Virginia Military Institute

• 1. Founding And Early History

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  The Virginia Military Institute opened its doors on the 11th of November 1839. This date marks the formal separation from Washington College and the beginning of a unique educational experiment in Lexington, Virginia. The institution was established as America's first state-sponsored military college. Claudius Crozet served as the first president of the institute. He had previously worked as an engineer for Napoleon Bonaparte before immigrating to the United States. Thomas Jefferson once called him the smartest mathematician in the country. The board of visitors selected Crozet to design the curriculum based on West Point and his alma mater, the École Polytechnique of Paris. John Thomas Lewis Preston created the name Virginia Military Institute after leading a public relations campaign. The first class consisted of thirty regular cadets and thirteen paying cadets. Private John Strange became the first cadet to march a sentinel post that same year. Living conditions remained poor until 1850 when construction began on new barracks. Thomas Jackson joined the faculty in 1851 as Professor of Natural and Experimental Philosophy. Superintendent Smith accepted a donation of a Revolutionary War musket in 1856 to establish the first public museum in the Commonwealth of Virginia.

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• 2. Civil War Service And New Market

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  On the 14th of May 1864, the governor of Virginia ordered VMI cadets into active service. They marched eighty miles overnight from Lexington to New Market. Two hundred forty-seven cadets fought at the Battle of New Market on the 15th of May 1864. This engagement marked the only time in U.S. history where an operating college student body fought as an organized unit in pitched combat. General John C. Breckinridge held the cadets in reserve until Union troops broke through Confederate lines. He then stated, Put the boys in...and may God forgive me for the order. The VMI cadets pushed forward across an open muddy field and captured a Union artillery emplacement. Five cadets were killed in action during the battle: William Henry Cabell, Charles Gay Crockett, Henry Jenner Jones, William Hugh McDowell, and Jaqueline Beverly Stanard. Another five wounded cadets later died of their injuries including Samuel Francis Atwill and Alva Curtis Hartsfield. Commandant Scott Shipp led the battalion into battle but was also wounded. Union forces under General David Hunter shelled and burned the Institute on the 12th of June 1864. The museum was destroyed but reopened in 1870. Confederate General Jubal A. Early burned Chambersburg, Pennsylvania partly in retaliation for the destruction of VMI. The campus reopened for classes on the 17th of October 1865 with Francis H. Smith returning as superintendent.

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• 3. Integration And Gender Policy

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  In 1990 the U.S. Department of Justice filed a discrimination lawsuit against VMI over its all-male admissions policy. The case reached the Supreme Court on the 26th of June 1996 when they ruled seven to one that excluding women from public funds was unconstitutional. Assistant Secretary of Defense Frederick Pang warned the school that the Department of Defense would withdraw ROTC programs if it privatized. Congress passed a resolution on the 18th of November 1997 prohibiting the withdrawal of any ROTC program at senior military colleges. VMI enrolled thirty female students in August 1997 as part of the class of 2001. These first co-ed cadets were required to shave their heads and undergo strict physical training identical to male cadets. Superintendent Josiah Bunting III called the ruling a savage disappointment. The first female cadets walked across the stage in 1999 though they are considered members of the class of 2001. In July 2021 a Washington Post article alleged continuous issues including derision, misogyny, and sexual assault among the student body. On the 26th of October 2020, Superintendent Peay tendered his resignation after state officials expressed loss of confidence in his leadership. The board voted unanimously to remove the Stonewall Jackson statue and create a diversity committee. In 2021 the board appointed Cedric T. Wins as the first black superintendent to lead diversity efforts. On the 28th of February 2025, the board voted not to extend Wins' contract.

