A New School for American Boys
Cultivating Men, Not Machines.
Our Three Pillar Approach to Forming Young Men
Classical
Education
Natural
Education
Martial
Education
As parents become more aware of the consequences of the modern schooling system, millions of children nationwide are being placed in alternative educational environments by those parents who want them to flourish and succeed in their own individuality. The prison-like system that has become the standard for schooling fails to cultivate our children into leaders, rather it subjugates them into excellent followers of authority, regardless of whether that authority is sound through merit.
Additional issues such as the extreme over-use of technology in classrooms continues to drive the humanity out of the next generation; we are beginning to see the consequences of this system and as the years go by they will only become more obvious. Our boys are at a particular loss. To expect a young boy to sit still in a classroom for six hours a day is unnatural, and after repeated condemnation by his teachers he is sooner or later relegated to give up his spirited nature as a man and accept that sitting still and doing what he is told is the ultimate way to get through life unscathed.
We find a growing divorce happening between the learning environment and nature. Children are given one hour only to go outside and run around, meanwhile they are left to sit inside under fluorescent lighting for hours at a time and expected to develop normally. This is not normal, and it has never and will never produce healthy boys.
With the loss of cultural institutions such as the Boy Scouts, our sons are left roaming adrift in a culture that is hostile to the gifts of their masculinity. This is the precise issue that Meriwether Academy has been founded to address in American culture.
Our approach to boys’ education is simple. A classical education, a natural education, & a martial education.
Please enjoy reading below regarding the details behind our project, we thank you for visiting our website today.
“Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it”
Our Curriculum
Our educational program is derived from the philosophies of the past: the education of a man is not meant to bind him, but to liberate his mind and cultivate virtue in his heart.
Classical Education
Reaching to the wisdom of the classics, Meriwether’s academic curriculum is founded upon the seven liberal arts and sciences. Additionally the study of literature, history, philosophy, science, and visual art capstone a complete learning experience for our students. This fulfills the role of man as a vessel of tradition, our western tradition, so that he may carry the flame for ages to come.
Natural Education
A man disconnected from nature is a man adrift. Our campus will utilize space for farming, gardening, husbandry, wood shop, and a variety of other agricultural trades.
Our extra-curricular programs lean heavily on outdoor adventures. Backpacking trips, canoeing, mountaineering, camping, marksmanship, and other outdoor activities are used to instill the spirit of self-reliance in our students and improve their leadership and teamwork skills.
Martial Education
Instilling the masculine principles of courage, honor, and protection are of the utmost importance to us. Our students are taught the fundamental elements of self-defense and physical training through our boxing program, molding them into confident & honorable men.
Why a Single-Sex
Learning Environment?
An all-male learning environment is superior for young men as it removes social and emotional distractions inherent in co-ed settings. Boys avoid self-consciousness and the pressure to impress girls, allowing sharper focus and fuller engagement in debate, hands-on work, and competitive problem-solving. This matches male developmental patterns and leads to better concentration, stronger community, and greater intellectual risk-taking.
Beyond academics, it cultivates masculinity, brotherhood, and leadership tailored to how young men build confidence. Co-ed environments often favor female socialization styles, sidelining boys’ preferences for hierarchy and physical camaraderie. All-male settings emphasize discipline and achievement-based self-esteem, producing more self-reliant graduates.
The Decline of All-Boys Schools in America, 1960–2022
Estimated total all-male secondary schools — private and public combined
Sources & methodology: 1960 (~1,350): NCES/NCEA records 2,392 Catholic secondary schools at peak — structurally split ~50/50 boys/girls by religious order (~1,196 all-boys Catholic) plus ~150 independent boys’ prep schools (NAIS data). 1975 (~970): Interpolated from NCEA data showing Catholic secondary schools falling to ~1,690 by 1974–75; applying ~50% boys-school share and accounting for independent school closures. 1985 (~750): NCEA Catholic secondary count of 1,449; Encyclopedia.com documents ~50% were single-sex by 1988, yielding ~360 all-boys Catholic plus ~390 independent all-boys private schools. 1995 (~650): Consistent with NCES PSS trend data and Vanze (2010) as cited by the American Institute for Boys and Men (AIBM). 2010 (~780): Derived from NCES PSS private school data (~750 private) plus post-2006 Title IX public school expansion (~30 public all-boys). 2016 (~820): Public all-boys schools reached peak of 58 (CRDC via AIBM); private estimated ~762 per NCES PSS trend. 2022 (837): Hard figures — 792 private all-boys (NCES PSS 2021–22) + 45 public all-boys (CRDC, confirmed by AIBM; down from 58 in 2016).
A Letter from Our Founder
“As I reflect on my time in the public school system I cannot remember a single instance where I was firmly impressed with the idea of virtue, citizenship, patriotism, morality, or any of the other noble facets that comprise one’s character. It was simply the daily indoctrination of dead facts and uninspiring literature. In addition to the lack of intellectual luster, I was confined to a drab school room for 6 hours a day and given one hour outside for recess. I retained nothing notable from my time in the American public education system.
When I was sixteen years old I was fortunate to have the opportunity to attend a different type of school. For nine months I lived in Hendersonville, NC and attended a boy’s school. Our beautiful campus was surrounded by towering pine trees, contained a lake, and offered immediate trail access to Pisgah National Forest where we would hike and ride our mountain bikes frequently. Our classrooms were warm, rustic cabins and we all lived in a dormitory together.
Our teachers were passionate, our community was fun, and we were treated like growing boys and not machines. We learned, we explored, and we became men. It was wild, rambunctious, and those nine months impressed me with more cherished memories than all of my other schooling combined.
The American Education System, a system which once disseminated useful and enlightening information to our nation’s children, has denigrated into a factory for social and moral indoctrination. It is inhuman and unacceptable. It is no wonder that over four million children in America are homeschooled, and those parents deserve all of the honors our nation can bestow for their commitment to the future.
The standards of our education system continue to lower and lower. Our children are no longer inspired by the ancient classical texts, moved by the lives of our Founding Fathers, or pushed just beyond their limits to stretch their minds in youth, an act which impresses them with an imperishable habit for self-education.
These issues, and more, have driven us to pursue the establishment of a boys school in Tennessee for the purpose of educating our young boys in the way that is right, and not just convenient. To build their character, instill their hearts and minds with useful knowledge, and immerse them in nature, all leading to the total transformation of a boy into a strong, capable man.
We are currently in the process of securing our 501(c)(3) status. Investors who are interested in being involved can email warren@meriwetheracademy.com.
Thank you for taking your time to explore Meriwether and read about our mission.”
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