Howe Military Academy was originally established in 1884 as Howe Grammar School. Today, Howe Military Academy is a private, co-educational, college preparatory boarding school for young men and women in grades seven through twelve. Traci and Dave Tate were drawn to the structured academic environment that Howe offered, with smaller class sizes that allowed for individual attention for each cadet. It seemed like the perfect place for their son to learn, engage in critical thinking, and develop an exemplary set of leadership skills.

Once their son became acclimated at Howe, it was easy for Traci and Dave to get involved with the school. The Howe community takes a significant amount of pride in their program, and consistently strives to raise the bar with regard to the student experience. Given their expertise in the industry, what better way for the Tate’s to give back and support the school, then to put in place the foundational infrastructure needed to create strong, well-rounded cadets? After all, strength and conditioning is what they do best.

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When Traci first saw the dated equipment in Howe’s weight room, it was immediately obvious why the fitness center was not a part of the standard facility tours. She spoke with the school’s superintendent about the possibility of upgrading the space to a state-of-the-art fitness center, but unfortunately the annual budget had already been allocated to other needs. As such, the resources to make Traci’s vision a reality had to be secured solely through fundraising efforts. Nevertheless, the power of the elitefts brand was all that was needed to gain momentum for this project. With confidence in the high-quality products and equipment that elitefts provides, fellow parents and alumni came together and secured the necessary funds in less than three months.

The state-of-the-art Strength and Fitness Center at Howe Military Academy opened in 2018, in conjunction with the school’s inaugural Leadership Camp. The administration was thrilled by the community’s support, thanking all who contributed to the once-impossible endeavor:

We are very fortunate to have such generous alumni and parents working together for the betterment of our school and are grateful for our new Strength and Fitness Center. Thank you again to all who contributed to its success. HOWE STRONG!

To commemorate the official opening of the facility, Dave Tate and Nate Harvey traveled to Howe to provide a special training class to the new cadets as part of their orientation. They walked the cadets through proper usage of the equipment that would not only keep them safe, but also bolster performance and reinforce good technique. Hands-on instruction for different exercises and lifts, such as the bench press, set the gold standard for the cadets as to the right way to use their new equipment to get the best results possible. Although many cadets may have been performing these movements for the first time ever during orientation, it’s clear that strength and conditioning will be an important part of their future – both at Howe and beyond.

Some elitefts equipment at Howe:

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