uccess S Stories Fork Union Military Academy Admissions Magazine
In This Issue: What Sets FUMA Apart? The One Subject Plan CQ - Mandatory Study Period History of Our Campus Alumni Profiles
Volume 2, Issue 1
uccess S Stories SUCCESS STORIES is a publication of Fork Union Military Academy.
How to Apply
We’re glad you’re taking the time to review this magazine with information about Fork Union Military Academy. You can find links to complete the application for admission online, as well as complete the online application for financial aid, at this link: http://www.forkunion.com/admissions
Deciding to enroll your son at FUMA is a big step for any parent or relative. That’s why it’s important to see the Academy firsthand. We urge you to bring your son and spend a few hours with us taking a close look at our campus. After all, you are considering making quite an investment in his future. You will receive a guided tour of the campus, meet and speak to cadets (when school is in session), and meet with an admissions officer for an interview. You’ll come away with a real impression of what the Academy is, and what it is not. Young men, from around the country and the world, choose a Fork Union Military Academy education. Admission to the Academy is based on a student’s application, two teacher recommendation forms, a character evaluation form, and the Academy personnel’s contact with the prospective cadet. Applications are accepted with the understanding that the applicant is willing to abide by FUMA’s regulations should they be admitted. Fork Union Military Academy accepts qualified applicants regardless of race, religion, or national origin, and does not discriminate unlawfully in the administration of its educational policies, scholarship and loan programs, or other school programs.
Mission Statement
Our mission is to educate, develop, and inspire young men in a college preparatory, Christian, military environment. Cadets build character, and learn leadership, independence, confidence, responsibility, and discipline in a setting that encourages mental, physical, and spiritual growth. Statement on Non-Discrimination
Applications are accepted with the understanding that the applicant is willing to abide by FUMA’s regulations should he be admitted. Fork Union Military Academy accepts qualified applicants regardless of race, religion, or national origin, and does not discriminate unlawfully in the administration of its educational policies, scholarship and loan programs, or other school programs.
Fork Union Military Academy Post Office Box 278 4744 James Madison Highway Fork Union, Virginia 23055 phone: 434-842-4200 fax: 434-842-4300 for information on admissions, call: 1-800-GO-2-FUMA http://www.forkunion.com
From Our Director of Admissions COL Tripp Billingsley
One of the questions I am asked by families interested in Fork Union Military Academy is, “What types of students typically apply to Fork Union?” It is a question for which I wish there was a simple answer. Suffice it to say, the backgrounds of our applicants are varied and diverse. Each young man comes with a unique set of goals that he feels can most effectively be met here. It is also true, however, that despite their diversity on the front end, cadets completing their high school (and post graduate) careers at FUMA, come to share many special bonds as they move forward from this place, truly becoming brothers for life. It is a challenge to get to the heart of what any institution is. Our hope is that Success Stories gives you a window into the history of the school and the people who have been shaped by it. From its initial years as a dream of Dr. William E. Hatcher, a Baptist minister, and the community of Fork Union, to the exceptional college preparatory school that it is today, Fork Union is a place where success through hard work is realized daily.
Success Stories is not a typical admissions brochure. You will not find information about our tuition or a sample of our daily schedule. Instead, you will get a sense of the history of our campus. You will learn why we have used the One Subject Plan in our upper school since the 1950s and why our CQ period (study hall) is so important. You will meet some of our alumni. Men who were “typical teenagers,” who achieved outstanding results, in part, because they spent time as cadets on this campus. As you read these pages, we hope you become more curious about this special place and find time to visit with us. Sincerely,
COL Tripp Billingsley Director of Admissions
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Fork Union Military Academy
“Developing Bright Young Men Who Can Lead with Character”
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Success Stories
Vision Our vision is to be a national leader among independent boarding schools. Our faculty, facilities, and programs will exemplify excellence, especially in the area of academic preparation for higher education. The school environment and culture will promote Christian values and cultivate strength of character, self-discipline, and critical thinking skills essential for lifelong learning, leadership, and service to others.
Mission Our mission is to educate, develop, and inspire young men in a college preparatory, Christian, military environment. Cadets build character and learn leadership, independence, confidence, responsibility, and discipline in a setting that encourages mental, physical, and spiritual growth.
Strategic Themes Institution of Excellence
Fork Union Military Academy excels in educating, developing, and inspiring students in academics, faith, leadership, and athletics. The Academy creates a challenging and rewarding developmental experience which addresses individual needs and provides growth opportunities for students, faculty, and staff. Value to Virginia, the Nation, and the World
Fork Union Military Academy graduates young men sound in “Body, Mind, Spirit.� Using the One Subject Plan, the Academy is unique in its approach to intellectual development. The graduates are remarkably successful in college and in their working careers. This holistic education creates independent leaders who thrive in an entrepreneurial environment. Nationally Recognized
Fork Union Military Academy is widely recognized as an exemplary school, graduating young men ready for the rigors of college, military service, and business. Its graduates live the core values of respect, integrity, faith, character, and discipline. Academy faculty, staff, and administrators are sought for their professional expertise in the development of bright young men who can lead with character.
Strategic Goals
zzIntegrate Character and Leadership Development throughout the Academy zzDevelop Critical Thinking, Communication, Creativity, Collaboration, and Cultural Competency Skills through Academic Excellence
zzCultivate a Community of Christian Love zzIncrease the Size of the Corps of Cadets through Effective Enrollment Management
zzCreate an Environment that Balances Enthusiasm and Discipline zzAchieve Financial Sustainability by Optimizing Existing Resource Use and Addressing Shortfalls
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Fork Union Military Academy Educational Philosophy
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or any educational institution to be successful, it must have a clear and focused vision and mission. Fork Union Military Academy’s vision is to be a national leader among independent boarding schools. Our faculty, facilities, and programs will exemplify excellence, especially in the area of academic preparation for higher education. The school environment and culture will promote Christian values and cultivate strength of character, self-discipline, and critical thinking skills essential for lifelong learning, leadership, and service to others. Our mission, consistent with that vision, is to educate, develop, and inspire young men in a college preparatory, Christian, military environment. Cadets build character, and learn leadership, independence, confidence, responsibility, and discipline in a setting that encourages mental, physical, and spiritual growth. This school must have high expectations for students, teachers, and staff. These expectations must be met with support, recognition, and acknowledgment. Students reach their full potential when teachers and administrators articulate and expect high standards of performance while providing an extensive network of support. It is critical in a residential setting that students receive additional support and guidance early in their experience to ensure they understand the values of the institution, and they learn how to establish priorities and understand their role. Schools must integrate student-centered learning and experiences which are active and relevant. Students need the opportunity to work together in teams supported by a high-performing, well-educated, and dedicated faculty and staff who put teaching first and devote significant out-of-class time to reinforce learning. Teachers and administrators must assess performance, provide feedback, and establish clearly marked pathways of success for every student.
Students must have the opportunity to learn about themselves. Self-awareness puts young people on the right path to becoming leaders. This knowledge of self allows students to more effectively explore human difference and better cultivate a strong community of inclusion and an appreciation for diversity. Any school’s effectiveness depends upon everyone associated with that institution being aligned with its vision and mission. This alignment occurs through candid, honest, and open conversations. Unity of effort is critical. Young people are remarkably perceptive and keenly attuned to inconsistency and hypocrisy. Their leaders must be consistent, fair, and must serve as positive role models. All aspects of a residential educational institution must be aligned…from the classroom, to the barracks, to athletics, to the chapel, and all support programs. The application of standards, expressions of concern and empathy, along with a commitment to excellence and professionalism must be seamless. We must immerse our cadets in a sea of professionalism. Everyone contributes to character development. Faculty and staff must look, act, and behave in a manner consistent with the mission, military culture, and legacy we represent. Successful schools are model institutions of learning. Administrators, teachers, and staff maintain the highest possible standards of conduct, appearance, and decorum consistent with the school’s mission. Students must have the highest possible expectations for their own learning and for their leaders, and those leaders must live up to those expectations, and engage in many quality interactions with each student. Our educational philosophy is that you cannot separate the mind from the body, or the person from the Spirit. It is through this holistic development of mind, body, and spirit that the finest leaders are educated, developed, and inspired.
Our educational philosophy is that you cannot separate the mind from the body, or the person from the Spirit. It is through this holistic development of mind, body, and spirit that the finest leaders are educated, developed, and inspired.
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Success Stories
Fork Union Military Academy Core Values Respect We respect ourselves, others, and the resources around us. We treat each other with fairness, dignity, and compassion. This creates trust, confidence, learning, and high performance. We value diversity and encourage individual opportunity, growth, and creativity. We are a team.
Integrity Integrity is synonymous with truth and honesty. We mean what we say, and say what we mean. When we make a promise, we do so in the presence of God. We always tell the truth, and are people of our word.
Faith Faith means to have complete trust. We acknowledge that God provides opportunities for us to have a positive impact on the world. We know we are on this earth to serve Him. The world revolves around God; it does not revolve around any one of us. We focus on serving others.
Character Reputation is defined by our character. We live lives guided by our conscience, and directed by respect, integrity, and Christian values. We demonstrate our character every day, and always strive to do what is right. We support others as they do the same. We reflect our God.
Discipline We create positive habits of thought, speech, and action through deliberate practice. We maintain high standards. Learning discipline allows us to improve, achieve our goals, cooperate with others, and thrive in adversity. Freedom comes through discipline.
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What sets FUMA apart as
a Special Place
“It has not all it needs, and is not all that it ought to be, nor can I tell what its future will be, but I shall leave the world thankful for the good that it has done, and for the honor which has been mine in working with the good people of the community in the establishment of the Fork Union Military Academy.�
- Dr. William E. Hatcher (1834-1912)
Wicker Chapel stands at the heart of the campus and cadets attend chapel services here three times a week.
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Success Stories
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ork Union Military Academy was founded in 1898 by a renowned Baptist minister, Dr. William E. Hatcher. He was the longtime pastor of Grace Street Baptist Church in Richmond and traveled widely throughout the country as a popular guest preacher at revivals and special events. Dr. Hatcher built a summer home, Careby Hall, in Fork Union and soon became very involved in the local community. Dr. Hatcher was a graduate of the University of Richmond (then known as Richmond College), and was elected a trustee of the college in 1870, serving in that role for the next forty-two years. He also served as president of the Education Board of the Baptist General Association of Virginia from 1875–1901. Providing young people access to a college education had long been a significant part of his life’s work.
He noted that in this rural part of Virginia, while the girls might be sent away to one of the sixty private high schools then operating in Virginia, the boys were generally kept at home, busy working on the farm. Public high schools were almost non-existent in Virginia at that time. Dr. Hatcher thought that Fork Union would be the ideal location for a college preparatory academy that could provide an opportunity for both boys and girls to go on to college. He soon had organized a group of supporters in the community and his new Fork Union Academy opened in October of 1898 with nineteen boys and girls enrolled. College Preparatory School
Dr. Hatcher’s school was first and foremost a college preparatory school, designed from the very beginning to provide young people a pathway to the college of their choice. That emphasis on academic excellence remains in full force today, and every student is expected to apply to, and be accepted by, one or more colleges during their junior and senior years. One hundred percent of our graduating seniors have been successful in meeting this expectation in recent years, and college readiness continues to be our top goal as a school. In addition to our regular high school level courses, we offer a number of Advanced Placement and Honors classes, as well as dualenrollment courses that provide college credit. Our academic curriculum remains challenging, and our admissions standards are equally high. www.forkunion.com
Christian Environment
Just as our founder viewed the education of young people as part of his life’s Christian mission, we today are dedicated to cultivating a community of Christian love on our campus. Upon Dr. Hatcher’s passing in 1912, the Baptist General Association of Virginia stepped forward to assist the Academy and help fund its continued growth, and that relationship with the BGAV remains strong to this day. Each school day begins with a morning devotion, and students attend chapel services three times each week. Our staff, faculty, and administration are expected to emulate Christian character and charity (love), while respecting the freedom for our students to choose and follow the faith of their choice. Military Structure
By 1902, school leaders decided to incorporate aspects of military structure into campus life, and the school’s name was changed to Fork Union Military Academy. Their purpose was to promote discipline, physical conditioning, and build the confidence and “bearing” of the students. The goal was not to build soldiers, but to develop solid citizens. We remain an “independent military school” and do not offer the JROTC model. There is no training in military tactics, techniques, or doctrine. We are not a “boot camp” program, nor do we cater to troubled teens in need of a therapeutic school environment. Our military structure provides outstanding opportunities for leadership development and reinforces self-discipline, respect for others, and personal accountability. Boys-Only Education
Early school leaders decided to phase out coed education and become a boys-only school by about 1911. The value of single-gender education is widely recognized today as a way to reduce distractions and allow students to concentrate on achieving a quality education. Test results often demonstrate the advantage of learning in a single-gender environment, and the Academy continues to provide a safe, distraction-free, boysonly sanctuary for learning.
For over a century, these distinguishing characteristics have continued to set Fork Union Military Academy apart as an outstanding educational environment and a very special place. 7
The
One Subject
Plan
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ForkMilitary UnionAcademy
Success stories begin here. Success Stories
W Innovation
hen you think about innovation in high school education, the image of a traditional Virginia military school is not likely to pop into your head. Military schools are oldfashioned, traditional, and narrow-minded. Aren’t they?
In fact, one of the most innovative and effective ideas in secondary education can be found today in the unique curriculum schedule used at Fork Union Military Academy in Fork Union, Virginia. It’s called the One Subject Plan, and it has proven effective in increasing the academic achievement of young men for many years at this historic boys’ military school.
