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MISSOURI STATE SYMBOLS

 

STATE MILITARY ACADEMY

 

Missouri Military Academy in Mexico

 

Missouri Military Academy is a private, all-boy boarding/day school for grades 7-12 located in Mexico, Audrain County. Students come from across the United States and world to attend the college preparatory school. Because the Academy’s U.S. Army Junior Reserves Officers’ Training Corps was designated by the U.S. Department of the Army as an honor unit with distinction in 1930, it is able to nominate cadets to the U.S. Military Academy, Naval Academy, Air Force Academy, and Coast Guard Academy.

Col. A.F. Fleet, the Academy’s first president, founded the Missouri Military Academy in 1889. The school was located on West Boulevard until a fire destroyed the entire campus in 1896. MMA reopened at its current location on North Grand Street in 1900 with Col. A.K. Yancey as President. Col. Charles R. Stribling Jr. became the school President in 1933, and the Stribling family would have a long-lasting influence at MMA; the administration building was renamed Stribling Hall in his honor. The Academy’s band marched in the inauguration parade for President Dwight D. Eisenhower. The band also participated in the inaugurations for John F. Kennedy, Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Jimmy Carter. In its long history, the academy has had only one female graduate: Ruth Fonville, daughter of school President Col. W.D. Fonville, who graduated in 1902.

The Missouri Military Academy is the only military school in Missouri since Kemper Military School closed in 2002 and Wentworth Military Academy and College closed in 2017. Two other states have official military academies: South Carolina and North Carolina.

 

Revised Statutes of Missouri (RSMo)

§10.283. Missouri Military Academy, official military academy. – Missouri Military Academy in the city of Mexico is selected for and shall be known as the official military academy of the state of Missouri. (L. 2026 H.B. 2576 merged with S.B. 1544)

approved 13 July 2026
effective 28 August 2026

 

Photo Gallery:

Click on an image below to enlarge and read a caption. This will open a new window in the Missouri State Symbols Flickr album.

Flickr album link to Missouri Military Academy event image Flickr album link to Missouri Military Academy event image

 

Additional Resources:

Missouri Military Academy website

 

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