History of military schools of the United States: Origin, rise, decline, resurgence, and potential in future public secondary education

This study examined military schools in the United States from events which resulted in the establishment of the United States Military Academy at West Point to 2011. From 1802 to 2011, 834 military schools have operated in the United States, privately and publicly funded, and including teaching components for elementary, secondary, and college levels. The importance of understanding this subject has grown as the number of military charter and public secondary schools has increased tenfold since 1999. This study's purpose was four fold, the first of which is to identify those men who have had the greatest impact on military schools in the United States. The second purpose was to illustrate that the military schools were not an educational format largely restricted to the South. The third purpose was to identify those social, political, and economy events which impacted military schools. The final purpose of this study was to establish evidence that from 1999 to 2011 the popularity of the military school format made a return. Additionally the study provided an analysis of the military school culture and an examination of the efficacy of public and charter military secondary schools compared to similar nonmilitary public and charter schools.