Punch Line or Problem?
A joke making the rounds in recent years suggests, “You know our education system has problems when Hallmark comes out with a new line of ‘Easy-To-Read’ graduation cards.”
Poking fun at the American school system is a national pastime nearly as popular as football but even older. Nineteenth-century humorist Mark Twain once wrote, “Many public-school children dates – 1492 and and 4th 4th of seem to know only two dates-1492 of July; and and as July, as aa rule rule they theydon’t don’tknow knowwhat whathaphappened on pened on either either occasion.” occasion.” It wasn’t a laughing matter in 1957, however, when the Soviet Union launched the Sputnik satellite into orbit. Suddenly, America found itself in a “Space Race” with the communists. Federal money began pouring into math and science education. Programs were set up to identify gifted students and put them into upper-level classes. Language labs and educational toys proliferated, as America tried to win this global competition through education.
The Soviet Union’s 1957 The Soviet Union’s launch of the firstfirst satellite, launch of the satelSputnik, inspired lite, Sputnik, in 1957new infunding andfunding innovation spired new and in the public innovation in education the public systemsystem of the United education of the States...seven years after United States...seven Fork Union years afterhad Forkalready Union its own hadimplemented already implementeducation ed itsinnovation-the own education One Subject innovation -- the Plan One Subject Plan.
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Reform...and more reform
In the half-century since Sputnik, America has seen its educational system reformed, reinvented, and reborn dozens of times. We’ve put our faith in various new acronyms, from the NDEA (National Defense Act of 1958), to the NAEP (National Assessment of Educational Progress, born in 1969), to NCLB (the No Child Left Behind initiative begun in 2002). We’ve tried merging small schools into larger schools to provide greater learning resources; now we’re breaking large schools into smaller schools. We’ve gone from holding back pupils who fail their grade, to social promotion, and then back again to retaining struggling students. We’ve tried phonics, then “whole language,” and then back once more to phonics. We’ve gone from traditional schedules to open scheduling to block scheduling. We’ve seen any number of new programs: magnet schools, open schools, charter schools, standards of learning, and national testing and assessment schemes. A Nation at Risk
America was deemed “a nation at risk” in a 1983 report by that name, written by the National Commission on Excellence in Education. This blue-ribbon panel of experts was commissioned by the Secretary of Education to address what he called “the widespread public perception that something is seriously remiss in our educational system. “The Theexperts expertsmade madetheir theirinvestigation investigation and found what they called “a rising tide of mediocrity.”
In its landmark report, the Commission said, “If an unfriendly foreign power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war. As it stands, we have allowed this to happen to ourselves. We have even squandered the gains in student achievement made in the wake of the Sputnik challenge. Moreover, we have dismantled essential support systems which helped make those gains possible. We have, in effect, been committing an act of unthinking, unilateral educational disarmament.”
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Findings on Course Content, Expectations, and Use of Time
The Commission warned that school curricula were not preparing students for college. “Secondary school curricula have been homogenized, diluted, and diffused to the point that they no longer have a central purpose,” the Commission reported. “In effect, we have a cafeteria style curriculum in which the appetizers and desserts can easily be mistaken for the main courses.” The report found that twenty-five percent of the credits earned by high school students were in areas such as “physical and health education, work experience outside the school, remedial English and mathematics, and personal service and development courses, such as training for adulthood and marriage.” The Commission found that expectations for student performance were declining, noting that “The amount of homework for high school seniors has decreased (two-thirds report less than 1 hour a night) and grades have risen as average student achievement has been declining.”
The use of time was another area the Commission examined, and the results were equally alarming: “(1) compared to other nations, American students spend much less time on school work; (2) time spent in the classroom and on homework is often used ineffectively; and (3) schools are not doing enough to help students develop either the study skills required to use time well or the willingness to spend more time on school work.” Prisoners of Time
A decade later, in 1994, another panel of experts known as the National Education Commission on Time and Learning took a look at what’s wrong with American education and concluded that “Learning in America is a prisoner of time.” “For the past 150 years,” their report notes, “American public schools have held time con-
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stant and let learning vary. The rule, only rarely voiced, is simple: learn what you can in the time we make available. It should surprise no one that some bright, hard-working students do reasonelse-from ably well. Everyone else -- fromthe thetypical typical dropout-runs student to the dropout -- runsinto intotrouble.” trouble.” Carnegie Unit
The Commission found that schools, on average, offered a six-period day with 5.6 hours of “instructional time.” They noted that, “No matter how complex or simple the school subject -literature, -literature,shop, shop,physics, physics,gym, gym,or or algebra-the algebra -- the schedule assigns each an impartial national average of 51 minutes per class period, no matter how well or poorly students comprehend the material.”
This adherence to a 51-minute period on average was based in part on the concept of the Carnegie Unit. The Carnegie Unit was developed in 1906 as a measurement of the time a high school student has spent studying a subject. According to the original definition, completing 120 hours (4 or 5 classes per week, 40 to 60 minutes per class, for 36 to 40 weeks per year) would earn the student one “unit” of high school credit; fourteen units of credit were deemed the minimum requirement for a four-year high school education. The Carnegie Unit measures only “seat time” and not “knowledge learned,” but the Commission noted that secondary school graduation requirements were universally based on Carnegie Units. “Instructional Time” vs. “Academic Time”
The Commission found that the American concept of instructional time was far different than that of other developed countries. In countries like Germany, Japan, and France, many more hours are spent on core academic subjects. The Commission discovered that the typical American school day, while originally intended for core academic learning, “must now fit in a
Success Stories
whole set of requirements for what has been “the new new work work of of the the schools’ schools”-education called ‘the -- education about personal safety, consumer affairs, AIDS, conservation and energy, family life, driver’s training-as training -- aswell wellasastraditional traditionalnonacademic nonacademic activities, such as counseling, gym, study halls, lunch,and and pep pep rallies.” rallies.” homeroom, lunch Not a New Concern
The Commission’s concern about the use of time was not new, however. A previous report from the past US U. S.Commissioner CommissionerofofEducation, Education, William Torrey Harris, made clear his concerns about “the constant tendency toward a reduction of time.”
“First, the Saturday morning session was discontinued; then the summer vacations were lengthened; the morning sessions were shortened; the afternoon sessions were curtailed; new holidays were introduced; provisions were made for a single session on stormy days, and for closing the schools.
US Commissioner of U. S. Commissioner Education, William of Education, William Torrey raised Torrey Harris, Harris raised concerns concerns about about the the use use of of time time in in schools schools as as early early as as 1894. 1894.
“The boy of today must attend school 11.1 years in order to receive as much instruction, quantitatively, as the boy of fifty years ago received in 8 years... It It isis scarcely necessary to look further than this for the explanation for the greater amount of work accomplished...in the German and French than in the American schools.”
Commissioner Harris’s remarkswere weremade madeininaa Harris’ remarks report published in 1894. He was criticizing the reduction of the school year from 193.5 days to 191 days. A century later, the 1994 Commission noted that the school year ranged, on average, from 175 to 180 days.
The National Education Commission on Time and Learning recommended that “new uses of time should ensure that schools rely much less on the 51-minute period, after which teachers and students drop everything to rush off to the next class.” Further, they noted that “greater flexibility in the schedule will also make it easier for schools to take advantage of instructional
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resources in the community-workplaces, libraries, community-workplaces, librarchurches, andand youth groups-and to work effectively ies, churches, community youth groups-and with emerging technologies.” to work effectively with emerging technologies.”
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Block Scheduling
n the past decade, the vast majority of public high schools have moved to a system known as block scheduling. In a typical block schedule, students attend 90-minute class periods, instead of 50-minute classes. In the 4x4 block system, students take four courses per semester for a total of eight courses in the year. In the A/B block system, students rotate eight courses throughout the year, four classes each on alternating days. The advantages offered by this block schedule include less time spent each day roaming the halls for class changes, less time lost to class administration (it takes less time to call the roll and collect homework for four classes per day than for six), and more time for instructional flexibility. Teachers can use a wider variety of instructional methods, hold longer discussions, encourage interactive learning, and engage in extended lab times in the 90-minute period. The benefits of the block schedule are lost, however, if the time is not used effectively. Block scheduling does not permit the same number of instructional hours as the traditional schedule (180 days x 50 minutes = 9,000 minutes; 90 days x 90 minutes = 8,100 minutes). Much of that difference is made up in fewer minutes lost to class administration, but the teacher must still make a careful use of time each day.
The block schedule provides for somewhat longer class periods, but adds complexity to a student’s daily and weekly schedule.
Lecture continues to be the most widely used instructional method in high schools today, even under the block schedule. With added pressures to improve test scores and meet mandated curriculum standards, many teachers resort to lecturing for the entire available time in order
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to “cover the curriculum” for state-mandated tests. While it is possible to lecture for most of a 90-minute period, zipping through the required content, it is not very effective for students to sit through four classes of 80-minute lectures. The promise of instructional flexibility offered by block scheduling is not becoming the reality in most American schools. Fifty Years after Sputnik
It is now more than fifty years after Sputnik, and twenty-five years after the publication of “A Nation at Risk.” So where do we stand today?
» In 1970, a greater percentage of American students finished high school than did their peers in any other country. By a decade ago, America had fallen behind Japan, Germany, Korea, France, Ireland, and others. » On the recent Third International Mathematics and Science Tests, American 17-year-olds ranked fourth from the bottom of the 38 countries participating, just above South Africa, Cyprus, and Lithuania. » Students Students do do no no more more homework homework today today 1982 – lessthan thanan an than they did in 1982-less hour a day on average. » Corrected for inflation, we are spending three times more per student than we did in 1960, but we are seeing less return on our public education investment.
As a report issued by the Koret Foundation concludes, “The tide of mediocrity remains high.” Schools in America simply have not found the right solution.
Perhaps they haven’t been looking in the right place for their answers! Maybe they should check out what’s been going on for more almostthan sixty years in the small village of Fork Union, Virginia.
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Colonel J. Caldwell Wicker (left), FUMA’s president from 1945-1968, and Harry M. Waldon, FUMA’s headmaster from 1948-1967, could be considered the fathers of FUMA’s famed One Subject Plan.
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One ’R ‘R at a Time
ong before Sputnik broke the grip of earth’s gravity, a new education innovation was brewing at Fork Union Military Academy. In the days after World War II, the campus was bustling with students and returning soldiers back to finish their education at the Academy. The school’s president, Colonel J. Caldwell Wicker, was always on the lookout for a good idea and spotted one that interested him in an article published in March,1949 1949 issue issue of of Reader’s Reader’sDigest. Digest. the March
’R at a Time,” the article by J. D. Titled “One ‘R Ratcliff (condensed and republished from Pageant in December December, 1948) 1948) described described aa curriculum plan that was tried briefly at two different schools: Hiram College in Hiram, Ohio, Ohio and the Kiskiminetas Springs School for Boys in Saltsburg, Pennsylvania. Each school was independently experimenting with a program where one subject was taught at a time. Instead of students going from class to class, taking courses like English, algebra, biology, and French all at the same time, students would spend up to eight weeks in a single course before moving on to the next.
Success Stories
Fork Union Military Academy was in quite good shape in 1949. Enrollment was good, students were doing well, and the school was financially sound. But Colonel Wicker was not one to let the status quo stand in the way of something that might make his school even better. He asked the school’s headmaster, Harry M. Waldron, to look into implementing this new One Subject Plan in the 1950-51 academic year.
Although this curriculum plan, like many other educational reforms, was tried and soon abandoned by at least ten schools, the idea took root at Fork Union. The first couple of years were difficult as faculty, students, and administration adbut,under under the the leadership leadership justed to the new plan, but of Colonel Wicker and Headmaster Waldron, the concept was patiently developed. The plan has undergone some minor tinkering since those first days, but the overall outline of the program has remained largely unchanged from that first concept. From September of 1950 until the present day, the One Subject Plan has been the cornerstone of Fork Union Military Academy’s Upper School academic program.
The One Subject Plan
The academic year for students in grades 9 through 12 is divided into five grading periods of about seven weeks each. A student is assigned one course each grading period, for a total of five courses in the regular academic year.
The normal school day is divided into eight periods of 45 minutes each. Five of those periods mid-morningbreak break peare class periods, one is a midmorning riod forfor allall students, one period students, onperiod periodisisfor forlunch, lunch,and and one period during the day is a planning period. During planning period, students can receive additional help from their classroom teacher, or have free time to take care of other assignments. Classes meet every day, Monday through Friday, and some class periods are scheduled for Saturday mornings each grading period to provide additional academic instruction time.
The academic school day lasts from 8:00 8am to a.m. to 2pm and is devoted to core academic studies. 2:00 p.m. and is devoted to core academic studies. Extracurricular activities such as band, choir, athletics, drama, and art classes meet before or after this academic school day.
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The student attends the same class, with the same group of fellow students and the same instructor, for a total of 3 hours and 45 minutes every school day, for the entire seven-week grading period. Class size is usually in the 12 to 15 student range, but never more than 20 in the largest class. The teacher is responsible for teaching only one class of students for that sevenweek grading period.
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Benefits of the One Subject Plan
ork Union Military Academy has found a number of specific benefits resulting from this unique program.
