The Virginia Military Institute officially began the process of removing the centuries-old statue of Stonewall Jackson from its campus on Monday.

The bronze statue will be relocated to the Virginia Museum of the Civil War and New Market Battlefield State Historical Park, about 60 miles north of the campus. The reconstruction at the statue’s new location is expected to be complete by summer or fall of next year, according to a statement from the institute. 

Following accusations from Black cadets and alumni that the school fostered a culture of racism, VMI appointed its first Black superintendent, Cedric T. Wins last month. In a statement on the statue’s removal Monday, Wins embraced an era of change at the nation’s oldest state-funded military college.

“VMI does not define itself by this statue and that is why this move is appropriate. We are defined by our unique system of education and the quality and character of the graduates the Institute produces,” said Wins, who currently serves in an interim capacity. “Time and again over the past 181 years, the Institute has adapted and changed. Each time, we have become a better, stronger institution.”

The removal and relocation will cost the institute $209,000.

Original: The Virginia Military Institute will relocate a statue of Stonewall Jackson from its prominent location on campus, less than two weeks after Black cadets and alumni publicly detailed a culture of racism at the nation’s oldest state-funded military college. 

The VMI board voted Thursday to move the statue of the Confederate general, which is currently located in front of cadet barracks at the college’s campus in Lexington, Va., to an “appropriate location.” 

The panel has not decided where to move the statue but is considering relocating it 60 miles north to the battlefield at New Market, where VMI cadets fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War.  

J. William “Bill” Boland, president of the VMI Board of Visitors, said in a statement that the college must “honestly address historical inequities and be intentional about creating a better future.”

The board announced other efforts to address diversity, including establishing a committee focused on diversity and inclusion and creating a plan to hire diverse workers, according to a news release. 

Earlier this week, Gov. Ralph Northam (D) announced a probe of VMI after The Washington Post published a report documenting instances of racism Black cadets endured from classmates and faculty.

The incidents appeared to reveal a pattern of discrimination at the institute: One student said a professor reminisced about her family’s KKK history. Another student said he was threatened with lynching. Other students said they were punished for boycotting a September speech by Vice President Mike Pence.

J.H. Binford Peay III resigned from his position as VMI’s superintendent on Monday amid the allegations of pervasive racism at the school.