Even as Valley Forge Military Academy struggled toward closure, another plan was quietly in the works at the Wayne campus to open a First Responders charter school there, writes Max Marin and Ryan W. Briggs for The Philadelphia Inquirer.
The Valley Forge Public Service Academy Charter School proposes to open next fall.
This past September, the Academy’s president, Col. Stuart B. Helgeson, announced to parents, alumni, and faculty that the elite military boarding school would close after nearly 100 years due to declining enrollment and funding problems.
But for months behind the scenes, the president and board talked about opening a charter school to replace the academy.
Supporters rallying for the new school also support 30 units of affordable housing in the academy barracks, and a new community center for Radnor residents in the former mess hall.
Two previous efforts to open a charter school on the campus were unsuccessful. The proposed school would enroll up to 150 students to study careers as first responders, such as police officers, firefighters, and public servants.
“We were not going to move forward unless the academy was closing,” said Chris Massaro, who runs an advisory firm for educational institutions.
Read more about reactions to the charter school and how it was revealed in The Philadelphia Inquirer.