Focus Focus
Students are able to focus on a single subject, without the distractions inherent when shifting from class to class. They never have to mentally shift gears like they would when moving from English to physics. It becomes almost like a total immersion program in that one subject. This focus helps student and teacher both stay engaged with each other and in the learning. Students are freed from the obligation to meet the demands of several different teachers at the same time. They never have to prioritize homework assignments, deciding whether to spend more time studying math or do their history homework instead. They are able to focus their energy and attention in one direction, yielding more rapid progress and deeper understanding. Accountability
A typical high school teacher must track at least 80 to 120 students at a time, even with block scheduling. Under the One Subject Plan, the teacher is responsible for only 12 to 20 students at a maximum. Teachers can check homework every day if they wish. They can check student notebooks and journals on a regular basis. It’s nearly impossible for a student to “slip through the cracks” within the One Subject Plan.
In the same way, the One Subject Plan requires the teacher to be accountable to the students. Under a normal high school schedule, if an underprepared teacher has only 50 to 90 minutes to spend with four or five different classes, they might slip by with just a test and a video for that day. In the One Subject Plan, however, the
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teacher is responsible for nearly four hours of class time each day and this schedule, by its very nature, requires that teachers be fully prepared to teach each day when they enter the classroom. Individualized Instruction
With markedly fewer students to track, a teacher can really get to know each student as an individual. The teacher can determine what styles of learning work best for each student, and use different instructional methods to reach the tactile and various visual, auditory, tactile, and kinesthetic kinesthetic learners in the class. For example, a traditional lecture method might work for auditory learners, while hands on group activities might be needed to effectively teach the kinesthetic learners in the class.
Teachers don’t need to worry about coordinating their schedules with other classes. They have the whole school day to use as they need. This means that government classes can schedule field trips to the state capitol to witness the legislature in action. A chemistry teacher can use more time for a lab experiment if needed. A history teacher can take the entire class to the library to work on research for a term paper, supervising the process from start to finish. This flexibility in scheduling special activities means that the needs of the student can drive the learning process, not the need to be finished with class within 50 or 90 minutes. Learning is no longer held prisoner by time.
In fact, the nature of the One Subject Plan forces a teacher to use a variety of instructional methods throughout the class day. While a teacher might be able to simply lecture for 90 minutes every day under a block schedule, that kind of educational filibuster is nearly impossible to maintain for almost four hours a day. The teacher must use different techniques to keep students engaged throughout the course of the day. This naturally provides the kind of individualized instructional variety that proves effective for learning.
Class Scheduling
Mentoring
“It felt good when I started getting good grades,” said Andy Hodak, a recent graduate of Fork Union Military Academy. “I made Honor Roll twice and Dean’s List once this past year. I made Honor Roll twice last year. FUMA kind of brings out an inner strength that normal high school teachers don’t demand from you. FUMA teachers expect that to come out. They expect you to do your homework. They expect that extra 10% effort.”effort.” ten percent
The teacher spends hours each day with a small group of students. Student and teacher get to know each other very well, warts and all. This means they must work through any conflicts, learn how to deal with each other effectively and positively, and look beyond surface impressions to find points of connection and shared interests. A strong bond can develop between student and teacher in this environment.
This is how effective learning has developed for centuries, between mentor and protégé. Plato was a disciple of Socrates. Aristotle was a disciple of Plato. Learning from a respected teacher among a small group of students has a long, productive tradition. A teacher can be more than a mere functionary delivering 50-minute lectures; a teacher can become a role model, trusted and respected, helping develop a young person’s character in addition to his knowledge of algebra.
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Special Learning Activities
The One Subject Plan offers benefits in class scheduling as well. Students can take sequential courses like Algebra I and Algebra II consecutively within the same year. This is recommended as well for students taking a foreign language, so they might take Spanish I and Spanish II in back-to-back grading periods and gain the benefit of concentrated study in the language. Students can also repeat a course within the same year if needed to improve a low grade. Success Stories Begin Here
More than fifty sixty years years ago, ago,educational educational innovainnovation was nurtured in the small village of Fork Union, Virginia. Generations of students since 1950 have found this unique program to have a transformative effect on their academic lives. At Fork Union Military Academy, the One Subject Plan is one educational reform that’s here to stay.
Success Stories
Frequently Asked Questions About the
One Subject Plan
Because the One Subject Plan, while simple, is so different from what most school systems follow, people express a lot of interest in the program. They frequently ask questions like these: Don’t the students get bored?
The short answer is no, not any more than normal. “Interest comes with mastery,” said the late E. H. “Gus” Lacy, a former teacher and administrator at Fork Union Military Academy, writing about the One Subject Plan in 1955. “This new plan has given us a method of doing a better job of teaching. The boys learn more, and, consequently, they devote their energies toward the subject because they understand more about the subject being taught.” This observation continues to be true more than sixty fifty years years later. later. Students Students get a lot of genuine satisfaction from really learning a subject instead of just coasting their way through a 50- or 90-minute class period. Those who doubt the concentration ability and attention span of a teenager have never seen a young man working to master something like Madden on his video game console. When it is something that engages and interests them, young people can stay amazingly focused. The One Subject Plan helps channel that kind of dedicated effort into the academic realm, helping a young man post his name on the Honor Roll instead of just climbing the leader board for Halo Call of3.Duty.
On a related note, most students have favorite subjects, and subjects they don’t enjoy. In those cases where a student finds a particular subject to be dull and tedious, the One Subject Plan offers the promise that with just seven weeks of effort, the course can be successfully completed. What about college, where students have to take multiple classes?
Academically, students who have followed the One Subject Plan are as prepared, or better
prepared than their peers to handle college level work. The college acceptance rate of Fork Union Military Academy graduates is 100%. Although not all graduates proceed directly on to college, the One Subject Plan successfully offers them the opportunity to make that choice – a fact that can’t be said for all high school programs.
Moving from high school to college is a major adjustment for any student. Students spend about half the time in class at college compared to the time spent in high school. More of the burden of learning is placed on the student rather than on the instructor. They are in class an average of 16 or 17 hours each week, instead of 30 to 35 hours a week in high school.
The One Subject Plan helps the student develop the individual study skills to learn in a concentrated fashion and explore a subject in depth. This ability to focus and concentrate on a course of study will help the student accomplish the kind of independent study required by the college schedule. Students must learn to handle newfound freedoms in a responsible manner and manage their own time effectively for independent study, but this is a challenge that faces all college freshmen. Do students get better grades?
Within the first five years of implementing the One Subject Plan, Fork Union Military Academy saw its Honor Roll double in size. This kind of academic success continues today. The vast majority of students who transfer to Fork Union Military Academy from another school see their GPA improve, even though FUMA uses a grading scale (A = 95 and above, F = 75 and below) that may be tougher than their previous school. These increased grades are matched by improvements in scores on tests such as the PSAT and SAT.
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CQ
The Amazing Truth About
(It Really Works!) By COL Dennis Brown & COL Fred Hardy
Cadet Dylan McCormick studies in his Jacobson Hall barracks room during evening CQ.
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Success Stories
T
he success that FUMA has in producing successful alumni reflects its motto of “Body, Mind, and Spirit.” This motto dates back to the earliest days of the Academy and reflects the school’s emphasis on holistic education of “the whole boy” since the school’s founding in 1898. Growth in Body
Physical improvements are a result of not only FUMA’s nationally recognized athletic program but also the daily regimen and dining hall menu that stress and promote physical fitness. The Estes Athletic Center is a busy hub on campus, and its weight room and facilities are in constant use. Rarely does a student leave FUMA without having made significant physical improvements. FUMA students become stronger and healthier in this salubrious environment. Spiritual Development
Most FUMA students experience spiritual growth or awakening under the guidance of the chaplain and the faculty’s emphasis on Christian values. In the past couple of years, for example, more than a dozen students by their request were baptized during Sunday chapel services in the chapel’s baptismal, and hundreds of students have expressed the value of being exposed to the word of God in thrice weekly chapel attendance. Cadet Spencer Cavotti recently said, “At home, regular visits to church and Sunday School became difficult as I grew more attached to my sports teams and their weekend obligations. As a young Christian, it was hard to cultivate my faith having been unable to attend church, but with the regular chapel sessions at FUMA, I have been able to connect with my spiritual self more often and rediscover myself as a Christian.” Every class day begins with a short devotional. The Fellowship of Christian Athletes is a vital force on campus. Several other on-campus organizations require and encourage community service, and more than a few students spend summers doing mission work. Spiritual growth at FUMA is almost a given. Feeding the Mind
To achieve academic growth depends on multiple factors such as a student’s motivation, the dedication of faculty and staff, and a school-wide emphasis on the importance of academics.
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In public schools, high academic achievers are often looked down upon by their peers-A students are deemed nerds; at FUMA, they are looked up to by their peers and rewarded publicly by being inducted into the National Honor Society in front of the Corps, named to Dean’s List and Honor Roll every term, and recognized as Honor Graduates at the end of the school year.
Mr. Larry McIlnay, Director of Food Services at FUMA, heads up the Renaissance Program that also recognizes achievement. Attaining Honor Roll for two terms qualifies students for an extra leave. Academic achievers become student leaders and find value in learning. At FUMA, academics are of paramount importance, and the military and athletic departments complement and support the academic mission. The Importance of CQ
Cadet Dylan McCormick hard at work on his studies during CQ.
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Of the elements that contribute to academic success, however, none is more important than CQ, FUMA’s mandatory study time in the Upper School. The term “CQ” comes from the
traditional military bugle call, “Call to Quarters,” signaling that all personnel are to return to their quarters for the night. The CQ period is such a central and unique part of a student’s experience at the Academy that our magazine for alumni, families, and friends is named Call To Quarters. In the Middle School, due to the developmental differences and needs of the younger students in grades six through eight, students engage in a multiclass curriculum and attend an ageappropriate study hall together in the academic building designed to reinforce study habits. Because of the uniqueness of the Upper School’s One Subject Plan and the barracks CQ, the focus of this article will be on grades nine through postgraduate. How CQ Works
In the Upper School, every Sunday through Thursday evening after Retreat (and Fridays preceding Saturday classes), the Corps is required to observe CQ from 7:55 p.m. until 9:40 p.m. Each student studies at his desk, and the CQ period is free of distractions, with no television, radio,
Success Stories
iPods, talking, texting, tweeting, eating or drinking allowed. Reading for pleasure is allowed at the discretion of a cadet’s teacher only after completion of assigned homework or preparation for tests or exams. Laptop computers are allowed for use in completing specific assignments for which students receive written permission from their teachers. A violation of CQ policy can result in ten demerits and loss of leave, a serious penalty that indicates the importance FUMA attaches to students’ preparation for class. A small number of students who may benefit from peer tutoring are allowed to be at faculty-supervised Peer Study during CQ period, again at the discretion of teachers. Essentially, for five or six nights every week, every boarding student will be under faculty supervision to prepare for classes. The Academy is committed to providing a quiet, distractionfree, supervised environment as an effective means of assuring adequate at worst or thorough at best academic preparation, and most Academy personnel who teach or administer are assigned OC duties at night to supervise this vital program. These personnel are invested, not merely involved, in students’ academic progress. Staying on Task
Providing the environment does not, of course, guarantee that all students will take advantage of it. Realistically, no student utilizes every minute of every CQ in the pursuit of academic preparedness. On any given night, an officer in charge will see a few students struggling to concentrate because of homesickness or missing a girlfriend; fretting because they had received demerits that day and lost their leave; fighting to stay awake because of either fatigue or minor illness; or sometimes just trying to beat the system and get by with not studying. The officer in charge may either write up a CQ violation or make a correction without demerits attached. Regardless of the method of censure, the goal is to keep the student on task. The system does not claim to be a panacea, but it is highly successful for most students. The “here” in FUMA’s claim that “Success stories begin here” could very well be synonymous with “in CQ.”
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Studying: A Daily Routine
Although no student, including valedictorians, salutatorians, and Honor Graduates, takes advantage of CQ every minute of study time, most students come to the realization that studying every night significantly improves grades, and once they have experienced earning high grades, most students strive to continue their academic success. To that end, they complete their homework and prepare for quizzes, tests, and exams during CQ; studying becomes almost habitual. It is as much a part of their daily routine as brushing their teeth or eating meals. So important does FUMA consider CQ that in honors and AP classes that often require extra study time, CQ can be extended with a teacher’s permission. In addition, all students who wish to extend CQ on the nights before semester and final exams may do so.
Few students enter FUMA having studied under supervised conditions. It is the learned attitude that places value on learning that generates enthusiasm for learning. Tommy Noble, a recent FUMA graduate, exemplifies that attitude. “While I was in public school, my study habits were unsatisfactory, and my grades reflected inadequate practices. Coming to Fork Union Military Academy changed my study routine drastically. The one subject plan forced me to focus on one class at a time, and study CQ helped me achieve the grades that eluded me in public school. At home I did not spend half the time studying and reviewing class work that I do while at FUMA. Every night before class, I would participate in a mandatory CQ that allowed me to concentrate on my school work in a quiet environment. That, in addition to the extra help available after class, differentiated my public school experience from my experience at FUMA. The change in my study habits at Fork Union improved my grades and has given me more college options.” Tommy’s assessment is not atypical. Effecting change in attitude and learning practices is crucial to many FUMA cadets, and CQ is a powerful conductor of that change.
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Studying Makes Sense
Certainly there will be the occasional lapse, but contrasting the amount of time they spend on task during CQ with how they approached studying prior to enrolling at FUMA, it usually becomes clear to students that taking advantage of the time dedicated to studying makes sense; staring out a window, sneaking in a nap, surreptitiously watching television, or calling a friend on an illegal cell phone do not. An officer in charge cannot realistically prevent all infractions of the CQ rules. The students themselves must police themselves to derive maximum benefit from CQ.
