GMC News

The Georgia Military College Foundation announced today that it has received a $750,000 grant from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation toward the construction of GMC’s new Health and Wellness Center.
“We are profoundly grateful to the Woodruff Foundation for their support of this important health and fitness initiative,” said Major General Peter J. Boylan, GMC President. “Thanks to the Foundation’s generosity and leadership, our Health and Wellness Center will be well positioned to provide students with the physical fitness opportunities they need and deserve. This grant signals our organization’s shared belief in the purpose of our Health and Wellness Center, which is to improve the wellbeing of our students,” Boylan said. “With Georgia ranking second in the nation for childhood obesity, our young adults are at risk for a host of life-threatening illnesses, as well as less productive futures. As a place where future leaders are prepared for real-world experiences, GMC has a moral resposibility to promote physical fitness, nutrition and health from the very youngest of ages, on campus and in the community. Our new Health and Wellness Center will do just that.”
Scheduled to open in February 2014, the new center will feature three modern, sunlit levels and 56,250 square feet of new fitness space, plus a complete repurposing of the existing Cordell Events Center. In addition to 9,000 square feet of weight and cardio training spaces, the center will also include an elevated walking/running track, locker rooms to support all prep school students, and exercise rooms for a wide range of fitness classes and strength training, as well as wellness instruction. A state-of-the-art athletic healthcare and training lab will provide physical rehabilitation services to help injured students regain their previous capacity and return to athletics.
Phase two, a future project, will include the addition of an 18,000-square-foot convocation center, as well as additional instruction spaces, physical training spaces and offices to support instruction.
The new Health and Wellness Center, which is part of GMC’s Master Facilities Plan, is a pressing need for both prep school and junior college students, who are currently using the existing Cordell Center, built in 1964 to serve fewer than 500 male students. Today, nearly 2,000 co-ed students, in grades 6 through 12 and the junior college, use the 50-year-old Cordell Center, which can’t adequately provide PE classes, indoor sports, exercise equipment or locker facilities.
Funds to build the new Health and Wellness Center are coming from $17 million in a combination of state allocations, institutional funds and private philanthropy. Following recent generous gifts totaling $2.8 million, the school will seek additional private support to make this eagerly awaited dream a reality. Alumni and friends have the opportunity to sponsor fitness areas within the center, as well as individual equipment in the cardio and weight training areas.
The Woodruff Foundation has a long-standing and supportive relationship with GMC. “We’re deeply honored by this most recent Woodruff grant,” Boylan said, “And we will put it to the most effective use possible on behalf of our students and our community.”