The United States Military Academy (USMA) at West Point, N.Y., is the oldest military college in the United States having been established by Congress in 1802. It prepares young men and women for careers as officers in the United States Army. The academy's motto is "Duty, Honor, Country." The post occupies 16,000 acres on the west bank of the Hudson River.

Students at the academy are called cadets. A West Point cadetship includes a fully funded four-year college education. Tuition, room, board, medical and dental care are provided by the U.S. Army. As members of the Armed Forces, cadets also receive an annual salary of more than $6,500. This pay covers the cost of uniforms, books, a personal computer, and living incidentals. Cadet training stresses academic, military, and physical fitness skills. After four years, cadets are awarded a Bachelor of Science degree and a commission as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Army, serving a minimun of 5 years on active duty.

Each year the USMA admits 1,150 to 1,200 young men and women. To become a cadet you must meet the requirements specified by public law and must be qualified academically, physically and medically. Each candidate must also obtain a nomination from a member of Congress or from the Department of the Army.

The academy's honor code is a cherished possession of cadets and graduates. The code states simply that a cadet will not lie, cheat, steal, or tolerate those who do. The code requires complete integrity in word and deed. This code is strictly enforced, and any intentional violation is a cause for dismissal from the academy.

Among the great American military leaders who received their training at the USMA were Robert E. Lee, Ulysses S. Grant, Stonewall Jackson, Philip Sheridan, John J. Pershing, Douglas MacArthur, Dwight D. Eisenhower, and George S. Patton, Jr.

ATS has presented Bibles at West Point since 1869. The tradition began while Episcopal Bishop Charles P. McIlvaine served as board president of the Tract Society. Bishop McIlvaine, served as Chaplain and Professor of ethics at West Point from 1824 to 1826, and later became Chaplain of the U.S. Senate.

General Oliver Otis Howard strengthened American Tract's association with the academy. He was a key founder and early president of Howard University in Washington, DC, and in 1881 was appointed superintendent of West Point. His work with ATS began in 1889, where he served as board president from 1896 to 1906. General Howard, a former West Point cadet and Civil war hero, was best known as chairman of the Freedman's Bureau and for his work on behalf of the freed slaves.

For the first fifty-four years ATS Bibles were given to the academy's graduating cadets. Then in 1928, Lieutenant Col. Wheat, former Chaplain of the Academy, became head of the English Department. Col. Wheat felt it unfortunate that the cadets did not get their Bibles until graduation. Therefore he requested the Society present the Bibles to the "Plebes" or entering class, for study in English and use in their private devotions. That change was made and continues to this day.