Cadet LTC Dallas Bonner, a student at FUMA for five years, held a GPA of 4.4 and the position of Battalion Commander during his senior year. He graduated as the Valedictorian of his class. He offers this perspective on CQ: “CQ is crucial to one’s success at Fork Union. If a cadet takes full advantage of it, then there are no limits to his success here. There simply is no reason for a cadet not to rack up all kinds of academic achievements during his time at FUMA. Every cadet is required to take part in almost two hours of mandatory study time every school night. During this time, he cannot get up from his seat, eat, drink, or talk to his roommate. If a cadet is not making noticeable improvements in his academics, it is probably because he is not trying hard enough or not taking advantage of the opportunities given to him. This is what separates Fork Union from the rest of the field of college preparatory schools.” Clearly, Dallas learned the importance of CQ early in his tenure at FUMA and, like most other successful cadets, tries to pass along that learned lesson to other cadets. Accepting the system leads to self-motivation and success; fighting it leads to continued lack of success.
Those FUMA graduates who take this practice with them to college soon find out that routinely setting aside study time almost always guarantees success at the postsecondary level, too. Remarkable Pattern of Improvement
Any faculty officer who has spent more than a few years at FUMA cannot help noticing the remarkable pattern of improvement that most 20
cadets make.
While it is impossible-and inadvisable-to separate the influences of athletics or time in the weight room, learning to lead and follow in the military program, or growing spiritually and developing wholesome values, it is patently clear that every student benefits immensely from CQ. It is the foundation of his academic progress, and when a student makes progress in the classroom, he often improves how he lives outside the classroom. The cliché that success begets success is true. The successful student becomes a better person, a better athlete, a better father, son, brother, husband or friend, a better employee or boss. It Really Works
Some years ago when FUMA was undergoing its ten-year evaluation and accreditation by the Virginia Association of Independent Schools, a visiting team charged with the task of determining whether the school’s mission and programs were being carried out was skeptical that CQ was actually what FUMA claimed it to be, and a few of the team voiced an opinion that perhaps the CQ that seemed so effective was staged for their benefit. To them, it seemed too good to be true.
To see if the CQ actually operated as stated, they came to campus unannounced one night and sneaked around during CQ, peering in windows and tiptoeing down halls. To their surprise and amazement, even when students were unaware of the presence of the visitors, they were quietly engaged in doing homework and studying. Naysayers became believers. Visiting college coaches have often made similar observations. The seemingly simple part of the FUMA system called CQ is carefully implemented and assiduously reinforced. It is difficult to overestimate its importance in building successful young men.
Cadet LTC Dallas Bonner receives his academic honors ribbon from RADM J. Scott Burhoe.
Success Stories
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S T E M
math
science
engineering
technology
S
cience, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) are uniquely practical subjects that have gotten a lot of attention from educators in recent years. These subjects are also growing areas of interest for many young people today who want to work with computers, become engineers, or who just have a love of scientific discovery. STEM Program
Cadet Dalton Fowler is one of the first students at FUMA to participate in the STEM endorsement program.
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Last year, it was announced that the Academy would offer a STEM advanced concentration degree. As well, the Fork Union Robotics Team competed, last year, for the first time in an organized competition. These new programs at Fork Union offer cadets a stronger and more engaged approach to exploring the STEM subjects. To help facilitate and develop these new skills, the Academy has also made plans to renovate the 40-year-old Wicker Science Hall. The skills they develop in Wicker Hall will put them ahead of their peers, something Fork Union Military Academy does for all its students. Most importantly, the new STEM and Robotics programs allow young men to explore interests while learning and having fun, balancing education and enthusiasm. While science and math have always been core subjects at Fork Union Military Academy, as they are at many other public and private schools, the new programs provide “young men the opportunity to build competencies in other
subjects beyond standard book learning,� according to Academic Dean COL Todd Giszack. The newly-offered STEM advanced degree program will provide applied skills in subjects like programing, networking, web design, and data management. The Academy invited only a select group of sophomores with a GPA of 3.5 or better to participate in this special degree program. Of that group, over 20 students committed to working towards the degree. Graham Luongo and Dalton Fowler, both juniors, among several others, have already taken their first classes. Both of these young men had a desire to learn something new, and these classes provide them with the opportunity to explore new subjects and gain everyday experience. Cadet Luongo has taken the Creating Web Pages class and is planning to continue on the web design track. He knows that the skills he learned in the web design class will be useful as he hopes to work with computers in the future. Cadet Fowler is less sure of his interests and has taken both Introduction to Programing and Introduction to Networking, which he enjoyed more. While the classes take extra time to complete and are not part of the core classes required to graduate, the value in learning something new is exciting for these young men. Allowing these young men to focus on practical skills provides tangible learning experiences they might not get anywhere else. This program will offer a high school transcript that is part resume, and will give them an advantage when applying to colleges or when looking for work after they graduate. Success Stories
Robotics Team
The Robotics team, organized and championed by a current senior, Zimu Li, is providing cadets the opportunity to practice technical skills by designing, building, and programing robots to compete against other high schools. Robotics teams are a newer addition to many high school club rosters, and have grown like wildfire over the last several years. Virginia FIRST is a nonprofit regional chapter of the larger FIRST organization, which promotes and organizes local, regional, and national robotics competitions. Last year was the first year Fork Union competed in a FIRST competition. The team won the control award for the best autonomous control of its robot, and also secured an alternative bid to the regional competition.
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The time and effort it takes to build a functioning robot is challenging, yet also tremendously rewarding. The young men who participate in the Robotics Club, up from three last year to over 20 members this year, learn invaluable problem solving skills, as well as, skills such as 3D modeling, programing, wiring, and applied physics. The team is currently trying to raise money to help buy supplies and equipment that will allow them to customize and control their robot on a more advanced level. These tools will give them an advantage over other teams and provide them with even more valuable learning opportunities. Because the club is new, its needs are abundant; yet it will provide priceless learning opportunities to many young men. Even though the team is young, Zimu Li, the team’s captain, believes “we can win states, and hopefully compete at Super Regionals.” After last year’s showing, there is hope that the Blue Devil Robotics team will once again have a strong year.
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Your Diploma
& What Sets Fork Union’s Diploma Apart (According to College Admissions Officers)
We invited more than a dozen college admissions officers to come tell us what they thought of Fork Union Military Academy...
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Success Stories
...and here is what we heard from them: 1. Our development of critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and cultural competency skills through academic excellence was identified as ideal preparation for a liberal arts education. 2. Our curriculum directly addresses the areas where this panel of college admissions officers finds incoming students to be weak: writing, speaking in public, and combining their knowlege from multiple subjects into critical thinking skills. 3. The panel identified the level of instruction depth and student mastery of a subject found in our one subject curriculum to be the type of preparation that overcomes the learning style of “memorize, regurgitate, then forget” seen in many of their freshmen. 4. A lack of maturity is a major issue for many incoming freshmen. Our boarding environment helps develop a level of independence and responsibility not found among most incoming students. 5. Our young men are much more prepared for the cultural mix found in college because of the diversity of our student body. 6. The panel reported that many unsuccessful college students struggle with setting priorities. They have no “big picture” vision and cannot put tasks in their proper order. The military structure component of our environment deals directly with the development of these skills. 7. With family affordability such an issue on the college level, we offer students the opportunity to become as prepared as possible to protect their parents’ investment in college. 8. The panel spoke of the growing tendency for applicants, especially boys, to be late in beginning the college admissions process. A major part of our college counseling program is working with students to be sure they are completing the necessary steps during the times of year that they need to be occurring. www.forkunion.com
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The
Early College Scholars
Dual Enrollment Program
I
n the spring of 2014, Fork Union Military Academy was approached by the leaders of the Richard Bland College of William & Mary about the possibility of partnering with them to offer some of our most talented students the opportunity to earn their Associates of Science degree upon graduation from Fork Union. The Academy had offered dual enrollment courses for many years in partnership with Piedmont Virginia Community College, in which students could receive college credit for courses taken in high school. But the partnership proposed by Richard Bland College of William
& Mary was more unique. Our reputation as an academic institution was well-known to the leadership of Richard Bland College, and they were especially interested in using our One Subject Plan curriculum to deliver courses in their Associate of Science degree program. An agreement was signed between RBC President Debbie Sydow and the Academy’s president, RADM J. Scott Burhoe, and the Early College Scholars program was initiated. Students can enter the Early College Scholars program at the beginning of their junior or senior year. For those entering as juniors, the last two years of high school are
Cadet Nathanael Bennett (at left) becomes the first Fork Union cadet to receive his two-year college Associate of Science degree from officials of Richard Bland College on the same day he earned his high school diploma from Fork Union Military Academy.
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Success Stories
spent earning the 60 college credits required to obtain the A.S. Degree, while also satisfying the requirements to graduate from Fork Union Military Academy with a high school diploma. Those who enter the program as seniors receive their Academy diploma at the conclusion of their first year of study, and their A.S. Degree at the conclusion of a second postgraduate year of study at Fork Union. Through this partnership, students may earn their A.S. Degree at a substantial financial savings for both in-state and out-of-state residents, as well as the obvious time savings of receiving a high school diploma and two-year college degree on the very same graduation day. The credits earned through obtaining this Associate of Science degree are transferable to nearly all colleges and universities nationwide.
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Appoximately half of the college credit courses are taught by FUMA faculty who are certified by Richard Bland College, and half are taught by RBC professors through synchronous distance learning. Through this technology, the professor is on the RBC campus teaching live in his or her classroom while the students here on the FUMA campus can see, hear, and interact with the professor and classmates live, and the professor can see, hear, and ask questions of the students as well. In May 2016, graduation day saw the first three cadets in this program receive their high school diploma from FUMA president RADM Burhoe, then walk a few more steps across the stage to receive their Associate of Science degree from the Dean of the Richard Bland College of William & Mary.
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FUMA’s Aviation Pioneer...
William Knox 28
Martin
El aviador americano intrépido! Success Stories
Shown here in a postage stamp issued in his honor by Colombia, and at left in the first Boeing airplane, William Knox Martin was an international aviation pioneer.
R
omantic. Pioneer. Visionary. These are the words used to describe William Knox Martin by his granddaughter, Olivia Korringa of Old Tappan, New Jersey.
Journalists in South America proclaimed the young Knox Martin “El aviador americano intrépido!”
This intrepid American aviator lived a life short on years but long on adventure and accomplishment. Even an abbreviated list of some of his notable “firsts” is impressive:
First test pilot for William Boeing. First pilot to fly across the Colombian Andes. First pilot to fly airmail delivery in Colombia. First Fork Union cadet to appear on a postage stamp! William Knox Martin, a cadet at Fork Union until 1908, went on from our campus to become one of America’s pioneer aviators. That’s right, whenever you travel in one of those big Boeing 747 airliners, you have a Fork Union cadet to thank for helping make that flight possible. www.forkunion.com
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Knox Martin (center) stands between cadets identified in the photo’s margin as cadets Hague and Wilshire.
At first his story seems hard to believe. How could one man do so much in so few years?
William Knox Martin was born in Salem, Virginia on October 30, 1892. Or, perhaps he was born on October 31, 1891. Or maybe 1894. Sources vary. Like many events in this adventurer’s whirlwind life, exact dates and places are hard to pin down. It’s as if he lived his life faster and bolder than could be recorded. But while some of the details of his life may remain sketchy, there is enough hard evidence to back up his many accomplishments.
Known as Fork Union Academy in those days, the school was still coeducational and like many of his classmates, Martin was a member of the Ciceronian Literary Society. While Martin was himself a poet and an artist, it was no secret that the membership rolls of the Literary Society were well-populated primarily because it was one of the only social clubs on campus that allowed both the cadets and the coeds to be members.
Fork Union, 1908
A slight boy in his early to mid teens, his peers towering head and shoulders above him, Knox Martin stares at the camera lens with an obvious intensity in an early family photograph taken on Fork Union’s parade grounds with two fellow cadets.
Martin left his imprint on the very first yearbook published by Fork Union in 1908. The premier issue of The Skirmisher features a cartoon signed “W. K. Martin - 08 -” on page 74. 30
Knox Martin cartoon from the 1908 Skirmisher
Success Stories
Perhaps in keeping with his artistic interests, Martin was also a member of the much smaller “Kodak Club” on campus. It should be noted, however, that according to its listing in The Skirmisher the club’s “favorite occupation” was listed as “taking pictures of the co-eds.” Aerial Club
The yearbook also features a photo of the members of the Academy’s “Aerial Club” in 1907-1908 and there in the very center of the group was the pint-sized Knox Martin, the same intense look on his face. While not much is known about this early Aerial Club, (Their favorite occupation? It’s listed as “singing after C.Q.”) it is likely that kites, ballooning, and gliders were primarily what interested these young cadets. The Wright Brothers had made their first flights at Kitty Hawk less than five years earlier in December 1903, and their public exhibitions and flying demonstrations did not really begin worldwide until 1908. Powered flight by airplanes was still in its infancy in 1908.
But, clearly, Knox Martin’s love of poetry, his skill as an artist, and his interest in flight were all on display as early as 1908 in the pages of the Academy’s yearbook. Art Education
At age 16, Knox Martin went to the University of Maryland in Baltimore to study art and paint-
ing. But still his eyes were drawn to the skies.
In November 1910, The Baltimore Sun offered a prize of $5,000 to French aviator Hubert Latham to entice him to bring his Antoinette monoplane to the Aero Meet being held at Halethorpe Field (today covered by an industrial park) in Baltimore and fly over the city as a demonstration.
Crowds of city residents watched the plane’s flight across the region, some even climbing the Washington Monument in DC to seek a glimpse of this feat. As Knox Martin watched Latham’s flight from Druid Hill Park, he decided that he wanted to become an aviator.
