Hargrave Military Academy has partnered with Orion Military Scholarship Fund, Inc. to offer military families the opportunity for their children to attend Hargrave through a combination of merit-based scholarship funding and need-based financial aid. Hargrave is the 11th boarding school to partner with Orion, supporting their mission to provide stable, uninterrupted high school experiences to children of active duty service men and women.
Frequent moves and inconsistency between academic programs take a toll on military children, whose unpredictable, mobile lifestyles inhibit their ability to form positive social connections and put them at significantly greater risk for anxiety, depression, and self-harm during adolescence. Multiple moves also affect military teenagers’ ability to transfer academic credits and progress in sports and extracurricular activities.
Hargrave’s Academic Dean had this to say of the opportunity presented by the Orion partnership, “There is no disputing the positive impact of stability on outcomes in and out of the classroom. At Hargrave, we often talk about quieting the cacophony bombarding today’s students and their families. The well-defined structure and relationships with faculty and staff at Hargrave make life “simpler,” freeing up time and energy for authentic personal growth. Our partnership with Orion will afford military families peace of mind about their son’s school situation and enable those students to focus on learning and growing in a predictable, familiar, and supportive environment.”
“Orion is extremely proud to add Hargrave Military Academy to its list of member schools committed to identifying, recruiting, and funding deserving and talented military kids. Hargrave’s distinctive program emphasizes leadership and character-building that suits many military families,” stated Francis Molinari, Orion cofounder and Vice President of Military Affairs.
“I don’t live in a place for longer than three years, so I never build a connection to them. It is difficult to attempt making new friends, as it often feels the energy required is too much for a temporary friendship,” says Orion Military Scholarship recipient Henry S., whose Army parents moved last summer from Fort Benning, Georgia to Fort Sam Houston, Texas — Henry’s tenth home in thirteen years. Orion and Hargrave eagerly anticipate working hand in hand to ensure that more military children like Henry have access to stable educational opportunities.
