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Military Women’s Advisory Committee Issues Annual Report

March 24, 2017 |DOD News
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The Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services released its annual report today on matters relating to women serving in the U.S. armed forces for fiscal year 2016, according to a DoD news release.

The Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services, also known as DACOWITS, on March 24, 2017, released its annual report on matters relating to women serving in the U.S. armed forces for fiscal year 2016. DACOWITS provides the Defense Department with advice and recommendations on matters and policies relating to the recruitment and retention, treatment, employment, integration and well-being of highly-qualified professional women in the armed forces. Pictured here, Navy Chief Petty Officer Dominique Saavedra, assigned to USS Michigan, is pinned with her enlisted submarine qualification during a ceremony at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Wash., Aug. 2, 2016. Saavedra was the first female enlisted sailor to earn the "dolphins." Navy photo by Chief Petty Officer Kenneth G. Takada
The Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services, also known as DACOWITS, on March 24, 2017, released its annual report on matters relating to women serving in the U.S. armed forces for fiscal year 2016. DACOWITS provides the Defense Department with advice and recommendations on matters and policies relating to the recruitment and retention, treatment, employment, integration and well-being of highly-qualified professional women in the armed forces. Pictured here, Navy Chief Petty Officer Dominique Saavedra, assigned to USS Michigan, is pinned with her enlisted submarine qualification during a ceremony at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Wash., Aug. 2, 2016. Saavedra was the first female enlisted sailor to earn the "dolphins." Navy photo by Chief Petty Officer Kenneth G. Takada
The Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services, also known as DACOWITS, on March 24, 2017, released its annual report on matters relating to women serving in the U.S. armed forces for fiscal year 2016. DACOWITS provides the Defense Department with advice and recommendations on matters and policies relating to the recruitment and retention, treatment, employment, integration and well-being of highly-qualified professional women in the armed forces. Pictured here, Navy Chief Petty Officer Dominique Saavedra, assigned to USS Michigan, is pinned with her enlisted submarine qualification during a ceremony at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Wash., Aug. 2, 2016. Saavedra was the first female enlisted sailor to earn the "dolphins." Navy photo by Chief Petty Officer Kenneth G. Takada
Milestones Reached
The Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services, also known as DACOWITS, on March 24, 2017, released its annual report on matters relating to women serving in the U.S. armed forces for fiscal year 2016. DACOWITS provides the Defense Department with advice and recommendations on matters and policies relating to the recruitment and retention, treatment, employment, integration and well-being of highly-qualified professional women in the armed forces. Pictured here, Navy Chief Petty Officer Dominique Saavedra, assigned to USS Michigan, is pinned with her enlisted submarine qualification during a ceremony at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Wash., Aug. 2, 2016. Saavedra was the first female enlisted sailor to earn the "dolphins." Navy photo by Chief Petty Officer Kenneth G. Takada
Download: Full Size (1.33 MB)
Photo By: Chief Petty Officer Kenneth Taka
VIRIN: 160802-N-VZ328-002A

The committee, also known as DACOWITS, provides the Defense Department with advice and recommendations on matters and policies relating to the recruitment and retention, treatment, employment, integration and well-being of highly-qualified professional women in the armed forces.

Study Topics

Each December, the committee selects several study topics to examine during the following year. For 2016, DACOWITS studied 14 topics. The committee gathered information from multiple sources in examining these topics; for example, briefings and written responses from the DoD, service-level military representatives, and subject matter experts; data collected from focus groups and interactions with service members during installation visits; and peer-reviewed literature.

DACOWITS collected qualitative data during their visits to multiple installations -- representing all four DoD service branches -- Air Force, Army, Marine Corps, Navy, and the Coast Guard.

Based upon the data collected and analyzed, the fiscal 2016 annual report includes 14 recommendations and four continuing concerns the committee made to the secretary of defense on the following topics: mentorship, single-parent waivers, accessions and marketing, the chaplain corps, gender integration, combat gear and equipment, pregnancy and parenthood, physical standards, strategic communications, transition services, and sexual harassment and sexual assault training.

The fiscal 2016 annual report is available online and includes detailed reasoning supporting each of the recommendations and continuing concerns addressed by the committee.

DACOWITS is one of the oldest DoD federal advisory committees. The committee was established following the signing of the Women's Armed Services Integration Act in 1948 by then-Defense Secretary George C. Marshall. The new law enabled women to serve as permanent, regular members of the armed forces in the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and the recently formed Air Force. This annual report marks the committee’s 65th anniversary.

Electronic copies of the committee’s annual reports and additional information about the DACOWITS can be found at http://dacowits.defense.gov/.

Link: DACOWITS Releases FY16 Annual Report
Link: Special Report: Women’s History Month 2017
Army Navy Air Force Marine Corps Womens History Special

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