Hubert Latham’s 1910 flight over Baltimore inspired Knox Martin to become an aviator.
Martin declared his intention to his uncle, the man who was serving as his sponsor. His uncle encouraged Martin to continue his art studies instead, even paying for his travel to Paris, France, to continue his studies in the European art center the following summer.
While in France, though, young Martin was drawn to the Hendon Aerodrome near London where he met English aviator Claude GrahameWhite and was further encouraged to pursue his dream of flying. Knox Martin stands at the very heart of the Aerial Club in this photo from the 1908 Skirmisher.
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Flight Education
When Martin returned to the States, he moved to Bath, New York, to study flying at the Thomas Aviation School. In late 1912, Martin joined the aviation school of the Sloane Airplane Company as that school was preparing to move from New York to Los Angeles during the winter months.
Martin participated in the annual flying meet at the Dominguez Flying Field with others from the school, and then continued his flying lessons, piloting a French-made Deperdussin monoplane owned by the school.
Knox Martin sits in the cockpit of the Deperdussin monoplane he learned to fly in California.
The airplane was a single-seater, so students received instruction from a teacher on the ground and learned to fly the airplane using a “progressive hop” method.
with two passengers, flying from the Mineola airfield on Long Island to an altitude of 2,600 feet. It is believed that Knox Martin in these months was the first aviator to carry a woman as a passenger in a plane.
On September 3, 1913, he narrowly escaped injury when his biplane crashed into the Maplewood cemetery in Norwich, Connecticut. Martin was on his fifth flight from the New London county fair when the mishap occurred.
The biplane he was piloting was built by Joseph Stevenson who designed, built, and flew the airplane for the first time at the fairgrounds in Birmingham, Alabama, in 1912. On that first flight, the “Stevenson Biplane” climbed to a height of thirty to forty feet but would climb no higher. The plane stayed aloft for about two minutes before pitching to the left, to the right, and then plummeting straight into the ground. Stevenson tried unsuccessfully to jump from the aircraft, but suffered multiple injuries and died the next morning.
The fact that Martin’s plane had already caused the death of one pilot caused him “no worries,” he told a newspaper reporter in Norwich following his own crash. The reporter, who described Martin as “cool and collected in the machine as out,” reported that Martin was “undaunted” and already making plans to repair the damaged parts and fly the biplane out of the cemetery that very afternoon. He wanted to test the plane by ascending several thousand feet in altitude and flying over the city of Norwich, stating he would “give an exhibition such as the residents here have not seen before.”
On March 29, 1913, Martin flew his license tests and received his aviation certificate on April 23, 1913, the 224th issued by the Aero Club of America, and given a rating of “expert aviator” by the International Aeronautical Federation. Early Flying Career
Knox Martin remained with the Sloane Airplane Company as a pilot and flight instructor, returning to New York and doing some exhibition flying over the summer of 1913. 32
He established an altitude record for a plane
Martin stands with his downed biplane in a Norwich cemetery in September 1913. Martin repaired the plane and flew away.
Success Stories
Not only did Martin get his biplane back into the air, but by December 1913 he was flying it in Venezuela as part of an expedition up the Orinoco River. The expedition was cut short 200 miles upriver, reportedly, by encounters with unfriendly local natives and alligators, but Martin found time to get in some flying demonstrations in Caracas to the amazement of the city’s population. Knox Martin was the first aviator to bring a plane to Venezuela. Martin vowed to return to South America, convinced that the airplane would open up borders between North and South America.
Flying Boats and Mexican Generals
Seemingly unstoppable despite two life-threatening crashes already in his career, Martin’s world travels and adventures continued through the following months.
Martin joined the Jannus brothers, Tony and Roger, in their Baltimore-based plane manufacturing facility. Jannus Brothers built “flying boats” for carrying passengers and had, the previous year, opened the first scheduled passenger airline, ferrying passengers from Tampa to St. Petersburg in Florida.
Did you know? Other prominent FUMA aviators include Tom Davis, Class of 1934, founder of Piedmont Airlines, and General John T. Chain, Jr., Class of 1952, former commander in chief of the Strategic Air Command and chairman of the board of Northrop Grumman.
With the help of his Uncle Will, Martin bought one of these flying boats and painted his name on the nose. Martin traveled to San Diego, California, with the Jannus’ where they put on demonstrations and ferried passengers at the big Pan-American Exposition. They did a big business in January
Martin back at the controls of his biplane in Venezuela in December 1913.
Another Close Call
On June 8, 1914, while flying over the airfield at Mineola, Long Island, a control wire on his biplane snapped and the plane began rolling over and over again while plummeting toward the ground. Martin was able to get the plane righted and the local newspaper reported it flew “lamely but gamely for half a mile.” Again came another “topsy-turvy drop” and again Martin righted the aircraft and continued to descend. Several times these drops and recoveries were repeated while Martin fought for control. Fifty feet from the ground, the plane rolled over one last time and hit the ground, knocking the engine off its mounts and catching on fire. Dazed from a blow to the head, Martin was pulled from the burning wreckage by passing motorists. Amazingly, he was not seriously injured and returned to his room at the McLaughlin’s Hotel in Mineola sharing stories of his adventure and the fall of his “wounded bird.” www.forkunion.com
Martin’s new plane was a flying boat, and the first to bear his name on the fuselage. Martin’s flying boat was similar to the plane shown flying at right.
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and February of 1915, until one of the other Jannus pilots crashed the plane into the San Diego Bay. The Jannus Brothers headed back east, and Knox Martin struck out on yet more adventures.
Just south of San Diego, things were heating up in the Mexican Revolution. General Pancho Villa was known for using horse-mounted cavalry to great advantage, but he and his ally, General Emiliano Zapata, were also among the first military leaders to make use of the airplane in battle.
Pancho Villa, the Mexican revolutionary, was among the world’s first military leaders to see the value of airplanes in combat. Knox Martin was one of his pilots in 1915.
Villa had established a small squadron of planes with a handful of pilots from the US and France and used the planes for reconnaissance and bombing missions. Knox Martin found his way to Mexico and enlisted in Pancho Villa’s small air force. The story goes that Martin carried cargo and delivered bombs. The bombs he dropped consisted of long-fused sticks of dynamite which he lit from a glowing cigar tip and dropped over the side on various government fortifications. Between flights he was not above taking part in some of Pancho Villa’s cavalry raids as well.
1915 and 1916 as the young Martin moved from one adventure to the next around the world. But by the summer of 1916, there is clear evidence where Knox Martin was. He was in Seattle, Washington.
First Test Pilot for Boeing
Washington State businessman William E. Boeing went for his first plane ride in 1915 with barnstorming aviator Terah Maroney and became hooked on airplanes. He signed up for flying lessons and built a hangar facility on Lake Union in Seattle. Boeing began to build his first airplane, a biplane with aerodynamic pontoons for water takeoffs and landings.
On June 15, 1916, Boeing’s first plane was ready for testing and Boeing himself taxied it out onto the waters of Lake Union and soon was airborne. While no records were kept of that maiden flight, two weeks later formal testing of the plane began in earnest. The first test pilot to put the new Boeing aircraft through its paces? William Knox Martin. Martin flew more than forty test flights of the new Boeing B&W #1, so-called for the initials of Boeing and his partner Conrad Westerveld, between June and September of 1916.
As Pancho Villa’s revolution turned into a lost cause, Knox Martin apparently headed out for other worlds and wars.
He traveled first to Australia to join up with the Anzac flying forces and help train their pilots. He moved on to China to help train pilots for Sun Yat-Sen. At some point during these months, he reportedly stopped in Japan and put on a flying exhibition for the Emperor. It is difficult to separate reality from legend during the years 34
Knox Martin on the shores of Lake Union in Seattle, Washington, with the first plane manufactured by William E. Boeing. Martin was Boeing’s test pilot. Photo: The Boeing Company
Success Stories
Knox Martin stands aboard the pontoon of Boeing’s B&W #1 inside the hangar at Lake Union in Seattle, Washington, in the summer of 1916. Photo: The Boeing Company
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The test logs of Boeing’s first airplane describe the initial test flights made by Knox Martin.
The test logs from those flights detail what must have been some exciting moments (such as “landed with dead motor in Lake Union,” or “radiator plate tore off while flying,” and “oil pump broke”) in calm, block letters. Martin served as Boeing’s chief pilot and flight instructor throughout 1916 before moving on once again, this time to Vancouver, Canada, to become the chief flight instructor for Hoffar Aircraft Company, a Canadian manufacturer of seaplanes that was later purchased by Boeing. World War I
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World War I was in full fury in 1917 and Knox Martin joined the Imperial Royal Flying Corps while still in Canada. Once the United States joined the war effort, Martin obtained his release from the Canadian government and returned to the States where he served as a flight instructor and aviator in Texas and Florida. Martin also served briefly with the United States Aerial Mail
Service during 1918. The War Department supplied the planes and pilots for the first air mail service in the US beginning May 15, 1918, until the civilian Post Office Department took over the entire operation in August 1918.
Knox Martin received his discharge from the military in March 1919 and soon was on his way to keep a promise he’d made back in 1913. Back to South America
The citizens of Barranquilla, Colombia, looked up on June 14, 1919, to see an aviator performing hair-raising aerial spins and loops in the skies overhead. William Knox Martin had returned to South America.
Martin had arrived earlier in the year in Cartagena on the Atlantic coast, a mysterious young foreigner with a large crate of goods. Martin opened his boxes and began to assemble his Curtiss “Jenny” airplane in the town square. Most of the curious onlookers had never seen Success Stories
an automobile or a train, let alone an airplane. As Martin finished his plane’s assembly, he passed out leaflets offering to accept paying passengers for flights over the Crowds in Colombia gathered to town, as well as watch the 1919 flights of El aviadseeking interor americano intrépido in the skies ested business- above, just as young Knox Martin men to finance himself had been awed by Hubert Latham’s flight in Baltimore. a passenger and airmail service in Colombia.
Drumming up publicity by aerial exhibitions over a number of Colombian cities and villages in the following weeks, Martin caught the imagination of the country. On one occasion, the railroad was forced to add special train service for the multitudes who came to see the spectacle.
obstacle to a successful flight. Across the Andes
Crossing the mountain range in the thin atmosphere at an altitude of 18,000 feet could easily prove fatal from the dangers of hypoxia. In today’s modern aircraft, oxygen is required by regulation for pilots operating above 10,000 feet. Knox Martin planned to make this flight in an open cockpit biplane with a hand-held compass as his only navigational aid. Martin flew up the Magdalena River to the small village of Honda about 75 miles from Bogota. From there, he intended to fly over the mountain village of Facatativa high on the Andean peak, following the railroad tracks that climbed to that small hamlet.
His rigging iced from low hanging clouds, and suffering a nosebleed, headache, and sputtering engine from the lack of oxygen, Martin found his way through the Facatativa Pass and down to Bogota on the plateau below at 8,600 feet.
First Airmail Flight in Colombia
Carrying local businessman Mario Santo Domingo and a sack of 60 pieces of mail in his plane, Martin flew from Barranquilla to Puerto, a distance of forty miles. This was the first passenger flight and the first airmail flight in Colombia.
This airmail demonstration was impressive to the locals, but Martin had even bigger ambitions. Colombia’s capital, Bogota, was rather isolated inland from the other major Colombian cities located along the coast. A vast mountain range, the Andes, rose as high as 18,000 feet between the capital and the coast. Fewer than 75 miles of roads then existed in Colombia, a country larger than California. Mail sent from the coast took a month or so to arrive in Bogota, traveling by boat up the Magdalena River and then across the mountains on pack mules. Martin proposed to fly this route and deliver mail in less than six hours.
He attracted interested investors, but the cautious businessmen wanted proof that such an airmail flight could be made successfully. The imposing Andes mountains were a formidable www.forkunion.com
Martin arrives in Bogota, Colombia, after crossing the northern Andes mountain range in August 1919.
Martin’s arrival in the isolated capital marked the first aerial crossing of the northern Andes and forever placed the name of William Knox Martin in the history of Colombia as the father of aviation in that part of South America.
In the next four years Martin would make frequent flights from Bogota to the coast, often accompanied in the cockpit by his pet ocelot. He formed the Bogotanian Airlines (later absorbed by Aviana in 1940) and continued training pilots and adding aircraft to the skies of Colombia. Today, you can book a ticket from Barranquilla to Bogota on Avianca for less than $400 and board a Boeing aircraft for a flight of about 85 minutes. And former Fork Union cadet William Knox Martin helped make all of that possible.
Epilogue: Knox Martin married a Colombian woman in 1923 and settled down to a life as a journalist and artist, raising three children. He returned to the United States with his family in 1926 and began flying again as a corporate pilot. He died in 1927 from injuries sustained in a crashan automobile crash-just weeks after Lindbergh made his historic flight to Paris. His son, William Knox Martin, Jr., took up his father’s passion for painting and is a renowned painter, sculptor, and muralist. His art hangs in museums and galleries worldwide. In 1994, Colombia issued a postage stamp in his honor, marking the 75th anniversary of his first airmail flight. In 2005, Martin was inducted into the Virginia Aviation Hall of Fame.
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4744 James Madison Highway Fork Union, VA 23055 | USA www.forkunion.com
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Hatcher Hall (Admissions Office / Classrooms) Perkins Technology Center Hoffman Supply Center (Quartermaster) Retan Flag Hall / Band Room John J. Wicker Chapel Yeatman Infirmary Jacobson Hall Vaughan Hall (Social Center) J. C. Wicker Science Hall & Planetarium (Lower Level)
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The Changing Face of the
Academy Campus F
rom little more than an idea in the mind of Dr. William Hatcher, the campus of Fork Union Military Academy has grown to more than 1,000 acres and dozens of buildings.
