West Point, the prestigious military academy on the banks of the Hudson River, will soon have something else to offer future Army officers: high school.
A federal panel voted Wednesday to accept the Pentagon's recommendation to transfer the U.S. Military Academy Preparatory School to the grounds of the U.S. Military Academy. The fate of the school, often called West Point Prep, was wrapped up in a vote to close New Jersey's Fort Monmouth, where the school is now located.
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The decision means West Point Prep's 202 students, 24 military personnel and 38 civilian jobs will be moving across state lines to New York - a decision cheered by Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y.
The move will "cement West Point's position as one of the premier locations for preparing and training our nation's future military leaders," she said in a statement.
West Point Prep, established in 1946, offers students a 10-month introduction to military discipline that is geared toward winning admission to the military academy.
The prep school welcomed its 2006 class on July 15th, when cadet candidates were quickly taught how to do a proper push-up, drink water on command or stand at attention with a 50-pound pack on their backs.
Lt. Col. Kent Cassella, a West Point spokesman, said preparations will begin to add the high school, although the move must still be approved by President Bush and Congress. It was unclear what changes or construction might have to be done, Cassella said.
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