In 1942, Mildred McAfee took a leave from her position as President of Wellesley College to become the director of the newly formed WAVES (Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service). At one point, McAfee was commanding more than 80,000 women, and she later became the first woman to receive the Navy Distinguished Service Medal.

• Louise Currie Wilmot
• Rear Admiral Louise Currie Wilmot USN was the first woman to command a United States Naval base. When she retired after thirty years of service, she was the highest ranking female Naval officer. Wikipedia