1898
Dr. William Hatcher eyes a patch of woods and suggests to a friend, “Wouldn’t that beautiful oak grove be a splendid place for a school?” Dr. Hatcher’s Fork Union Academy opens that same fall in a modest wood frame house in the village of Fork Union, the rooms rented for $5 a month.
1900
Snead Hall was the first Academy building, started in 1900 and completed in 1902. Originally called Academy Hall it was renamed in honor of Charles Goodall Snead. The Armory was built between 1902 and 1905 and was a multipurpose building with classrooms and drill space.
Mr. and Mrs. W. P. Snead, two of the Academy’s Original Guarantors, donate six acres of land to the school, and construction of Academy Hall, later renamed Snead Hall, begins. The construction was carried out slowly, as money was available. The interior of the building was not completed until 1902.
1902 An additional eleven acres of land is donated by Mr. and Mrs. W. P. Snead, and construction begins on the Armory, which is completed in 1905.
1912 The Academy’s first president, Dr. William Hatcher, dies August 24, 1912. His son, Dr. Eldridge B. Hatcher, is selected to succeed him as the school’s second president.
1914 Col. Clayton E. Crosland is named the Academy’s third president.
1916 Hatcher Hall begins construction. 40
Success Stories
Seen here in this photo from the 1910 Skirmisher, Snead Hall (at left) and the Armory were located on the outside edges of the current Fraley Circle, near the current Middle School Gym and Snead Hall barracks, respectively.
Hatcher Hall, shown here under construction in a 1916 photograph, was designed by President Crosland to be the picture postcard image of the Academy. It was completed over several years as money was available.
The photo at right is one of the few showing the location of the Academy’s original three buildings in relation to each other. This campus configuration was short-lived, as Snead Hall and the Armory were destroyed by fire in January of 1923.
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1917 Col. Nathaniel J. Perkins is named acting president. He is named the Academy’s fourth president in 1918.
1923 In January 1923, two separate fires destroy Snead Hall and the Armory. Arson is suspected. The only building standing on campus is Hatcher Hall. The Armory burned to the ground in January 1923.
The decision is made to rebuild rather than close the school. Construction begins on a new barracks building to be named Snead Hall, and the Alumni Gymnasium, now known as the Middle School Gymnasium. Both buildings are completed in time for the 1923-1924 academic year.
1926 The original Snead Hall was destroyed by fire in January 1923 within days of the Armory burning. Arson was suspected. In the photo below, the woman in the foreground is believed to be Mrs. W. P. Snead. Hatcher Hall is visible behind her.
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A well is sunk near the campus, adjacent to Careby Hall, and strikes a stream of artesian water at 306 feet. The Academy became one of the few boarding schools at the time to boast of having hot and cold water in the barracks drawn from pure artesian well waters. The well remains today, and was tapped during a recent drought year to provide additional fresh water for the Fork Union community at large.
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Snead Hall barracks (above) and the Alumni Gymnasium (below, now called the Middle School Gym), shown in these photographs from 1924, were completed between January 1923 and the opening of the 1923-1924 school year in the fall of 1923.
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This 1927 photograph shows the view from the main gate looking toward the Alumni Gymnasium, Hatcher Hall, and Snead Hall barracks. The entrance road is lined with young saplings that would become the towering oaks we see today.
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The familiar layout of the Fork Union Military Academy campus began to take shape in this aerial photograph from the mid-1930s. In the lower left foreground can be seen the residence that now serves as the Alumni House Museum. Fraley Circle began to take its modern form and accommodates the motor vehicles that can be seen parked on its perimeter. At left can be seen the Alumni Gymnasium with the Junior School building located directly behind it. Behind that can be seen the D Annex barracks. Just visible between the Gym and Hatcher Hall is the Junior School recitation hall. Hatcher Hall commands the center of the campus, with Snead Hall barracks dominating the right side of the circle.
The D Annex barracks (below) was added in 1935 in the space behind the Alumni Gymnasium now occupied by the Sabre Shop. D Annex housed approximately 100 students and the quartermaster.
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The Junior School building (above) was added in about 1930 directly behind the Alumni Gymnasium and provided classrooms, activity space, and faculty lounge area for the new Junior School. This building was later used for faculty apartments before being demolished in recent years. The Bronson Commons now occupies this area of campus.
Success Stories
1930 Dr. John J. Wicker becomes the school’s fifth president and leads the school during a period of remarkable growth. Dr. Wicker founds the Junior School of the Academy. A new building is constructed for the Junior School directly behind the Alumni Gymnasium.
1935 A new barracks, D Annex, is built in time for the 1935-1936 academic year to house about 100 students, as well as two faculty members, a lounge, and the quartermaster’s shop. The building is located behind the Alumni Gymnasium.
1937 The John J. Wicker Chapel is built and dedicated on November 6, 1937.
1938 The Social Center Building is constructed, later used as the Commandant’s Office.
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The Social Center Building was added in 1938 and has served a number of functions through the years. Initially a center of student activities, the building known as Vaughan Hall later housed the Commandant’s Office before being restored as the Social Center in 2013.
Wicker Chapel (below) was dedicated in 1937 and has been the heart of the campus ever since, as thousands of cadets have occupied its rows of wooden seats. The building was recently restored to near original condition.
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1940 The late 1930s and 1940s was a time of tremendous growth on campus as burgeoning student enrollment had FUMA facilities nearly bursting at the seams. Perkins Hall is built beside Hatcher Hall. Originally used for science classrooms and labs, Perkins Hall now houses the Academy’s technology center.
This 1941 photograph shows Perkins Hall, built in 1940.
The Junior School Barracks is also built in 1940, but is originally constructed with only one wing of dorm rooms on three floors. The building is expanded in 1942 to its current size, adding the B Company wing.
1941 Memorial Barracks is built to house additional Upper School students.
1942 The President’s House is built on campus just off the front of Fraley Circle. The home is now the Chaplain’s Residence.
The infirmary is moved out of Hatcher Hall and into a structure known as The Maples, south of Snead Hall.
1943 The Junior School Barracks is expanded to its current size. Memorial Hall, shown here in a 1945 photograph, was built in 1941 to provide barracks space for Upper School cadets.
The Junior School Academic Building is constructed.
1944 Annexes are completed at the back of Snead Hall for each company to provide extra housing space.
1945 Col. James C. Wicker is named the Academy’s sixth president, replacing his father upon the elder Wicker’s retirement.
The Stadium is built to provide permanent seating for the football field and parade grounds.
1946 The President’s House was built in the early part of the 1940s. This photograph was taken in 1945.
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The Central Heating Plant with its distinctive brick smokestack is built. Success Stories
The 1940s saw the expansion of the Junior School, with the construction of the barracks in 1940. The building was originally built with just a single threestory wing of dorm rooms.
By 1943, the Junior School barracks had been expanded to its current size with the addition of another wing, doubling the capacity of the building.
The Junior School academic building was added in 1943 to provide classrooms, study hall, and administrative offices for the growing Junior School program.
By 1942, the infirmary had been moved from inside Hatcher Hall to the wooden structure south of Snead Hall known as The Maples.
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An aerial view of the Academy in 1948.
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The Retan Library was built in 19461947 and dedicated in 1947 in honor of George Owen Retan, a FUMA alumnus who was killed in World War II. This building is now known as Flag Hall and provides space for the band and music programs of the Academy.
The M. C. Thomas Gymnasium was completed in 1949.
The Sabre Shop was built in 1955 in the area behind the Alumni Gymnasium formerly occupied by D Annex.
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Success Stories
1947 The Retan Library is dedicated in the fall of 1947 in memory of a FUMA alumnus, George Owen Retan, killed in World War II. This former library building is now also known as Flag Hall and serves as the band room.
1949 The M. C. Thomas Gymnasium is completed.
1953 D Annex is destroyed by fire.
1955 The Sabre Shop is built in the area of the destroyed D Annex.
The main entrance gate and arch were built in 1962.
1958 The swimming pool is added behind the Thomas Gymnasium.
1962 The campus Entrance Gate and Arch are built.
The Fork Union Motor Lodge and Restaurant are completed.
1966 Underground tunnels are constructed connecting most of the central campus’ main buildings to the central heating plant.
The swimming pool was added to the Thomas Gymnasium in 1958.
The Fork Union Motor Lodge was built in 1962. It was closed and the building removed in 2013.
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1968 Col. Kenneth T. Whitescarver becomes the Academy’s seventh president.
1969 The illuminated fountain is built at the southwest corner of the grounds.
The fountain was added in 1969 and Wicker Science Building followed in 1970.
1970 The J. Caldwell Wicker Science Building is completed and dedicated in October of 1970, housing one of the only planetariums in a Virginia private school.
1974 Hoffman Supply Center and the Rifle Range are constructed.
1978 Yeatman Infirmary is built.
Yeatman Infirmary was built in 1978.
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An aerial view of the campus in 1978 showing the back side of the campus. Hoffman Supply Center is at lower left, between the smokestack and a storage building.
Success Stories
1982 Memorial Hall addition is completed.
1983 Beatty Library is constructed beginning in the spring of 1983, and completed in January 1984.
1989 The Estes Athletic Center is completed and opens on October 27, 1989.
Beatty Library was added in 1983.
1991 Renovations are made to Snead Hall barracks in the summer of 1991. Col. Charles T. Clanton is named the Academy’s eighth president.
1992 Moretz Academic Center, a second-story addition to the Wicker Science Building containing twelve classrooms, is completed. The Estes Athletic Center opened in 1989.
In 1992, the Moretz Academic Center was added atop the Wicker Science Building.
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1994 Lt. Gen. John E. Jackson, Jr. becomes the Academy’s ninth president. Construction of the dining hall gets underway.
1995 Pruitt Lake and Pavilion are completed and dedicated.
1998 The Veterans Memorial is constructed near the main entrance to the campus.
General Jackson began to oversee construction of the dining hall soon after his arrival as president.
The Dorothy Thomasson Estes Dining Hall is dedicated on May 1, 1998.
1999 The Academic Center, a complete renovation and transformation of the lower levels of Hatcher Hall, is completed.
2000 The E. H. Lacy Track is completed. The Veterans Memorial was completed in 1998.
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The Pruitt Lake and Pavilion were among the first campus improvements made by General Jackson.
Success Stories
General Jackson and Chairman Bill Vakos look on as Ed Estes and members of his family cut the ribbon opening the Dorothy Thomasson Estes Dining Hall in May 1998.
The Academic Center, opened in 1998, added more classroom space to the lower levels of Hatcher Hall.
The Gus Lacy Track has hosted many top track athletes in major meets since its opening in 2000.
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2003 The Sarah Alice Bronson Commons is dedicated in May 2003, offering a quiet spot on campus for relaxation and reflection.
2004 A new wastewater treatment plant is constructed, a vital part of the Academy’s infrastructure, though unlikely to appear on picture postcards. Bronson Commons was dedicated in May 2003.
2006 A major addition to the Beatty Library is finished, nearly doubling the size of the library and adding classrooms, a computer lab, and meeting space. The Caruthers Tennis Courts are completed.
The Aquatic Center is constructed at the back side of the Estes Athletic Center.
2008 Major renovations are completed on the John J. Wicker Chapel, restoring the building to its original interior appearance.
2009 The wastewater treatment plant was added in 2004 providing a critically-needed infrastructure improvement.
A new press box is constructed at the football stadium. The twostory building has a third level observation deck and facilities for a snack bar.
A major addition to the Beatty Library doubled its size in 2006 and added classroom and meeting space. The new tennis courts were opened in 2006.
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Success Stories
The Aquatic Center was completed in 2006. Since then, FUMA’s swim team has become a nationally-ranked powerhouse, winning the state championship the past two years.
Major renovations to the exterior and interior of Wicker Chapel were made in 2008, restoring and improving the chapel facility.
A new press box, a two-story structure with two balconies and a third-level observation deck, was added in 2009 atop the football stadium. The ground floor houses facilities for a snack bar.
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2010 The Academy breaks ground on the new barracks building, Jacobson Hall.
2011 RADM J. Scott Burhoe, recently retired from the U. S. Coast Guard where he served as the Superintendent of the U. S. Coast Guard Academy, becomes the Academy’s 10th President and takes up residence in historic Careby Hall, the home of the Academy’s first President, Dr. William Hatcher, at the time of the school’s founding.
2012 The Academy’s new Upper School Barracks, Jacobson Hall, opens in August 2012. Snead Hall is demolished, opening up green space beside the Chapel.
2013 Memorial Hall Barracks and the Fork Union Motor Lodge are demolished. Vaughan Hall is renovated and reopens as cadet Social Center with games and recreational amenities.
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The groundbreaking ceremony for Jacobson Hall was held in October 2010 during Parents Weekend.
Dr. William Hatcher’s Fork Union home, Careby Hall, was purchased by the parents of a FUMA cadet and donated to the Academy where it now once again serves as the President’s Residence.
Success Stories
Snead Hall was reduced to rubble in the summer of 2012, as Jacobson Hall, seen in the background, neared completion.
Vaughan Hall was renovated and restored to its original role as Social Center for cadets to use for recreation and relaxation.
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Jacobson Hall, the Academy’s state-of-the-art barracks facility, opened in August 2012 for use by Upper School cadets.
