DENVER -- Nearly 30 Air Force Academy cadets required medical care, with six of them hospitalized, after an annual tradition to mark the first snowfall of the season turned into an out-of-control melee, officials said Wednesday. 
 
 An unauthorized ritual last week called "First Shirt/First Snow," in which freshman cadets try to throw their cadet sergeant into a snowbank, grew violent and resulted in injuries, the academy said in a statement. 
 
 "A relatively small number of cadets chose to take part in this unsafe activity," Brig. Gen. Gregory Lengyel said in the statement. "This incident was unacceptable." 
 
 The six cadets who required hospitalization after last Thursday's incident have all been released, and the 21 others were treated for "bruises and/or lacerations" at the academy's cadet clinic, the school said. 
 
 Lengyel, who serves as the commandant of cadets, said school officials are investigating the incident. "Our Air Force expects better. I expect better, and I'm confident the cadets will learn and grow from this." 
 
 An internal email about the incident obtained by the Air Force Times newspaper, reportedly written by Brig. Gen. Dana Born to school administrators, said the annual ritual "has turned into a brawl" between freshmen and upperclassmen. 
 
 "This ritual has devolved to become increasingly violent, with significant numbers of cadets requiring medical care over the past two years," The Times cited the email as saying, adding that the latest injuries included concussions, an arm bite and cuts that required stitches. 
 
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 “Obviously, this has gotten out of hand and cannot be repeated,” Born wrote. “There is no way we can condone or defend this.” 
 
 The Times said the internal memo indicated Lengyel might allow the tradition to continue if cadets can show it can be conducted with "good order and discipline and proper risk management." 
 
 Located in Colorado Springs, 60 miles south of Denver, the academy has an enrollment of about 4,100 cadets, and graduates are commissioned second lieutenants in the U.S. Air Force. 
 
 The reported incident is a fresh blow to the reputation of the Air Force, which has dealt with a number of scandals in recent years. 
 
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 In 2003, the academy was accused of failing to investigate numerous incidents of sexual assaults on the campus. 
 
 In 2005, an Air Force panel concluded that officers and faculty members periodically used their positions to promote their Christian faith and failed to accommodate the religious needs of non-Christian cadets. 
 
 The academy has also been hit with several cheating and drug-use incidents in recent years, according to the Colorado Springs Independent. 
 
 Reuters contributed to this report. 
 
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 COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (CBS4)– The U.S. Air Force Academy confirmed Thursday it is investigating a racial slur written on the message boards of five cadet candidates attending the Academy’s Preparatory School and reiterated there is no place for racism in the Air Force. 
 
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 “If you’re outraged by those words, then you’re in the right place,” said Lt. Gen. Jay Silveria, superintendent of the Academy. “That kind of behavior has no place at the Prep School, at USAFA, and in the United States.” 
 
 A photo shared on Facebook shows a dry erase board with the words, “go home n-word” written on a dorm for cadet candidates at the Prep School. 
 
 “You should be outraged as an airman and as a human being,” the superintendent said. 
 
 Lt. Gen. Silveria spoke to faculty, staff, and thousands of cadets at the Academy during lunch. Some were learning about the use of the racial slur for the first time. He acknowledged that no place will ever be completely free of racism. 
 
 “I would be naive and we would all be naive to think that everything is perfect here,” said Silveria. 
 
 He called on everyone to celebrate their unique backgrounds that make them stronger together. 
 
 “The appropriate response for horrible language and horrible ideas, the appropriate response is a better idea,” he said. 
 
 The Prep School is a 10-month program that helps cadet candidates enter into the Academy. 
 
 Silveria says that better idea is the unity they can all show as cadets and members of the Air Force. 
 
 “The power that we come from all walks of life,” he said. “That we come from all parts of this country, that we come from all races, from all backgrounds, genders, all makeup, all upbringing, the power of that diversity comes together and makes us that much more powerful.” 
 
 Silveria did not repeat what was written but made it clear his words were directed to those who wrote on the dorm message boards. 
 
 “No one can write on a board and question our values,” he said. “No one can take that away from us.” 
 
 "If you can't treat someone with dignity and respect–then you need to get out."-Lt. Gen. Jay B. Silveria, Superintendent @AF_Academy pic.twitter.com/njCktv5Fmp — U.S. Air Force (@usairforce) September 28, 2017 
 
 The Academy says the 10th Security Forces Squadron is investigating the matter and that no one can comment any further at this time. 
 
 The strong message sent by the superintendent was a combination of highlighting the diversity at the Academy but also stating to everyone in attendance that intolerance will not be accepted. He told everyone in the room to take out their cell phones and record part of his speech so they can keep with them the expectations of the Academy on this issue. 
 
 “If you can’t treat someone with dignity and respect, then you need to get out,” he said. “If you can’t teach someone from another gender whether that’s a man or a woman with dignity and respect, then you need to get out. If you demean someone in any way, then you should get out. And if you can’t treat someone from another race or a different color skin with dignity and respect, then you need to get out.” 
 
 Shawn Chitnis reports for CBS4 News at 10 on weekends and CBS4 News at 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. throughout the week. Email him story ideas at smchitnis@cbs.com and connect with him on Twitter or Facebook.
– An Air Force ritual devolved into an all-out melee last week that left 30 cadets injured and six hospitalized—with concussions, cuts, and an arm bite, NBC News reports. It was all part of the unauthorized "First Shirt/First Snow" ritual, in which cadets toss a sergeant into a snow bank at the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colo. Not too surprisingly, the rite has led to melees and injuries the past couple of years. "Obviously, this has gotten out of hand and cannot be repeated," wrote Brig. Gen. Dana Born to school administrators. Just how does the ritual turn into a massive melee? When "upperclassmen defending the first sergeant" begin brawling with "the four degrees trying to capture the first sergeant," wrote Born, according to the Air Force Times. But a new commander at the school says he may allow the sergeant-tossing to continue if cadets can do it nicely. "Our Air Force expects better," says Brig. Gen. Greg Lengyel. "I expect better, and I’m confident the cadets will learn and grow from this."