WAC Officer Candidate Schools were established at Fort Des Moines, Iowa; Fort Oglethorpe, Georgia; Fort Lee, Virginia and Fort McClellan, Alabama during the history of the Women's Army Corps (1942-1978).
Fort Des Moines, Iowa, served as the primary training center for the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC), later the Women's Army Corps (WAC) during World War II, hosting the very first officer candidate class starting on July 20, 1942.
The group being honored includes the first woman to graduate from the first Officer Candidate School Class at Fort Des Moines, Iowa on 29 August 1942; the first woman to attain the rank of MG in the Air Force in June 1973; the first woman to attain the rank of MG in the Army in November 1978; and a philanthropist who funded a $6 million Endowed Scholarship after 28 years of Superior Meritorious Service.
The military awards and decorations presented to this group of 25 WACs while in service to the Nation include six Distinguished Service Medals, seventeen Legions of Merit with five Oak Leaf Clustes and six Bronze Stars.
The stories and accomplishments of these 25 women have been waiting to be told for years. The Infantry OCS Hall of Fame was established at Fort Benning in 1958 and by the year 2000 it had become a branch immaterial Army OCS Hall of Fame open to graduates of all the Army OCS programs. During all of these years the extraordinary service of the WACs seems to have been overlooked. There are more than 3,100 Army OCS graduates in the Hall of Fame and until March 27, 2026 only one WAC had been honored there. MG Karol A. Kennedy graduated from OCS at Fort McClellan in December 1965. She was on active Duty in the Pentagon on September 11, 2001 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005. It has taken 21 more years to get another WAC into the Army OCS Hall of Fame.
The WACs were the pioneers who paved the way for the women of today's Army, who fill virtually every position, including duty in the combat arms. We remember and honor these women who served and led, both in the military and civilian endeavors. We are stronger because of them.
Twenty-one of the twenty-five WACs being inducted into the Hall of Fame were trained and commissioned at the Fort Des Moines Officer Candidate School during 1942 and 1943. OCS training at Fort Des Moines was discontinued at the end of the War in 1945.
Four of the inductees for 2026 were commissioned at the WAC OCS at Fort Lee in 1949, 1950 and 1952.
Fort Des Moines, Iowa, served as the primary training center for the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps (WAAC), later the Women's Army Corps (WAC) during World War II, hosting the very first officer candidate class starting on July 20, 1942.
The group being honored includes the first woman to graduate from the first Officer Candidate School Class at Fort Des Moines, Iowa on 29 August 1942; the first woman to attain the rank of MG in the Air Force in June 1973; the first woman to attain the rank of MG in the Army in November 1978; and a philanthropist who funded a $6 million Endowed Scholarship after 28 years of Superior Meritorious Service.
The military awards and decorations presented to this group of 25 WACs while in service to the Nation include six Distinguished Service Medals, seventeen Legions of Merit with five Oak Leaf Clustes and six Bronze Stars.
The stories and accomplishments of these 25 women have been waiting to be told for years. The Infantry OCS Hall of Fame was established at Fort Benning in 1958 and by the year 2000 it had become a branch immaterial Army OCS Hall of Fame open to graduates of all the Army OCS programs. During all of these years the extraordinary service of the WACs seems to have been overlooked. There are more than 3,100 Army OCS graduates in the Hall of Fame and until March 27, 2026 only one WAC had been honored there. MG Karol A. Kennedy graduated from OCS at Fort McClellan in December 1965. She was on active Duty in the Pentagon on September 11, 2001 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005. It has taken 21 more years to get another WAC into the Army OCS Hall of Fame.
The WACs were the pioneers who paved the way for the women of today's Army, who fill virtually every position, including duty in the combat arms. We remember and honor these women who served and led, both in the military and civilian endeavors. We are stronger because of them.
Twenty-one of the twenty-five WACs being inducted into the Hall of Fame were trained and commissioned at the Fort Des Moines Officer Candidate School during 1942 and 1943. OCS training at Fort Des Moines was discontinued at the end of the War in 1945.
Four of the inductees for 2026 were commissioned at the WAC OCS at Fort Lee in 1949, 1950 and 1952.
Click on buttons below to view information submitted during the nomination process.
Click on the name of a WAC shown on a button below to view a picture
& biographical information of that 2026 Army OCS Hall of Fame Inductee.
Pictures Below:
Footlocker - MAJ Charity E. Adams (Service # L500001)
Commanderof the 6888th Central Postal Directory Battalion 1945-1946
Congressional Gold Medal 2022
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Congressional Gold Medal (Front)
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Congressional Gold Medal (Reverse)
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We remember and honor these women who served and led, both in the military and civilian endeavors. We are stronger because of them. "Standards! No Compromise!"
