Captain Kristen Griest will become America’s first ever female Army infantry officer as she graduates from training today.
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Kristen M. Griest received approval this week to transfer from the military police to the infantry, and on Thursday she is set to graduate from the Maneuver Captain’s Career Course, according to the Army Times.
Griest already exceeded expectations when she became the first female to complete Army Ranger school, known as the “Army’s toughest training”.
The move paved the way for Griest and other women, opening up positions for them in the infantry, armor and Special Forces Fields, the Army Times reports. The participation of women in the Ranger School course was part of the Army’s research into whether women should be integrated into combat units.
Although Griest is the first, other women are preparing to follow: 22 Army cadets are approved to enter the infantry and armor branches. “Her transfer was approved by the Department of the Army and she’s now an infantry officer”.
Griest, a native of Orange, Conn., is a 2011 U.S. Military Academy graduate.
This means that Griest will be one of the first women to engage in a ground combat role in the army as well.
After successfully completing Ranger School past year, Griest returned to service at her home base at Fort Campbell, Kentucky. “She is a leader of soldiers who puts her whole self into her job and will continue to make sacrifices in order to make our Army stronger”. Lisa Jaster became the third woman to successfully complete the demanding course.
Griest could be joined by more female infantry officers by the fall.
This includes accessing female leaders from West Point, ROTC and Officer Candidate School this summer as the class of 2016 graduates.
He had one requirement: The women had to train to meet the male physical standard and would be graded on that scale. Army and Marine Corps generals told senators earlier this year that it will take several years to fully integrate women into combat roles, but some branches have started recruiting women for those roles, The Associated Press reported.
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After being commissioned, they have to complete an infantry officer basic course and then complete Ranger School. More than 165,000 women are enlisted and active in the armed services with over 35,000 additional women serving as officers.
