The Vermont National Guard has become the first combat arms battalion in the country authorized to recruit women.
The Army did not allow women to serve in combat roles before 2016. Since then women could transfer but not enlist in combat units until specific conditions were met.
The Vermont Army National Guard’s 86th Infantry Brigade has been approved to directly recruit women into its unit.
Vermont Adjutant General Greg Knight called the authorization a “significant milestone.”
This is the first time in the U.S. National Guard's 384-year history that a combat arms unit can enlist women.