Maryland Makes History With The First Ever All-Female State Guard

A truly historic moment for the Free State

State guards are a hugely important part of our history, and have been keeping citizens safe and providing valuable services since the Militia Act of 1903.

Nowadays, state guards are still very important, and there’s something special about the latest incarnation of the Maryland National Guard.

Image: Maryland Governor’s Office

Out of the 54 state guards across the US, it’s the only one where women make up the entire leadership team. This includes the two-star general who leads the Maryland Guard, a pair of one-star generals in command of ground and air troops, and the senior enlisted non-commissioned officer.

The unique situation came about last fall, when the recruitment process reached its conclusion. Maj. Gen. Linda Singh, the adjutant general of the Maryland National Guard, told reporters on Thursday that when she reviewed the skill sets she was seeking among the eligible candidates, it became clear to her that the result might be an historic all-female leadership team.

But this isn’t the result of some kind of progressive hiring policy – the new leaders were all selected on their own individual merits.

“It was really about timing and it’s about having the leaders that have the right skill set,” said Singh, who has led the 6,000 guardsmen that make up the Maryland National Guard since 2015.

“I don’t think really in my whole career I’ve ever seen it that it’s lined up perfect,” said Singh of recruiting the new leaders. “So someone was looking out for me.”

Image: Washington Post

“I was looking for something very specific within backgrounds to be able to come into these positions, and each of these individuals had pieces of that,” said Singh.

Singh laid out the possibility of an all-female leadership team to Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan, but made sure he understood that there was no political motivation behind her recommendations.

In the meeting, she said that “I don’t want you to think I’m all girl power and not thinking about the guys (…) I just said that these are the right individuals.”

Of course, this is how it should be when it comes to women in the world of work – just brilliant ladies doing their thing, earning their place in this prestigious organization!

To Singh’s relief, Governor Hogan was excited by the possibility and signed off on her recommendations. By October, the new leadership team was in place, with Brig. Gen. Janeen Birckhead leading the Army component of the Guard, Brig. Gen. April Vogel in charge of the Air National Guard component and Command Sgt. Maj. Perlisa Wilson serving as the senior enlisted adviser.

Maryland made history as it marked the first time that women made up the entire leadership team of a state National Guard.

Aside from their gender, the four new leaders have many things in common, including the fact that they have all been in military service since graduating from high school. Singh, Vogel and Wilson all started their military careers as enlisted service members and Birckhead joined the Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) while she was a student at Hampton University.

There’s a lot that unites their past, and it looks like they have a bright future together, too!

Best of luck to the Maryland state guard! Well done ladies. AAx

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