Why Riverside Military Academy has changed its name
Oct. 5—Update: Riverside is dropping military from its name. This is how some alumni are reacting
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Riverside Military Academy has a new name.
The private all-boys military boarding school in Gainesville will now be called Riverside Preparatory Academy, following a consultation with a national marketing firm that specializes in private schools.
The name was changed "in order to adapt to the 2022 post-COVID market for domestic and international families interested in a private or boarding school education for their sons," said President Stanley Preczewski in a news release Tuesday afternoon.
"In addition to new messaging, which will more accurately highlight the Academy's offerings and value, the name Riverside Preparatory Academy will more accurately describe our focus on college preparations," said Riverside spokeswoman Valarie Reeves.
"Except for continuous improvements in our offerings, nothing is changing," Preczewski said. "We will continue using the military model of education including required uniforms, earned leadership responsibilities, and codes of conduct, as we have for more than one hundred years."
Riverside was founded in 1907, serving as a military preparatory school for boys in grades 6-12.
"It is one of the few remaining institutions of its kind in the country," according to Riverside's website. "While most other all-male, boarding, military schools have deviated from their original mission, Riverside, for more than a century, remains true to its founding principles in preparing ethical young men of character for success in college and in life."
