The 1970s were a time of shifting attitudes. In 1975, law was signed allowing women to attend the all-male military academies. The first women enrolled in the summer of 1976 and graduated in spring 1980, however the challenges these women faced were significant. Only 66% of the inaugural class of women reached graduation. Currently women represent 27% of service academy cadets and midshipmen. In 1989, Kristin M. Baker, was the first female cadet at West Point to be named Brigade Commander and to command its Corps of Cadets, and in November 2020, Midshipman 1st Class Sydney Barber became the first black woman to serve as brigade commander at the US Naval Academy.
Women in the military were making strides elsewhere during this time. In 1970, Colonel Anna Mae Hays, Chief, Army Nurse Corps was promoted to the grade of Brigadier General, becoming the first woman in the history of the U.S. Army to attain General officer rank. Nine years later, in 1979, Brigadier General Hazel W. Johnson-Brown became the first Black American woman to become an Army General. In 1985, Brigadier General Carmelita Vigil-Schimmenti became the first Hispanic woman to serve as a Brigadier General, and in 2001, Brigadier General Coral Pietsch became the first Asian-American woman to serve at this level. As these women rose through ranks, the general attitude toward women in the military began to evolve.