The Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services (DACOWITS) was one of the oldest Department of Defense (DoD) federal advisory committees and was established in 1951 by then-Secretary of Defense (SecDef) George C. Marshall. The committee was composed of civilian women and men appointed by the SecDef to provide advice and recommendations on matters and policies relating to the recruitment, retention, employment, integration, well-being, and treatment of women in the U.S. Armed Forces. As a discretionary DoD federal advisory committee, it was authorized under the provisions of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (FACA) of 1972 (5 U.S.C., Appendix) and 41 C.F.R. § 102-3.50(d). Committee members reviewed issues and conducted information-gathering activities through installation visits, meetings, reports, and surveys. The committee typically met quarterly and provided recommendations to the SecDef for consideration via an annual report.
In May 2025, the DOD, under Secretary Pete Hegseth, proposed cutting fourteen (14) defense advisory boards, including DACOWITS. On September 24, 2025, DACOWITS was terminated by Hegseth, who stated that the committee was “advancing a divisive feminist agenda that hurts combat readiness”.
Formation
The Women's Armed Services Integration Act of 1948 established specific roles for women in the peacetime Armed Forces of the United States. Previously, women had only been allowed to serve as nurses in peacetime with a wider variety of roles only open to them in time of war. However, with the start of the Korean War in June 1950, the DoD began to investigate ways to increase recruitment and retention of women in all services. Internal inquiries from defense agencies, such as the National Security Resources Board, and external pressure from politicians, such as Senator Margaret Chase Smith, added to the sense of urgency in defining a more comprehensive position for women in the military.
At the suggestion of Assistant Secretary of Defense for Manpower Anna Rosenberg, Marshall formed the Defense Advisory Committee on Women in the Services in August 1951. Its first chair was Mary Pillsbury Lord, a civic activist who had been chair of the National Civilian Advisory Committee of the Women's Army Corps (WAC). Meeting for three days at the Pentagon in 1951, they heard presentations about recruiting and the possible need for a women's draft based on the failure of recruiting during World War II to meet the military services' requirements for women. The committee helped to develop policies and standards for women in the military—using them, expanding their opportunities, recruiting them, and training them. The committee ensured that military women would have representation at the Department of Defense.
Membership
Committee members included leaders with diverse, inclusive, and varied backgrounds from academia, industry, private and public sectors, and other professions. Membership selection was on the basis of experience with the military or with women-related workforce issues. Members were appointed for a 4-year term of service (renewed annually), served without compensation, and performed a variety of duties, which included: visiting military installations; conducting a review and evaluation of research on women; and developing a comprehensive annual report with recommendations for consideration by the Secretary of Defense. Of note, Committee members were appointed to serve as independent advisors, not as official representatives of any group or organization with which they were affiliated.
!Term
!Chair
|-
|1951
|Mrs. Mary Pillsbury Lord
|-
|1952–1953
|Lena Ebeling
|-
|1954
|Eve Rawlinson Lee
|-
|1955
|Evelyn Crowther
|-
|1956–1957
|Margaret Divver
|-
|1958
|Murray Pearce Hurley
|-
|1959
|Janet P. Tourtellotte
|-
|1960
|Margaret Drexel Biddle
|-
|1961
|Lucia Myers
|-
|1962
|Nona Quarles
|-
|1963
| Margaret J. Gilkey
|-
|1964
| Betty M. Hayenga
|-
|1965
|Elinor Guggenheimer
|-
|1966
| Agnes O’Brien Smith
|-
|1967
|Dr. Minnie C. Miles
|-
|1968
|Dr. Geraldine P. Woods
|-
|1969
|Dr. Hester Turner
|-
|1970
|Dr. Majorie S. Dunlap
|-
|1971
|Helen K. Leslie
|-
|1972
|Estelle M. Stacy
|-
|1973
|Fran A. Harris
|-
|1974
|Wilma C. Rogalin
|-
|1975
|Nita D. Veneman
|-
|1976
|Judith Nixon Turnbull
|-
|1977-1978
| Piilani C. Desha
|-
|1979-1980
|Sally K. Richardson
|-
|1981
|Dr. Gloria D. Scott
|-
|1982
|Maria Elena Torralva
|-
|1983
|Dr. Mary Evelyn Blagg Huey
|-
|1984
|Anne L. Schulze
|-
|1985
|Constance Berry Newman
|-
|1986-1988
|Dr. Jacquelyn K. Davis
|-
|1989
|Dr. Connie S. Lee
|-
|1990
|Meredith A. Neizer
|-
|1991
|Becky Costantino
|-
|1992
|Jean Appleby Jackson
|-
|1993
|Ellen P. Murdoch
|-
|1994
|Wilma Powell
|-
|1995
|Sue Ann Tempero
|-
|1996
|Holly K. Hemphill
|-
|1997
|Dr. Judith Youngman
|-
|1998
|Elizabeth T. Bilby
|-
|1999
|Mary Wamsley
|-
|2000-2001
|Vickie L. McCall
|-
|2002-2005
|Lieutenant General (Retired) Carol A. Mutter, U.S. Marine Corps
|-
|2006-2009
|Mary Nelson
|-
|2010-2011
|Lieutenant General (Retired) Claudia J. Kennedy, U.S. Army
|-
|2012-2014
|Holly K. Hemphill
|-
|2014-2016
|Lieutenant General (Retired) Frances Wilson, U.S. Marine Corps
|-
|2016-2021
|General (Retired) Janet C. Wolfenbarger, U.S. Air Force
|-
|2022-2025
|Shelly O'Neill Stoneman
|}
Recommendations
DACOWITS’ recommendations addressed a variety of topics and subtopics throughout the years. The table below lists the most common topics of concern the committee addressed.
{| class="wikitable"
|+Common themes and subthemes addressed in DACOWITS recommendations, 1967 to 2020