1 VMI Cadet Bows Out, 2nd Huffs and Puffs--but Those Are the Guys

In the 24 hours after women first entered the historic Virginia Military Institute, one freshman cadet dropped out just before getting a supershort haircut and another had to take a break during morning calisthenics.

Both were men.

Just before dawn Tuesday, half of the school’s first coed class, which enrolled Monday, got its first taste of military drills with a one-hour round of pushups, situps and other exercises, along with a 1 1/2-mile jog in formation.

They were dressed in yellow T-shirts and red gym shorts, and the young women appeared to keep up with the young men as upperclassmen barked orders.

Only one cadet had to sit out for a few minutes, a man who held his hands on his knees. He later rejoined his company running three-by-three in “doubletime” and counting in cadence.

The other half of the coed class practiced for the physical fitness test. The men and women face the same standards: 60 situps in two minutes, five pullups and a 1.5-mile run in less than 12 minutes.

One unidentified male freshman dropped out Monday after registering and before getting his head shaved. One of the 31 women who sent in deposits to be in the freshman class didn’t enroll; five of the 435 men accepted did the same.

Last summer, the Supreme Court ruled that if the school accepts tax money, it must accept women. VMI’s governing board voted, 9 to 8, to accept women rather than try to go private and stay all-male.