Armed Forces Chaplaincy Center The Armed Forces Chaplaincy Center ( AFCC ) is the center for training of United States military chaplain s , located at Fort Jackson , Columbia , South Carolina . Co - located on the AFCC campus are : the United States Army Chaplain Center and School , the United States Naval Chaplaincy School and Center , and the United States Air Force Chaplain Corps College . The Center includes the " Joint Center of Excellence for Religious Training and Education . " Ground - breaking for the AFCC took place May 6 , 2008 , and the official dedication of the campus occurred on May 6 , 2010 . History . The creation of the AFCC began with the November 11 , 2005 " Base Realignment and Closure " ( BRAC ) mandate for U . S . military chaplains . The mandated included two " imperatives " : The decision to create the AFCC included a 11 . 6 million dollar construction plan for a building with of space , including a 300 - seat auditorium . Mission and leadership . The Army , Navy , and Air Force schools are co - located on the AFCC campus , but their training programs for Chaplains , Chaplain Assistants and Religious Program Specialists are independent , and each has its own Commandant / Commanding Officer , faculty and staff . There is an overall Director and Senior Enlisted Advisor who deal with common issues affecting all schools , but each of the three schools maintains its own lines of authority and responsibility with the Chief of Chaplains and training leadership for its branch of the Armed Forces . However , although each service school will train its chaplains , sharing the AFCC campus will allow for some joint classes and lectures , especially when guest lecturers in subjects like preaching — subjects that cross military service lines — visit the center . Setting . The first AFCC director Air Force Chaplain Col . Steven Keith , said the directors of the individual schools that will share the AFCC campus worked to bring together elements with special meaning that could be shared . For example , the Center ' s hallways have stained glass from a closed Army chapel in New Jersey and a closed Air Force chapel in Germany . To set the tone for the center , a famous image of George Washington , kneeling in prayer with his chaplain and soldiers at Valley Forge was chosen for the front lobby . Army Chaplain Center and School . The U . S . Army Chaplain School was created in 1917 , to train civilian clergy for service as chaplains in World War I . The first session began March 3 , 1918 , at Fort Monroe , Virginia , based on a plan developed by Chaplain ( MAJ ) Aldred A . Pruden , approved by the War Department on February 9 , 1918 . Before moving to its present location at Fort Jackson in 1996 , the school has been located in areas including Camp Zachary Taylor ( Kentucky ) , Camp Grant ( Illinois ) , Fort Leavenworth ( Kansas ) , Fort Benjamin Harrison ( Indiana ) , Harvard University ( Massachusetts ) , Fort Devens ( Mass . ) , Fort Oglethorpe ( Georgia ) , Carlisle Barracks ( Pennsylvania ) , Fort Slocum ( New York ) ( 1951 – 62 ) , Fort Hamilton ( N . Y . ) ( 1962 – 74 ) , Fort Wadsworth ( N . Y . ) ( 1974 – 79 ) , and Fort Monmouth ( New Jersey ) ( 1979 – 95 ) . In 1957 , Army General Order No . 1 - 57 , created the U . S . Army Chaplain Museum as a branch museum at Fort Slocum , New York , later moving along with the Chaplain Center and School to all other locations , including the current site at Fort Jackson . Naval Chaplaincy School and Center . The first Naval Chaplain School was created in February 1942 when civilian clergy , the majority of whom had no prior military experience , entered the Navy to serve during World War II . The school began at Naval Station Norfolk , Norfolk , Virginia , later moving to the campus of the College of William and Mary , in Williamsburg , Virginia , until its decommissioning November 15 , 1945 . With the beginning of the Korean War in 1951 , the school was reestablished , located in Newport , Rhode Island as part of the Naval Schools Command . When the Naval Officer Training Center was established July 15 , 1971 , later becoming the Naval Officer Training Command on July 1 , 1974 , the school continued to operate under that Center and Command , until the school became a separate shore activity in March 2007 under the Center for Service Support . The Chaplain School ceased activities in Newport August 21 , 2009 for its move to Fort Jackson , and its name was changed on October 1 , 2009 to the Naval Chaplaincy School and Center ( NCSC ) , to reflect the fact that the school would no longer only train chaplains , but would now include training for Religious Program Specialists , as well . The first graduation of Navy chaplains at the AFCC took place November 13 , 2009 . Air Force Chaplain Corps College . In July 1953 the Air Force was given the responsibility of training its own chaplains , and the United States Air Force Chaplains Course was established at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas , under the overall Officer Basic Military Course In 1960 the USAF Chaplain School was officially established , remaining at Lackland AFB , where it remained until moving to Maxwell Air Force Base , Montgomery , Alabama , in May 1966 , where it would remain until its move to Fort Jackson . Under the leadership of the Air University Command Chaplain , the USAF Chaplain Service Resource Board waqs formed in July 1959 . It was originally named the USAF Chaplain Writers Board , preparing lectures and identifying audiovisual resources for the Air Force Moral Leadership Program . The board ' s name was changed in 1976 to USAF Chaplain Resource Board , and in January 1989 to USAF Chaplain Service Resource Board , " to reflect the mission of providing resources to all chaplain service professionals : chaplain service support personnel ( CSSP ) , religious education coordinators , laity , and chaplains . " It is now known as the USAF Chaplain Service Institute Resource Division . Air Force Chaplain Assistants began training at Carlisle Barracks , Pennsylvania , in 1960 , as " Welfare specialists , " moving to Keesler Air Force Base , Mississippi in 1960 at the same time the specialty name was changed to " Chaplain Service Personnel . " In 1992 , training moved to Maxwell AFB , where it became part of the " Ira C . Eaker Center for Professional Development , " alongside the Air Force Chaplain School and Air Force Chaplain Service Institute .