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Fork Union Military Academy
I
in 2020
n 2020 Fork Union Military Academy is thriving. The Washington Post published an article highlighting the innovative character and leadership development program, and The Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development (ASCD) placed the Academy on the cover of Educational Leadership magazine as a model for mental, physical, social, and spiritual development.
Many different media sources have highlighted the success of graduates and their impact as innovative business leaders, their achievements in sports therapy and medicine, their distinguished military service, and their example of servant leadership. Every graduate attributes his accomplishment to the learning experience, environment, and discipline at Fork Union. The character and leadership development program is also credited with providing a wide range of international students with the skills necessary to assume high-level positions in government and business around the world. s you drive onto this spectacular campus, you are impressed by its blend of beauty and strength. The Academy is comprised of individuals with different backgrounds, races, creeds, and religions…and there is a clear mandate to continue the equity achieved over the last decade. It is clear that one of the “best aspects of the military system” here is that everyone is equally valued and treated with respect.
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The Corps, faculty, and staff are diverse. This diversity strengthens and unifies the mission of educating, developing, and inspiring the next generation to live meaningful lives with purpose. Everyone is committed to the school’s
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core values of respect, integrity, faith, character, and discipline. he cadets walk and march with pride in themselves and the school they represent. They openly acknowledge that attending school here is not without sacrifice. Many worldly distractions are absent. Even though the use of appropriate technology abounds, its purpose is to facilitate learning and bring efficiency to the staff. It is not used to fill time or for pure entertainment.
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A sanctuary exists, unlike any other independent boarding school. Students acknowledge and appreciate that they have more planned opportunities to collaborate in person, and more time to study, reflect, and improve their personal fitness. Cadets, faculty, and staff feel valued, connected, and committed to the Academy’s mission. The cadets are challenged in the classroom, through athletic competition, and on the drill field. They excel as a result of the teaching, support, and mentorship provided by nationally recognized professionals who work at the Academy to make a positive difference in the lives of the young men entrusted to their care. hat you also realize as you interact with the people who work and study here is that you have entered a world you wish existed everywhere. All around you is a vibrancy and joy that comes from doing what you love to do, and accomplishing what is best for your future. All around you are people who are physically fit and energized.
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Everyone welcomes you to their Academy, yet you recognize immediately that there is an emphasis on safety and security. Even as you are welcomed, you know as a
Success Stories
prospective student that you will need to work hard to achieve what you see in the cadets; you know as a parent that your son will be loved and cared for…and that those who work here have empathy and concern, and understand the personal investment you have made for your son. here is a seriousness surrounding the Academy, yet there is also a sense of community where people are open, candid, honest, and respectful of each other and their neighbors. Everyone takes their work seriously, but it is clear that enthusiasm and discipline exist side by side. Cheerful optimism and energy abound.
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growth and serve as positive examples of character and leadership.
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ver the last five years, on the circle in the middle of campus, a “Body, Mind, Spirit Center” has emerged. This world-class, LEED-certified building contains the best strength and aerobic equipment, an entire floor dedicated to counseling and learning resources, and a Chaplain’s office where a team of youth ministers helps cadets nourish and strengthen their faith.
A sanctuary exists, unlike any other independent boarding school.
You see images of the past, where graduates and benefactors are honored and sometimes revered, but you also see and feel a connection to the future. Nearly everywhere you go there is a strong connection between this college preparatory military school called Fork Union Military Academy and the God we serve. You see intentionality, a distinct understanding that man’s purpose on earth is to serve God, and that through Him, Fork Union serves the needs of its cadets and the nation. You are surrounded by people—students, staff, and faculty alike—with a voracious appetite to learn, and the confidence to persevere in creative problem solving. Cadets impress you as confident communicators. he ever-increasing technical demands of nations will be met only by graduates whose secondary education remains rooted in a curriculum of math, science, English, the social sciences, and world languages. The faculty knows that their first allegiance and responsibility, the reason they work at this Academy, is to shepherd this intellectual
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Athletic fields, all groomed and manicured, now wrap the entire campus from the Gus Lacy Track behind Jacobson Hall, around Pruitt Lake, to the Dorothy Thomasson Estes Dining Hall where a multisport stadium with a lighted state-of-the-market artificial turf surface can be seen. This facility hosts multiple sporting contests and many other student activities. Plans for a Leadership Development Center are complete, and a Leadership Chair has been selected to lead this effort. There are also plans to create a two-year college on this very campus. uite simply, Fork Union Military Academy is the model private Christian boarding/day school with a military lifestyle. It is a unique blend of support, challenge, intellectual stimulation, and physical development with a clear mandate for preparing its students for one purpose, serving God and leading America and the world…
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…and its graduates have the confidence, intellect, energy, enthusiasm, discipline, and compassion to accomplish anything they set their bodies, minds, and spirit to do.
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Kevin Plank
Under Armour Founder Honored as Distinguished Alumnus
Kevin Plank addresses the alumni and guests at the dinner where Plank was honored as a Distinguished Alumnus of the Academy.
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“A
ll roads lead back to Fork Union, Virginia,” said Kevin Plank, founder and CEO of Under Armour, addressing alumni and friends during a recent Alumni Weekend. Plank, a member of the Class of 1991, was being honored as a Distinguished Alumnus during the Alumni Dinner. “I honestly can say that much of my success is attributed to my time spent at the Academy,” Plank explained. “The relationships I formed while I was there will be ones that I continue to carry in both my personal life and professional career.”
Plank, the founder and CEO of Under Armour Apparel, played on Coach John Shuman’s varsity football team as a postgraduate and went on to become special teams captain at the University of Maryland. Plank said that when he was playing football he began to grow weary of the sweat-soaked cotton t-shirt. “I had a great product concept to create the ultimate t-shirt-one that would not absorb moisture.” The idea, however, would not become successful unless it was launched with the help of the right people.
Twenty-three of Plank’s teammates at Fork Union went on to play football at Division I colleges and universities. One of his friends, Eddie George, won the Heisman Trophy at Ohio State University. Thirteen of his FUMA buddies ended up in the NFL. “I have to give credit to those friends from FUMA that helped me get the product out to the general public,” he says. “The network of guys that I met at FUMA, including Eddie George and other NFL draft picks, were the people I needed to try the product and attest to its quality.” www.forkunion.com
In a 2012 interview with the Harvard Business Review, Plank explained further, saying, “This is a piece of the Under Armour story that most people don’t appreciate. They focus on the innovative product. But I wasn’t just a guy who created a new kind of athletic wear. I had friends inside the locker rooms of more than a dozen professional football teams. Although Under Armour has become a $1 billion brand by selling to consumers, I created it as a product for elite athletes. And when I was laying plans for the business, my contacts among these NFL players were a vital part of my strategy.”
Plank was a member of the 1990-91 Varsity Football Team and a postgraduate in the Class of 1991 at Fork Union Military Academy.
Plank has turned his synthetic fiber concept into an apparel revolution. Under Plank’s direction, Under Armour has grown exponentially and is now available in more than 8,000 retail locations worldwide. Under Armour apparel is worldwide and is now the official supplier of performance apparel to Major League Lacrosse, the National Hockey League, USA Baseball and the US Ski Team. It is also worn by every collegiate and professional team. Among his accomplishments, Plank has been named to the Sports Business Journal “Forty under 40” top young executive list three years in a row and has been featured in USA Today, ESPN the Magazine, Inc., The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, Fast Company, and more.
Plank’s business success was aided by his friendship with teammates such as Eddie George (center), seen here with Tyrone Davis (left) who played a number of years with the Jets and Packers, and Warren Forney (right), who was an All-ACC player at Clemson.
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Shammond Williams
Copyright 2007 NBAE (Photo by Andrew D. Bernstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
Shammond Williams goes for the basket in Game #4 of the 2007 Western Conference Playoffs between the Lakers and the Suns.
Former NBA Lakers’ Shammond Williams Never Forgets His Fork Union Roots
S Shammond Williams as a FUMA Cadet in 1994 Williams takes it to the hoop against Mount Zion, completing the dunk and backboard slap in front of the Cadet Corps in the Thomas Gymnasium.
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hammond Williams is one of those well-grounded individuals who doesn’t forget his roots. When asked to recount the basketball accomplishments that bring him pride, this NBA veteran doesn’t start by telling stories of playing with his friend and teammate Kobe Bryant, he points to when he helped his Southside High School team in Greenville, South Carolina, win the 1992 South Carolina AA Championship. Williams still returns regularly to South Carolina to host basketball camps for area youth.
Williams has also been a frequent visitor to the annual Fork Union Basketball Camp founded by Coach Fletcher Arritt, where he dazzles the young players with his ball-handling skills and flawless shooting technique, a technique honed by thousands of hours of individual practice.
As captain of Coach Arritt’s PG basketball team in 1993-94, Shammond Williams left his mark on FUMA both on and off the court. Not only did he win the Thomas PG Athlete Award and Frank A. Crockett Captain’s Award, he also received zero demerits and won the competition for Best Drilled Cadet. His outstanding performance continued at the University of North Carolina where he played for Coach Dean Smith and helped lead the Tar Heels to the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four three out of his four years there. Success Stories
Williams set career and season records that stand to this day, including Most 3-Point Goals Made in a Season (95); Most 3-Point Goals Made in a Career (233); Highest Free Throw Percentage in a Season (91.1%); and Highest Free Throw Percentage in a Career (84.9%). He was selected the Most Valuable Player of the 1997 ACC Tournament. Drafted by the Chicago Bulls in 1998, Williams played in the NBA for more than seven years and played in Europe for an additional four years before retiring as a player in 2011.
Williams continues to share his knowledge and love of the game with young players, having traded his player’s shoes for the whistle and clipboard of a coach. After a stint on the basketball staff at Furman University, he now serves as an assistant coach at Tulane University. Humble and unassuming, Williams’ loyalty to Coach Arritt and Fork Union was apparent on one recent summer visit to basketball camp, as he stayed through the evening to speak to students then attending Summer School at Fork Union. Williams told the students that during his time as a cadet, he sat and listened to the alumni who came back to campus to speak to the cadets and he always hoped that one day he would ac-
complish something good enough that he would be given the honor of sharing his story with students at Fork Union. As a high school student, Shammond Williams never really dreamed of playing basketball in the NBA. His plans were to earn his bachelor’s degree at the University of North Carolina in Industrial Relations and become a financial broker. Getting drafted into the NBA after college was just a bonus.
Williams spends some time interacting with young players attending the summer Fork Union Basketball Camp.
It was his discipline and willingness to put in the extra time and effort required to excel that made Williams stand out from his peers, here in the Cadet Corps, on the basketball court, and throughout his life and career. He is a role model for success that is built not just on big dreams, but on hard work and commitment to excellence.
FUMA alumnus and NBA player Shammond Williams awed summer campers with his shooting and ball-handling skills.
www.forkunion.com
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My Life Beyond
By: Elias Evans
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eft, right, left, right, left, right. As I was hiking the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage this summer I would frequently think about the cadence called during my high school years at Fork Union Military Academy. However, while on this journey I found more emphasis on right, right, right. During the 450-mile hike, I had many days to reflect on the “right” choices pertaining to a healthy body, mind, and spirit. Though this journey was extremely different from my regimen at Fork Union Military Academy, there were many similarities that mirrored my first months at FUMA. The Camino was part of the University of the South “Sewanee Summer in Spain” program. The semester started with a two-week prerequisite course at the University of Madrid Complutense. The Camino walk is also known as the Way of St. James, and is the religious route that King James took to the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in northern Spain. I started the road to Santiago much like I started my time at FUMA…challenged. Completing the walk in a month was a challenge, but it gave me opportunities to improve my Spanish and provided long days for reflection on life. Neither the walk nor my three-plus years at FUMA were without struggles. However, both experiences made me appreciate the journey to achievement. The blisters on my feet after walking over 20 miles a day or the task of shining shoes for inspection gave me a sense of relief and
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FUMA
satisfaction when completed. As a cadet I thought that shining shoes was a waste of time, but I now realize the process helped me develop patience. Patience I would need as I faced the 12 hours of walking each day during my summer pilgrimage. My FUMA experience started during a 2011 summer session when I enrolled to improve my grade point average. This was to be my brief stint at a military boarding school before heading back to my hometown of Richmond, Virginia. By the end of the summer I started to realize that I could be successful in the environment provided by FUMA. The support of the faculty along with the structure of the school fostered success. At the close of summer school, I realized that the hard work had changed me and made me more confident and willing to accept other challenges. I felt a sense of accomplishment similar to getting sellas (stamps) for my Camino passport, given for each segment of the journey. The summer in Spain, similar to my days at FUMA, seemed to pass by much too quickly. While on the journey the miles seemed long, much like many of the days at FUMA. I now see how fast time goes by. The opportunity to write for The Leader gives me another chance to thank my fellow alumni for their support of the school, and the faculty for their interest, dedication, superb teaching, and even post-FUMA emails and meetings. I want to say with the past and present Corps of Cadets - “Go FUMA!”
Success Stories
Q A &
with
pare helped pre A M U F k in ? Do you th llege? How you for co It really prepared me for college. I learned time allocation and how to be organized. FUMA makes you set up your day and diversify your time—a time for preparation, time to study, time to work, time to play, etc.
Is your time at FUMA an exp erience you would credit your succes s to? 100% - FUMA gave me the skills necessary for success, and I learned that “I can do it” with hard work and being organized. Fork Union boosted my confidence in myself.
