|
WAVES was the bacronym for the Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service, the World War II women's branch of the United States Naval Reserve. It was established on 21 July 1942 by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by the president on 30 July 1942, as the Title V amendment to the Naval Reserve Act of 1938. This authorized the U.S. Navy to accept women into the naval reserve as commissioned officers and at the enlisted level, effective for the duration of the war plus six months. The purpose of the law was to release officers and men for sea duty and replace them with women in shore stations. The notion of women serving in the Navy was not widely supported in the congress or by the Navy, although some members did support the need for uniformed women during wartime. Nonetheless, the persistence of several women laid the groundwork for success. The congressional act allowing women to serve in the Navy became a reality, in large measure, through the efforts of the Navy’s Women’s Advisory Council, Dr. Margaret Chung, and Eleanor Roosevelt, wife of the president. Mildred H. McAfee became the first director of the WAVES. She was commissioned a Lieutenant Commander in the Navy on 3 August 1942, and was the first woman commissioned in the US Naval Reserve. McAfee, on leave as president of Wellesley College, was an experienced educator and highly respected in her field. The age for officer candidates was between 20 and 49, with a college degree, or two years of college and two years of equivalent professional or business experience. The enlisted age requirements were between 20 and 35, with a high school or business diploma, or equivalent experience. United States citizenship was required in each case. WAVES were primarily white and middle class. Little attempt had been made to recruit African-American or other women minorities until October 1944. However, 72 African-American women did eventually serve in it he WAVES and on a fully integrated basis. The WAVES peak strength was 86,291, which included 8,475 officers, 73,816 enlisted, and about 4,000 in training. Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts, was the site chosen for training of the officers; it was officially known as the United States Naval Reserve Midshipmen’s School. The college setting provided the proper training ground for transforming civilian women into naval officers. There was two-months of intense training, with the subject matter ranging from naval organization and communications to ships and aircraft. Following completion of training, the midshipmen were commissioned as ensigns or lieutenants (junior grade) in the U.S. Naval Reserve. The school closed in December 1944, after graduating 9,477 women officers. Many of the newly commissioned officers attended specialized training courses, held on several college campuses and at various naval facilities. ==History== 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「WAVES」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
|