Wright's successor, Sebastian Jones, presided over the academy from 1894 to 1922, guiding it during its most critical period of growth from a young and small institution of 48 cadets, through a disastrous fire in 1910, and throughout an extensive reconstruction program.

[6][7] However, a group of alumni and local business people created a plan to save the school, raising almost $6 million of financing in a matter of weeks, and expecting to sell off some less-utilized portions of the campus.

Instead, it headed to bankruptcy auction,[10][11] where on September 30 it was auctioned for $15.825 million to the Chinese-owned Research Center on Natural Conservation Inc., a non-profit corporation led by billionaire Vincent Tianquan Mo,[12] Chairman and CEO of SouFun Holdings, an NYSE-listed company, also operating as Fang Holdings Ltd., one of China's largest real estate internet portals.

[13] After spending millions of dollars refurbishing the campus, supporting instruction and making capital improvements, the school reopened on November 2, 2015, with "a handful of returning students" and a recruitment drive.

[16] By 2019 the school had grown to a size of 100 male and female Cadets both day and boarding with 12 nations represented and an additional 1,000 students attending special programs throughout the year.

During closed weekends, cadets are expected to attend additional leadership training, drill & ceremony, and maintain the appearance of their respective barracks.

[citation needed] In earlier decades, NYMA's official regulations permitted a certain level of hazing and physical discipline by supervisors and older cadets, although the academy's senior administrators were forced to resign after a particularly severe incident in 1964.