Ohio is mounting a determined campaign to place the U.S. Space Academy at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base while federal officials work through major questions about how the proposed institution would operate.

The state is moving quickly despite uncertainty over the academy’s governance, admissions, academic programs and permanent home.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order creating a presidential commission to develop the academy on Aug. 28, 2026, at Johnson Space Center in Houston.

The order describes the institution as a “proposed NASA-led Federal academy” that would combine technical education, leadership development and public service.

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The White House says the academy would prepare graduates for military, civilian and broader space sector careers.

However, the commission still must recommend what degrees would be available, who could attend and what government service graduates would owe.

The commission also must determine how the academy would be governed and identify the legal authority or legislation required to establish it. Its responsibilities include recommending a process for selecting a permanent location.

The commission’s report is due to Trump by Dec. 26. Those unresolved questions have not stopped Ohio officials from preparing a bid centered on the state’s existing military, intelligence and aerospace facilities.

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Gov. Mike DeWine assembled a steering group to prepare Ohio’s submission. Members of the state’s congressional delegation also have promoted Wright-Patterson as a potential location for the academy.

Ohio faces a more immediate deadline before the presidential commission completes its work. NASA is accepting one site proposal from each state through its governor or a designated representative, and those submissions are due by 6 p.m. EDT on Oct. 26.

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DeWine has identified Wright-Patterson and NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland as major components of Ohio’s case.

Wright-Patterson houses the headquarters of the Air Force Research Laboratory and the National Space Intelligence Center.

NASA Glenn operates its Cleveland campus and the Neil Armstrong Test Facility in Sandusky. The Sandusky location includes major facilities used to test spacecraft and aerospace technology, giving Ohio another prominent asset to feature in its proposal.

The federal site selection effort is already underway. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman chaired the presidential commission’s first meeting on Sept. 9, and NASA asked states to submit potential academy locations the following day.

Under NASA’s current schedule, officials expect a groundbreaking by 2027. The plan calls for the first 300 students to begin at a temporary location in 2028, followed by the opening of a permanent campus by 2031.

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Several questions now facing the commission resemble those considered when the federal government created the Air Force Academy. A Congressional Research Service analysis published Monday said proposals for an Air Force academy began soon after the Air Force was created in 1947.

Executive branch reviews examined curriculum, governance, location, costs and the relationship between a new academy and existing officer training programs.

The debate continued until President Dwight Eisenhower signed legislation establishing the Air Force Academy in 1954.

The Space Academy could proceed through a different process, but the comparison highlights the institutional questions confronting the commission. The Air Force Academy, the most recently established U.S. service academy, already supplies officers to the Space Force.

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According to the U.S. Air Force Academy, 93 members of its 2026 graduating class were commissioned into the Space Force.

The Congressional Research Service said Congress may consider whether a separate academy is the best approach for meeting federal space workforce needs.

Congress also may consider which agency should lead the academy, whether existing programs can meet some of those needs and how much a new institution would cost. Lawmakers could shape the project directly through legislation.

Sen. Ashley Moody of Florida introduced S. 5398 on Sept. 15, while Rep. Byron Donalds of Florida introduced H.R. 10430 the next day.

Both measures would establish the U.S. Space Academy as a federal service academy and require it to be located in Florida.

The Senate proposal was referred to the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. The House measure went to the Science, Space and Technology Committee, and neither proposal has moved beyond its initial committee referral.

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Trump’s executive order anticipates congressional involvement by requiring the commission to identify legislation needed to carry out its recommendations.

NASA would implement recommendations approved by the president only after any necessary congressional action and subject to available funding.

Ohio’s immediate challenge is completing its Oct. 26 proposal. Two months later, the commission must recommend what the academy would teach, who could attend, what obligations graduates would carry and what Congress must do to transform the proposal into an operating federal institution.

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