Like most higher education institutions throughout the country, military academies sent their cadets home during the pandemic.

Officials at The U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland announced Monday it plans to have its 4,400 midshipmen return to campus for the fall semester, Military Times reports.

“We all are developing very detailed plans with regards to health, safety and the protocols that we need to put in place to manage risk,” said Naval Academy superintendent Vice Adm. Sean Buck

The U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York said it has similar plans; U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado have not commented on the issue yet.

Buck says that while classes could continue remotely, this type of learning doesn’t fit into the ethos of the military education. “We cannot develop leaders for our nation’s military services online,” said Buck.

Photo by Stacy Godfrey/Navy