating airpower since 1991 into courses on the Balkan Wars and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Joint All Domain Strategist was formerly Multi Domain Operational Strategist (MDOS) and was re-designated JADS in AY21 by the Air University Commander, in order to capture the joint nature of the course. In 2018, MDOS received the AETC innovation award for furthering the CSAF's priorities of expanding the joint and multi-domain warfighting abilities of airmen. The concentration is a selective year-long advanced program specializing in developing leaders who understand the employment of joint all domain operational maneuver to counter future threats in contested and degraded environments.

The ACSC Schriever Space Scholars Concentration is the nation’s first year-long, space-centric IDE program dedicated to developing space strategists. Originally sponsored by Air Force Space Command and now sponsored by US Space Force, the concentration combines the time-tested warfighting curriculum of ACSC (War Theory, International Studies, and Joint Warfighting courses) with space-focused classes that offer deep dives into space history, strategy, operations, and policy. The program offers a world-class strategic space education across all levels of the space enterprise: military, civil, and commercial.

The School of Advanced Nuclear Deterrence Studies (SANDS) program was founded in July 2015 by Air Force Global Strike Command to develop field grade officers into the next generation of nuclear deterrence leaders and experts. In 2018, the school was incorporated into ACSC to leverage the wealth of academic knowledge offered by Air University in order to enrich our student’s academic experience. The core mission of SANDS is to study military theory focused on strategic deterrence. Over the course of the rigorous 10-month graduate-level program, our students study the history of deterrence application, modern operational deterrence theory, and formulate how deterrence will change in the future.

The Political-Military Affairs Strategist (PAS) program is for students selected by their Developmental Education Designation Board (DEDB) or Reserve Developmental Education Designation Board (RDEDB) to complete a political-military oriented program. In addition to the ACSC core curriculum, the PAS program is designed to provide a broad knowledge of political-military affairs through a series of SAF/IAPA-sponsored lectures and specially approved elective courses that focus on interagency, joint or international topics.