By ROBERT BURNS, AP
June 24, 2008
WASHINGTON - For the first time in American history, a woman has been chosen for promotion to four-star general.
President Bush has nominated Lt. Gen. Ann Dunwoody to head the Army Materiel Command, which is responsible for equipping, outfitting and arming the nation's soldiers, the Pentagon said yesterday.
If confirmed by the Senate, the upstate native would become the first woman to attain the rank of a full general.
By law, the Army is limited to 11 active-duty four-stars, including the chief of staff, Gen. George Casey.
Women haven't reached four-star rank because they were excluded by law from serving in combat, which has historically served as the path to the highest-ranking positions.
With Dunwoody, the Army cast aside its customary limitations on promotion. She is one of only two female three-stars generals in the Army, along with Lt. Gen. Kathleen Gainey, director of logistics on the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
"[Dunwoody's] 33 years of service, highlighted by extraordinary leadership and devotion to duty, make her exceptionally qualified for this senior position," Defense Secretary Robert Gates said.
Dunwoody, currently the deputy commander of Army materiel, received her commission after graduating from SUNY Cortland in 1975.
"I am very honored but also very humbled today with this announcement," she said. "I grew up in a family that didn't know what glass ceilings were.
"This nomination only reaffirms what I have known to be true about the military throughout my career: that the doors continue to open for men and women in uniform."
