María V. Martínez

Command Sergeant Major (CSM) María V. Martínez (born c. 1960) is the first Puerto Rican female to reach the rank of Command Sergeant Major in the United States Army. She serves as Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Director of the Army Diversity Office in the Pentagon, Washington D.C.. Recipient of two Legion of Merit medals, Martínez was recognized in 1989, as the "Soldier of the Year " by the Milwaukee Recruiting Battalion.

Early years
Martínez(birth name: María Victoria Martínez) was born in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico a section of San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico. Her family moved to Chicago, Illinois when she was a child. There she received her primary and secondary education.

Military career
On January 28, 1981, Martínez joined the United States Army and received her basic recruit training at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. After graduating from basic training, she was sent to Fort Lee, Virginia, for advanced individual training.

During her years of servitude, she was assigned to various jobs and advanced through her military promotions from Private (E-1) to Staff Sergeant. Among her many assignments were the following: Specialist with the 1/7th Air Defense Artillery, Fort Bliss, Texas; Supply Sergeant, 97th General Hospital, Federal Republic, Germany, Supply Sergeant for A-2-3 Basic Training Company, Fort Leonard wood, Missouri.

In 1987, Martínez was selected by Department of Army as an Army Recruiter and assigned to the Milwaukee, Wisconsin Recruiting Battalion. She was promoted to Sergeant First Class in 1989 and was assigned as leader of the Kenosha, Wisconsin Recruiting Station as Commander/Instructor.

other assignments
Martínez her many other assignments during her military career were the following: U.S. Army’s Recruiting and Retention School at Fort Jackson, South Carolina; Recruit Counselor U.S. Army Master; Sergeant Noncommissioned Officer in Charge for Tampa Battalion Military Entrance Processing Station; Company; First Sergeant, Saint Petersburg Recruiting Company; Equal Opportunity Advisor to the Commanding General U.S. and at the Army Recruiting Command; Senior Enlisted Advisor Command Sergeant Major of the Jacksonville Recruiting Battalion.

Command Sergeant Major
On December 1, 1998, Martínez was promoted to Command Sergeant Major.She was the first Puerto Rican female to reach that rank in the United States Army. In the U.S. Army, "Sergeant Major" refers to both a military rank and a specific administrative position. The rank refers to the highest enlisted rank, just above Master Sergeant and First Sergeant, with a pay grade of E-9, NATO rank OR-9. The leadership position, "Command Sergeant Major", is the senior enlisted advisor to the commanding officer and carries with it certain ceremonial functions such as caring for the unit's colors (flag). Additionally, they serve as monitors of, and advocates for, the enlisted men in the command. This position mostly exists in units of battalion size and larger.

Because the Command Sergeant Major represents all of the enlisted soldiers in the command, she does not wear the collar insignia of her career specialty (e.g., infantry, quartermaster, intelligence, inter alia), but instead wears the Command Sergeant Major (formerly "branch immaterial") collar insignia. The insignia is a gold-color rendering of the coat of arms of the United States; like the branch of service insignia of all U.S. Army enlisted soldiers, it is placed upon a gold-colored metal disk, one inch in diameter.

As a Command Sergeant Major, Martínez has served at the Baltimore Maryland Recruiting Battalion; Senior Enlisted Advisor 1ST Recruiting Brigade and Fort Meade, Maryland; and HQ USAREC G-3 Operations as Directorate Sergeant Major at Fort Knox, Kentucky. Martínez currently serves as the Senior Enlisted Advisor to the Director of the Army Diversity Office in the Pentagon, Washington D.C.

On August 26, 2010, Martínez participated in the conference "The United States Army observance of Women's Equality Day and the 90th Anniversary of the 19th Amendment giving women the right to vote" as a presenter and panelist. In the conference Martínez was quoted as saying: "'Females in the Army think of themselves as Soldiers. They don't attach gender to the title because their mission is the same as males. When we take the oath of enlistment it's to defend the constitution of the United States of America so we're very cognizant of the fact that when the Army needs us we're going to be there no matter what!'" emphasizing that females in the Army think of themselves as Soldiers first and don't attach gender to the title because their mission is the same as males.

Military education
Among the courses which Martínez has taken and the degrees which she has earned, both military and civilian institutions, are the following.:
 * Warrior Leader Course
 * Advance Recruitment Management
 * Staff and Faculty Instructor Course
 * Department of Army First Sergeant course
 * Army Battle Staff course
 * US Army Sergeants Major Academy
 * Department of Defense Equal Opportunity Management Institute (DEOMI
 * Associate of Science Degree in Human Resources from Vincennes University, Vincennes, Indiana.
 * Bachelor of Science Degree in Human Resource Management from Regents College of New York.

Military decorations and awards
Command Sergeant Major Martínez's military awards and accomplishments include:

Awards

 * Recruiter of the Year 1987-88
 * Soldier of the Year 1989 Milwaukee Recruiting Battalion.
 * Department of Defense (DOD) Hispanic Image Award
 * National GI Forum Military Person of the Year, Washington DC
 * Recruiting Glen Morrell Order of the Medallion

Decorations

 * Legion of Merit ribbon.svg Legion of Merit with an oak leaf cluster
 * Meritorious Service ribbon.svg Meritorious Service Medal with six oak leaf clusters
 * Army Commendation Medal ribbon.svg Army Commendation Medal with five oak leaf clusters
 * Army Achievement Medal ribbon.svg Army Achievement Medal with six oak leaf clusters
 * Army Good Conduct Ribbon.jpg Army Good Conduct Medal with eight Good Conduct Loops.
 * National Defense Service Medal ribbon.svg National Defense Service Medal with an oak leaf cluster
 * Global War on Terrorism Service ribbon.svg Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
 * NCO Professional Development Ribbon.svg Non-Commissioned Officer Development Ribbon with four oak leaf clusters
 * Army Service Ribbon.svg Army Service Ribbon
 * Army Overseas Service Ribbon.svg Army Overseas Service Ribbon

Badges
Foreign badge
 * Markesman Weapons Qual Badge.png Rifle Marksmanship Badge
 * DandMBadge (Small).jpg Driver and Mechanic Badge
 * GoldRecruit.gif Gold Recruiter Badge
 * Foreign Recruiting Badge — El Salvador, San Salvador