A US Military First - Female Four-Star General Nominated

She says she grew up in a family that didn't know what glass ceilings were. Maybe that's why Lt. Gen. Ann E. Dunwoody is poised to become the first female four-star general in US history. Yesterday President Bush nominated her to head the Army Materiel Command.

Aside from the significance of achieving this 'first,' General-to-be Dunwoody would oversee a massive operation that essentially equips the Army. According to the Washington Post:

The Web site of the Army Materiel Command explains its mission simply: "If a Soldier shoots it, drives it, flies it, wears it, communicates with it, or eats it -- AMC provides it."

Dunwoody would lead an Army command that is integral to the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and would supervise more than 56,000 soldiers and civilians who deal with Army contracting, acquisition, technology and logistics.

To rise to the rank of four-star general is no small feat. An Associated Press report in the New York Times describes the path to the top:

By law, the Army is limited to 11 active-duty four-stars, including the Army chief of staff, Gen. George W. Casey Jr.

Women have not reached four-star rank because by law they are excluded from serving in combat roles, which historically have been the path to the highest-ranking positions. That exclusion still applies, but with General Dunwoody the Army has chosen to cast aside its customary limitations on promotion.

She has the pedigree for the job, as her family background includes five generations of military service including her her great-grandfather, grandfather, father, brother, sister, niece and husband. Dunwoody herself has given 33 years of military service to her country.