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• 4. Leadership And Governance Structure

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  The Board of Visitors serves as the supervisory authority for the Virginia Military Institute under Va. Code § 23, 92. Sixteen regular members are appointed by the governor for four-year terms while one member is the adjutant general ex officio. Twelve of the sixteen appointed members must be alumni with eight residing in Virginia and four living elsewhere. Four additional members must be non-alumni Virginia residents. Since 1839, VMI has had sixteen superintendents with thirteen being graduates of the institute. Francis H. Smith served from 1839 to 1889 and was a United States Military Academy class of 1833 graduate. Scott Shipp led the school from 1890 to 1907 after being wounded at New Market. Charles E. Kilbourne held the position from 1937 to 1946 and received the Medal of Honor. J. H. Binford Peay III served as superintendent from 2003 to 2020 before resigning following state pressure over racial culture issues. David Furness took office in 2025 as the current superintendent. The board appoints the superintendent and approves faculty appointments on recommendation of that leader. The Executive Committee conducts business during recesses and consists of the president, three vice presidents, and one non-alumnus at large.

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• 5. Academic Programs And ROTC

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  In 2025, VMI offered fourteen majors across six academic departments including Arts and Humanities, Engineering, Information and Social Sciences, Life Sciences, Natural Sciences, and ROTC. The institute ranked sixty-fifth in the 2025 U.S. News & World Report rankings for National Liberal Arts Colleges. All cadets must take two years of Reserve Officers' Training Corps but accepting a commission is optional. Over fifty percent of graduates receive commissions each year though the board aims for seventy percent. The class of 2017 graduated three hundred cadets with one hundred seventy-two becoming officers in the United States military. VMI has produced more generals than any other ROTC program in the nation. George Marshall graduated in 1901 and became the first five-star General of the Army. He also won the Nobel Peace Prize in 1953. Thomas T. Handy graduated in 1916 and served as Deputy Chief of Staff of the U.S. Army from 1944 to 1947. Lemuel C. Shepherd Jr. graduated in 1917 and became Commandant of the Marine Corps from 1952 to 1955. Darren W. McDew graduated in 1982 and commanded the United States Transportation Command from 2015 to 2018. Dan Caine graduated in 1990 and became Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff on the 1st of July 2025.

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• 6. Ratline And Student Traditions

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  New cadents known as Rats face numerous mental and physical challenges during their first six months at the institute. Hell Week begins the process where they receive basic military instruction from upper classmen called Cadre. They learn to march, clean M14 rifles, and wear uniforms properly. Each Rat is paired with a senior mentor called a Dyke who helps prepare his uniform for parades. The experience culminates in Breakout ceremonies that have evolved over decades. In the 1950s Rats brawled out of corner rooms while later versions involved climbing greased stairs or muddy hills. Today the event focuses on grueling physical activity testing endurance and teamwork. Cadets live in barracks with cots referred to as hays that must be rolled every morning. New cadets are not permitted to watch TV or listen to music outside academic settings. The nightly playing of Taps marks another tradition alongside close-order marching pageantry. Every year VMI honors fallen cadets with a New Market Day parade held on May 15. An honor code states a cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, nor tolerate those who do. Violation results in immediate expulsion through a drumming out ceremony. The guard team has posted sentinels armed with M14 rifles since Private John Strange took his post in 1839.

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• 7. Alumni Legacy And Athletics

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  VMI fields fourteen teams at the NCAA Division I level including football, basketball, baseball, lacrosse, rifle, soccer, swimming, track, and wrestling. The Keydets play home games at Alumni Memorial Field at Foster Stadium which was built in 1962. They won the 2020 Southern Conference Football Championship marking their first winning season since 1981. The 1976 squad advanced within one game of the Final Four before losing to Rutgers. In 1977 the team finished with twenty-six wins and four losses reaching the Sweet Sixteen round. Approximately one-third of the Corps plays on at least one intercollegiate athletic team making it one of the most active programs in the country. Ninety-two percent of varsity athletes complete their degrees. Andrew Wilson became head coach of men's basketball on the 11th of April 2022. Ronald Reagan starred in films Brother Rat and Brother Rat and a Baby filmed at VMI. Both were originally Broadway hits written by 1932 graduates John Monks Jr. and Fred F. Finklehoffe. A 2007 study found VMI held a three hundred forty-three million dollar endowment representing the largest per-student amount for any U.S. public college. Thirty-five point four percent of approximately twelve thousand three hundred living alumni gave money in 2006.

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