Tabor Academy was designated as a Naval Honor School in 1941 by Secretary of the Navy Frank Knox, in accordance with Congressional legislation enacted in 1937 to encourage the teaching of naval subjects at the secondary level, and to generate interest at that level in the nation’s military academies. The School earned this designation by providing (as it continues to do today) instruction in a variety of maritime subjects and activities including seamanship, coastal and celestial navigation, naval architecture, lifeboatman training, and sail training in both small boats and cruising vessels. Approximately 150 students are enrolled in one or more of these courses or activities each year.

As one of only two remaining Naval Honor Schools in the country, Tabor is authorized to nominate up to three candidates each year to each of the nation’s military academies. Students, once nominated, then compete on their own merit to secure a place at West Point, Annapolis, The U.S. Coast Guard Academy or The Air Force Academy .