New Mexico Military Institute

New Mexico Military Institute (N.M.M.I.) is a state-supported educational institution located in Roswell, New Mexico, United States. One of five military junior colleges in the United States, it the only state-supported military college located in the western United States. NMMI was founded in 1891 by Captain Joseph Lea and Colonel Robert Goss. Its architecture and organization was inspired by the Virginia Military Institute.

NMMI includes a college preparatory four-year high school and a two-year junior college. Students who attend NMMI are referred to as cadets. NMMI is the only state-supported co-educational college preparatory military boarding high school (grades 9–12) and junior college in the United States Academic school years begin with between 900 and 980 cadets enrolled, 95 percent of whom go on to four-year universities. The school's 2-year Army ROTC Early Commissioning Program (ECP) commissions approximately 40 cadets each year as US Army 2nd Lieutenants, and about 100 cadets each year go to one of the five major United States Service academies. Many NMMI graduates are currently serving as senior-level officers in the War in Afghanistan.

The school's motto is "Duty, Honor, and Achievement". The school's athletic teams are the Broncos (junior college) and the Colts (high school). The school's colors are scarlet and black. The Cadet Honor Code, which was voted into place by a unanimous vote of the Corps of Cadets in 1921, states "A Cadet Will Not Lie, Cheat, or Steal, Nor Tolerate Those Who Do."

History
New Mexico Military Institute was founded by Colonel Robert S. Goss and Captain Joseph C. Lea in 1891, originally as the Goss Military Academy, with an initial enrollment of 28 students. In 1895 it acquired the land at its current location, and in 1910 it received land-grant status and revenue from the New Mexico government. Hundreds of Institute graduates served in World War I and World War II, including Medal of Honor recipient John C. Morgan.

In 1948, the Institute introduced a four-year liberal arts college program, but discontinued it in 1956. The Institute became a fully coeducational university in 1977, although some females had attended as non-cadet day students from 1891 to 1898. The current superintendent, Major General (Retired) Jerry W. Grizzle, was appointed in 2010.

In 2013, the Institute broke off relations with the Alumni Association over disagreement about finances. Members of the Alumni Association claimed that this was an effort by the school to gain access and control of the over $5.2 million in assets of the association. On June 10, 2013, the Institute filed a lawsuit in Chaves County, New Mexico, to take control of the assets of the Alumni Association. Editorial response to the Institute's actions have been generally negative, calling it a "hijacking" of the group and its resources.

Campus
The original area of land for the campus was donated to the school by local rancher James J. Hagerman, for whom the main barracks complex is named. The Institute's buildings are made in a uniform Gothic Revival style out of buff brick. The campus is a designated area on the National Register of Historic Places.

Cadet life
Cadets are organized into a Corps of Cadets where 6th Class (9th grade high school equivalent) through 1st Class (college sophomore) cadets are all treated on the basis of earned merit. The military school structure is provided through all cadets living in the Troop Barracks, with all classes, meals, and military and physical training occurring "On Post" (on campus) in a controlled environment. Cadets start out as "RAT"s (recruits at training) and then graduate to become New Cadets, Yearlings, and finally Old Cadets. Cadets also earn military rank within the Corps. These factors determine a cadet's privileges and authority and define social interactions at the Institute. Fraternization between RATS and old cadets is forbidden.

Cadets with too many demerits may be put on Disciplinary Probation, in which many of their privileges are taken away. Cadets who fail to meet standards of academic performance are put on Academic Probation, in which their privileges are largely revoked. Punishment at the Institute is strict and quickly administered by the cadre and staff of the Institute when regulations are not followed. Leaving post is generally only authorized on weekends.

Athletics
The football team, the Broncos, competes in the Western States Football League. Its other sports compete in the Western Junior College Athletic Conference. The high school football team is the Colts.

Notable alumni

 * Norman E. Brinker, founder of Brinker International
 * William John Cox (Billy Jack Cox), public interest attorney, author and political activist
 * Bill Daniels, cable television pioneer
 * Sam Donaldson of ABC News
 * Julian Ewell, United States Army Lieutenant General
 * Ira B. Harkey Jr., awarded the 1963 Pulitzer Prize for Editorial Writing
 * Conrad Hilton, founder of the Hilton Hotel chain
 * Conrad Hilton Jr., American socialite
 * Paul Horgan, two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning author who also served as the school's librarian for a time
 * Peter Hurd, artist and friend of Horgan's who painted the presidential portrait of Lyndon B. Johnson
 * Jessica Jaymes, pornographic actress
 * John C. Morgan, pilot and Medal of Honor recipient of World War II
 * Hal Mumme, collegiate football coach
 * Guillermo Padrés Elías, governor of Sonora, Mexico
 * Anthony Principi, the fourth United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs
 * Chuck Roberts, news anchor for CNN Headline News
 * Roger Staubach, quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys
 * G. Harry Stine, sci-fi writer; a father of model rocketry
 * Casey Urlacher, Arena League football player, brother of Brian Urlacher
 * Major General Edwin Walker
 * Frank D. White, governor of Arkansas
 * Owen Wilson, movie actor