More Released About Youth Challenge Academy Closure at Fort Gordon

A massive brawl broke out in mid October at the Georgia National Guard's Youth Challenge Academy at Fort Gordon, prompting officials to shut the campus down.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution is reporting the episode involving as many as 70 teenagers is being blamed, in part, to leaders of the academy rushing to meet a new enrollment quota and not taking the time necessary to screen applicants for behavioral and mental problems.

Camp Director Jarvise Reid told officials she had orders to increase the number of applicants at the academy, but also admitted leaders accepted students without reviewing critical documents that included their disciplinary records.  A staffing shortage was also noted.

The Youth Challenge Academy was created to give at-risk students ages 16 to 18 the life skills , academic instruction and job training needed to succeed, all in a boot camp setting.  Congress created the program in 1992 with academies established at Fort Gordon and Fort Stewart.  Both sites were forced to close during the COVID-19 pandemic and officials say they have struggled to reach enrollment numbers since the doors re-opened.

Reports indicated fighting began shortly after students arrived at Fort Gordon in early October.  Three days later, a massive brawl was reported with some students using metal shanks and several getting injured.  There were reports of some students having rival gang affiliations.  One day later, another fight was reported with numerous shanks used again.  That's when the order came to shut down the academy and remove all 170 students from the campus.