Two Female Soldiers First To Graduate US Army Ranger School

The two women – Capt. Kristen Griest of Orange, Conn., and 1st Lt. Shaye Haver of Copperas Cove, Texas – had already served in combat roles.

One of the first women to graduate from the US Army’s notoriously gruelling Ranger School says she hopes her success will go toward proving that women in the military are capable of doing what men do. Lieutenant Haver told reporters exactly what the historic moment meant to her.

This has historically been the avenue of men going on to serve in various capacities, having completed perhaps the most arduous course offered by the U.S. Army.

While Grist and Haver are the first two women to graduate Ranger School, they said it was evident from their male classmates that their performance in the school – and as teammates – was more important than their gender.

It was “definitely awesome to be part of history“, Haver said.

Hanger called the women “absolutely physical studs”.

The show was only a hint of what the rangers endured: weeks of hunger and sleep deprivation, miles carrying heavy packs of gear and munitions, night hikes through pitch-black swamps and silent, rigorous patrols through steep mountains.

Since it opened in 1952, 77,000 soldiers have earned the Ranger Tab, the Army Times said on its website. The military’s toughest jobs – including positions in infantry, armour and special operations units such as the Ranger Regiment – remain closed to women. But Griest said she hopes the achievement at least carries some weight in the final decisions. You will do this everyday you are at Ranger School.

Friday’s ceremony was also attended by the families of the graduates and by the new US army chief of staff, General Mark Milley, and by General Austin Miller, whose command oversees Ranger School.

Janowski went on to say he would trust her with his life.

Until this week, there was one very important requirement for becoming an Army Ranger: You had to be a man. “…I know a lot of guys that have been through it and tell me how hard the course is”.

The men also revealed how their initial skepticism about the women quickly turned to admiration.

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“It’s pretty cool that they have accepted us”, she said.

It’s really all women have ever wanted to do: Keep the bar at the same height and let us meet the standard – whether it’s on a field of worldwide competition like the World Cup, as a coach on a men’s basketball team like Becky Hammon or as a referee in professional football like Maia Chaka and Sarah Thomas. There is no discussion about opening the Ranger Assessment and Selection Program (RASP)-a selection process for entry into the 75th Ranger Regiment-to women at this time.