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Staff, parents and veterans urge board to clarify Bridgeport Military Academy's location
Summary
Faculty, instructors and alumni urged the Bridgeport Board of Education to provide a stable, long-term home for Bridgeport Military Academy (BMA), warning that months of uncertainty, repeated relocations and enrollment limits have harmed students and risked federal support.
Lisa Balzano, who identified herself as a Bridgeport Education Association delegate at large and a Bridgeport resident, told the board: "As of today, we still do not know where our school will be." She urged the board to provide "a stable, long-term home for BMA," saying repeated moves since the school's 2013 opening and shrinking freshman classes have produced anxiety for teachers, students and families.
Arun Kadan, introduced by the chair as a faculty member at BMA, said staff and families have had no direct communication since September about next year’s location and called unaddressed assumptions about Fairchild Wheeler “misinformation.” "Why have there been no direct conversations with BMA families regarding building plans and contingencies?" he asked.
Lieutenant Commander Travis Brewster, the school's senior naval science instructor, described the program’s Navy-supported footprint — large inventories of uniforms, drill rifles, swords, textbooks and secured equipment — and warned that declining student numbers could lead the Navy to withdraw instructor authorizations and reassign funding. "If we continue to drop numbers from our student population, the Navy will remove 1 instructor authorization," he said, adding that certain items "cannot be moved by non-Navy personnel" and that an unclear relocation timeline jeopardizes his responsibility for inventory and safety.
Vanessa Arroyo read a letter from retired U.S. Navy Captain William O. Glass Jr. expressing "strong support of Bridgeport Military Academy's request for space for the 2026–27 academic year" and urging the board not to deny current or future students "an opportunity of a lifetime" to participate in the program.
Board members did not take formal action on the BMA facility today. Chair (identified in the transcript only by role) said the facility topic and related scheduling would be addressed in committee meetings; several board members asked staff to refer facility and staffing reports to the operations committee so the board can review hiring and turnover data regularly.
The public comments combined operational details (Navy-owned equipment and funding), program accomplishments, and explicit requests for clearer communication and a comparable facility if BMA must relocate. Speakers asked the board to announce a definitive plan as soon as possible to allow staff and families to plan for move logistics and cadet support.