Which FUMA co re value did yo u learn the most at F ork Union—resp integrity, faith, ect, character, Or discipline? Right now, the discipline more that I learned at FUMA is cess. I learned suc ege coll my to ble lica app ciplined, at Fork Union to be self-dis d. har k wor to and motivated,
e memory ur favorit o y is t a h W A? from FUM
My favorite memory is of COL Miller’s reaction and facial expression when he received the Prep League Tennis Coach of the Year my junior year. I played tennis, and the Tennis Team shared in his excitement. Also, I remember a trip to Walmart with 1SGT Brice. We were going to buy canned goods to feed the poor, and his talk with me was inspiring. I had great mentors at Fork Union who showed me what a good man is.
www.forkunion.com
Elias Evans Class of 2014
t r time a u o y n o ack about? u look b When yo hat do you think My FUMA, w
relationships with the faculty and staff were fundamental and helped me believe in myself and my abilities. The faculty are charismatic and genuinely care about the cadets and their success. The love at Fork Union is more powerful than at any other school.
How did FUMA change you or develop you? Fork Union spirit, and encompasses body, mind, and s. I went ect so, I grew in all three asp man who is a to boy ool from a middle sch ter traits of striving to embody the charac a good man.
ets rent cad r u c o t ce of u offer importan can e can yo e ic h t v d d a n t a Wha erst FUMA hem und as how ll e w s to help t a ? , success ducation e e r d u t o u o f g a their benefit Never give up, challenge yourself, max out AP classes, FUMA showed me that I could succeed, it motivated me, I learned to cope and overcome my failures and disappointments, it taught me delayed gratification, FUMA is a great place to be, green shirts have your best interest, you might think that getting stuck and marching tours isn’t fair but life is not fair…You get a clean slate when you come to FUMA – make the best of it. FUMA helps you become a better human being. People in Richmond have this idea of military school that is not accurate…Fork Union is an amazing school.
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A Few Good Men
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ach year the senior class at Fork Union Military Academy achieves 100% college acceptance, and the diversity of the Corps is often reflected in the wide range of colleges they choose. Beginning with the Class of 2008, select members of each graduating class have been included in a photograph we call “A Few Good Men,� which highlights the quality of the college programs into which our seniors are accepted. Nine editions of the Few Good Men photograph now hang in the main lobby of Hatcher Hall, including the most recent one from the Class of 2016. The captions posted in the frame of each one tell the success stories for each of the smiling boys selected for inclusion, and provide visitors with a glimpse of the impressive array of college acceptances our seniors achieve each year. Typical boys, outstanding results.
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Success Stories
Cadets were recently accepted to the following colleges and universities: Academy of Art University Allegheny College American University Appalachian State University Arizona State University Auburn University Ball State University Bowdoin College Bowie State University Brandeis University Bridgewater College Campbell University Casenovia College Catholic University Christopher Newport University Citadel, The Clemson University Coastal Carolina University College of William and Mary Colorado School of Mines Dartmouth College Davis & Elkins College Delaware State University Denison University Drexel University Duquesne University East Carolina University Elon College Emory and Henry College Ferrum College Florida Gulf Coast University Florida Institute of Technology Florida State University Gardner-Webb University George Mason University Georgia Tech Grand Canyon University Hampden-Sydney College Hampton University Harvard University High Point University Hofstra University
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Howard University Iowa State University Ithaca College James Madison University Kansas State University Keystone College King’s College LaSalle University Liberty University Longwood University Louisiana State University Lynchburg College Lynn University Maine Maritime Academy Marion Military Institute Marymount University Michigan State University Midwestern State University Millersville University Morgan State University New England College North Carolina A&T Northern Arizona University Norwich University Ohio State University Oklahoma Baptist University Old Dominion University Pennsylvania State University Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts Purdue University Queens College Quinnipiac University Radford University Randolph-Macon College Regent’s University London Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Roanoke College Rochester Institute of Technology Rowan University Rutgers University Saint Peter’s University San Diego State University
St. John’s University SUNY Maritime College Syracuse University Tennessee Tech University Texas A&M University University of Akron University of Bridgeport University of California - Davis University of Connecticut University of Illinois University of Iowa University of Kentucky University of Maine University of Maryland University of Mary Washington University of Massachusetts University of Miami University of New Hampshire University of North Carolina University of Pennsylvania University of Pittsburgh University of Richmond University of San Francisco University of South Carolina University of Tennessee University of Tennessee at Knoxville University of Vermont University of Virginia US Air Force Academy US Coast Guard Academy US Military Academy at West Point US Naval Academy Valparaiso University Virginia Commonwealth University Virginia Military Institute Virginia Tech Virginia Union University Wake Forest University West Virginia University Wofford College Wright State University Xavier University
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Choosing Fork Union By Cathy Chiovaro
How we decided, and the impact it has had on our family
We were recently asked to share the reasons why we chose Fork Union Military Academy. It is an honor for us to share our story. We think it is an important part of our story that we are local, having moved in 2005 to Palmyra, Virginia, which is just a few (15) miles north of Fork Union. We are Cathy and Rick Chiovaro. We have three sons, Bradley, Benjamin, and Blake. Together, we are the Chiovaro family.
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ur oldest son, Bradley, was mid-way through his sixth grade year in public school when we noticed that our previously, highly social, “A” student, who wanted to be a part of everything, was experiencing a steady decline in grades, motivation, drive, and contentment with school in general. Our son had always loved school, the challenge of school, and certainly the social aspect as well. We felt like something was missing for him in the public school setting. Both Rick and I are graduates of public school (actually, even the very same public school) and had never really con-
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sidered private school before, until my mother suggested that we look into FUMA. She encouraged us past our initial thoughts of a “military school” and we attended an Open House event. Bradley was so intrigued, enthused, and excited about the possibilities that it seemed the exact step in faith that our family needed to take. Bradley began seventh grade as a day student in 2008-09 (Class of 2014). Our first year was not particularly easy, as it meant learning new routines and requirements, and while we weren’t experiencing the challenges of boarding cadets and their families, we were learning to juggle Success Stories
the challenges of having a day student cadet. Challenges are challenges. However, as you push through those challenges, you achieve greater rewards. We quickly began to see the rewards in our choice to enroll Bradley at FUMA. What we didn’t expect for our family was that another son would also soon choose to attend FUMA. When our middle son, Benjamin, was completing fifth grade in public school, we asked him where he wanted to attend middle school and told him that it was his decision. He carefully and judiciously weighed his options, including attending classes on a “FUMA shadow day.” This event prompted his enrollment in 2010-11 in the sixth grade (Class of 2017). And as our third son, Blake, approached the same age for a decision, there was no question as to where he would go. He was sure at the end of fifth grade that he was going to FUMA (Class of 2020). He was only in Kindergarten when he watched his oldest brother on the parade field, and he told us he wanted to be the guy with all the medals and the sword (battalion commander), calling the shots on the field. So, our youngest, “called the shots” with us and of course we approved of his choice. When we consider what impact FUMA has had on our family, it is honestly, incredibly hard to remember our family before FUMA. Our “family” is certainly bigger because of FUMA, and I think that tells a lot about the impact. When we first met with admissions staff back in 2008, I remember so clearly the admissions representative challenging us to better understand our own commitment to our son’s future. He was very clear with us and asked us to carefully weigh our reasons for seeking enrollment with FUMA. Were we reacting to short-term concerns in the public school, possibly looking for a quick solution, or were we planning long term for our son’s future success? He shared that either way, FUMA would be happy to enroll our son, but we should understand our own commitment to the plan. That conversation resonates with us still, because it reminds us of our commitment to “the plan” to set each of our sons up with the best foundation possible for their future. Still today, when short-term challenges arise, we refine our focus to the long-term plan and are assured of our long-range commitment to our sons and to FUMA. I was recently reminded by Ms. Jenny Payne, a former Middle School housemother and now a Guidance Counselor, of Solomon’s advice to www.forkunion.com
parents to “train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it” (Proverbs 22:6). When we made our commitment to enroll our sons at FUMA, that commitment was also our invitation to the faculty and staff to help us parent our sons toward a successful future; to “train our child in the way he should go”. Every parent knows that the task is not easy, nor can it be done alone. It is a huge blessing to us that our FUMA family assists us with this task. Of course, this proverb intends that the training begins with the Bible as “all scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training (2 Timothy 3:16), which addresses each of the “big three” of the FUMA Mission Statement: “college preparatory”, “Christian”, and “military environment”. As we invite FUMA to join us to parent our sons, we share the privilege of being stewards of their lives for a very short time, but it is our hope that our teaching and training will be eternal. Our family feels so blessed and continually affirmed of our decision for our sons to attend FUMA. When preparing to tell our story, I asked our sons to share the impact FUMA has had on them and our family. After we pushed through the typical teenage, comic responses (which would be most enjoyed by other cadets), and got down to business, I was proud of their responses and now share them as some examples of the “rewards” for pushing through the challenges. Bradley quickly answered “discipline and respect,” though I may have imagined the “ma’am” after his responses. Brad, who graduated from FUMA in 2014, is currently in his second year at Marion Military Institute (Alabama), with the goal to serve at a US Service Academy after this year. Brad was our first son at FUMA, and we hesitated initially because of our misperceptions of a “military school environment”. He is now the young man who used the words “discipline and respect” to answer what impact FUMA has
“When we consider what impact FUMA has had on our family, it is honestly, incredibly hard to remember our family before FUMA. Our “family” is certainly bigger because of FUMA, and I think that tells a lot about the impact.”
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“Our cadet sons are offered opportunities to be developed into leaders, men of character with a foundation and appreciation of values and principles.” had on him. He chose to attend a military preparatory college, and wishes to serve our country. We are hopeful he will be fortunate enough to receive an esteemed US Service Academy seat. What a reward for our son to learn the importance of these two core values and use them as a foundation for his future dreams. What a reward for us! While Benjamin preferred to challenge the purpose of my question (his teachers will appreciate that comment most), his perspective covered various directions. He initially responded that the FUMA impact for him has been “faith and courage.” Ben is in his junior year and has had the opportunity to attend leadership training and to be a cadet leader. Leadership provides many challenges and certainly requires faith and courage, which made perfect sense that those were the values currently on his mind. He went on to say “that sometimes [the choice] whether or not to do things isn’t an option.” I surmise that this is one of many leadership lessons he has encountered. Another reward for our family who is watching our middle son, through opportunities at FUMA, develop his leadership abilities. The same skills he will soon use to make decisions about his future path; he is clearly inspired by his experiences. Blake expounded on Ben’s comment, as a younger brother might, by saying that FUMA teaches you that “it’s not always doing what you want to do, but what has to be done…that’s what a man does.” Being at the end of the family pecking order, Blake’s comment caused me to chuckle. He is used to being the youngest in the family, and in the lower grades at FUMA, you do what has to be done, whether you want to or not…because that’s what men do. I know learn-
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ing this lesson early in life will carry him far. He is learning about character. When we reflect on the impact that choosing FUMA had on our family, the flashes of memories and proud moments are numerous, as if we are flipping through a family photo album. We see faculty and staff who have become friends and family to us. We see many days on the sidelines cheering through difficult scoreboards. We see many, MANY trips between Palmyra and Fork Union, and a record-setting day with 6 round trips in one day, which is almost 200 miles for those math-minded readers. We see young men seeming to grow out of the sleeves and pant legs of their uniforms in leaps and bounds from fall to spring parades. We feel the pride of parents seeing their sons in uniform and in formation. We feel the relief and glee of the final parade in May, and then somehow, the renewed excitement in August when school starts again. In FUMA, we have been fortunate that this gem was in our backyard. Our sons have been exposed to a school that knows its purpose and holds true to that purpose. Our cadet sons are offered opportunities to be developed into leaders, men of character with a foundation and appreciation of values and principles. They are being trained in the way they should go and will not turn from it. For us, Fork Union Military Academy has had a positive impact on the Chiovaro family that can’t be measured. It is a choice we are thankful for and a commitment we will always honor and value.
Success Stories
Do You Want to
Learn More? We encourage you to learn more about Fork Union Military Academy by checking out our various online and social media sites. You can watch videos, interact with other parents and alumni of the Academy, and find answers to many of the questions you might have as you consider our school for your son. Below are three of our most popular resources: Website
Our website at http://www.forkunion.com is very thorough and contains much of the information you need and want. You can apply online for admissions on our site, and can even apply online for financial aid, in the Admissions section. You can subscribe to our President’s Blog to receive it in your inbox weekly, and you can keep up to date with school news in our News & Blogs section. To get a sense of life on campus, you can browse through our Photos section-we post 10,000 to 25,000 pictures each year from our Upper School and Middle School. You can read online copies of our Call To Quarters magazine, our newsletters, and other publications in the Newsletters section of the website, and much more. Learn more at http://www.forkunion.com/admissions YouTube Channel
You can watch dozens of videos on our YouTube channel. Interviews with our staff and cadets, family testimonials, stories about our alumni, background on our generous benefactors-you can learn much about our Academy, its history, and its impact on the lives of others just by viewing these videos. Subscribe to our YouTube channel to be notified of new videos as we post them each month! Go to http://www.youtube.com/forkunionmilitary
Facebook Page
Join together with over 8,000 parents, alumni, and FUMA friends on our Facebook page to receive photos and updates on your news feed, network and interact with others, and ask for feedback and advice from other parents and alumni. Facebook is a great place to learn more about the Academy experience, and to share your stories and questions with others. Very few schools our size have such a large and active audience on Facebook, and we encourage you to join the conversation there! Friend us at http://www.facebook.com/forkunionmilitary
Non-Profit Organization U. S. Postage PAID PPCO 4744 James Madison Highway Post Office Box 278 Fork Union, Virginia 23055
Ask about our Summer Session! Info at http://www.forkunion.com/summer