Texas A&M University has announced the Corps of Cadets will be led by a woman for the first time in the university's 139-year history.
The university said Monday that junior Alyssa Marie Michalke of the Fayette County town of Schulenburg will assume command of more than 2,400 cadets in the spring.
Michalke currently is corps sergeant major, the highest rank for a cadet who is not a senior. She's the first woman to hold that rank.
She's expected to lead the largest A&M corps in 45 years. The university says the Corps of Cadets has increased its ranks by more than 450 students since 2010. The growth has resulted in the reactivation in recent years of seven company-size units.
She will replace Corps Commander David Trigg of San Antonio.
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