Grissom Academy
The Alliance's Biotic School
The Jon Grissom Academy was a Systems Alliance space station and elite school for gifted human students, best known for the Ascension Project that trained young biotics. During the Reaper War it became the target of a Cerberus raid to capture its biotic students.
The Jon Grissom Academy was a Systems Alliance space station and elite school for gifted human students, commissioned in 2176 and named for the explorer Jon Grissom. Though publicly devoted to math, science, and the liberal arts, it quietly offered training to students with biotic ability through its Ascension Project, which sought to develop their talents and integrate them into society. During the Reaper War the Academy became the target of a Cerberus operation to seize its biotic students, prompting an Alliance rescue. (Mass Effect 3; Mass Effect: Ascension)
Mission and the Ascension Project#
The stated mission of the Jon Grissom Academy, commissioned in 2176, was to serve a student population demonstrating excellence and passion for math, science, and the liberal arts. Its entirely human student body ranged in age from the early teens to the mid-twenties. Though the fact was not heavily advertised, the institution also offered classes for students with biotic capability through its Ascension Project, a program devoted to training these young biotics and integrating them into normal society. The station measured 1.1 kilometers in length, weighed some 375,000 metric tons, and supported a population of 8,620. (Mass Effect 3; Mass Effect: Ascension)
Early history#
The Academy was named for the Alliance hero Jon Grissom, and after his death a memorial plaque was erected in his honor in the station's mess hall. The Ascension Project remained its most prominent program, helping biotic children reach their full potential. The station was not immune to danger: the Reaper-controlled Paul Grayson once boarded it seeking to learn more about the ongoing Ascension Project, disabling or killing much of the station's personnel before David Anderson, Kahlee Sanders and Kai Leng arrived and killed him. (Mass Effect: Ascension; Mass Effect: Retribution)
The Cerberus raid#
During the Reaper invasion of 2186, war closed most schools, but fewer than twenty teachers and students stayed on at Grissom Academy to train biotics and prototype technology for the Alliance. The Academy then came under attack by Cerberus forces intent on capturing the students. The assault went unnoticed at first because Cerberus broadcast a turian military signal claiming that the station was being evacuated by turian ships, a ruse that echoed the false turian report the Illusive Man had once used to send Commander Shepard into the Collector ship trap. (Mass Effect 2; Mass Effect 3)
If the Commander chose to intervene, the pilot Jeff "Joker" Moreau used the Normandy SR-2 to distract the Cerberus cruiser and its fighters while Shepard's team boarded the station. There Shepard found Kahlee Sanders barricaded in a security room and went on to rescue the Academy's remaining students before evacuating them and abandoning the station, which along with nearby Elysium later fell to the Reapers. If Shepard decided against going, the Cerberus kidnapping succeeded and the captured students were subverted into working for the organization. (Mass Effect 3)
Frequently asked questions
- What is Grissom Academy?
- The Jon Grissom Academy was a Systems Alliance space station and elite school for gifted human students, commissioned in 2176 and named for the explorer Jon Grissom. Though publicly devoted to math, science, and the liberal arts, it quietly trained students with biotic ability through its Ascension Project.
- What was the Ascension Project at Grissom Academy?
- The Ascension Project was a program that offered classes for students with biotic capability, devoted to training young biotics and integrating them into normal society. It was the Academy's most prominent program, though the fact that it existed was not heavily advertised.
- Why did Cerberus attack Grissom Academy?
- During the Reaper invasion of 2186, Cerberus attacked the Academy intent on capturing its biotic students. The assault went unnoticed at first because Cerberus broadcast a turian military signal claiming the station was being evacuated by turian ships.
- What happened during the Cerberus raid on Grissom Academy?
- With war having closed most schools, fewer than twenty teachers and students remained at the Academy to train biotics and prototype technology for the Alliance when Cerberus struck. Commander Shepard could choose whether to intervene; in one outcome the team boarded to rescue Kahlee Sanders and the remaining students, while in another the kidnapping succeeded and the victims were subverted into working for Cerberus.
- Where was Grissom Academy located?
- The Academy was located in the Milky Way's Petra Nebula, in the Vetus system. The station was 1.1 kilometers long, weighed some 375,000 metric tons, and supported a population of 8,620.
Sources
- GameMass Effect 2, BioWare, 2010
- GameMass Effect 3, BioWare, 2012
- BookMass Effect: Ascension, Drew Karpyshyn, Del Rey, 2008
- BookMass Effect: Retribution, Drew Karpyshyn, Del Rey, 2010
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
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