Valley Forge Academy plans major expansion

Valley Forge Military Academy & College announced plans today to build a $32 million academic facility that will allow the college program to more than double the enrollment.

The project, which is being touted by Valley Forge as "the first new military college in America for the 21st Century," will provide space for the college to grow to 500 cadets for the 2014-15 academic year.

Charles A. "Tony" McGeorge, Valley Forge's president, and William R. Floyd Jr., chairman of its board of trustees, said the campus project will help Valley Forge move forward as "the Military College of Pennsylvania." The state legislature passed a resolution in October 2007 designating Valley Forge as the state's official military college.

McGeorge and Floyd said the building would be the most ambitious construction project Valley Forge has undertaken in years. It will be paid for by private donations, state and federal funds.

The proposed 50,000-square-foot facility would provide 10 classrooms, four seminar rooms, four science labs, offices and military museum. The school also plans to build additional barracks and living space.

The military school is located on 120 acres. Floyd said the trustees and the administration are not yet sure where the new facilities will be built. But he said the most likely candidates are a spot on College Hill or a parcel off Eagle Road.

Valley Forge, which is among a handful of two-year military college programs in the country, enrolls 219 cadets and offers an early commissioning program that produces young second lieutentants.

Valley Forge also has just over 300 students from seventh grade through post-graduate who are enrolled in its military academy.

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