The United States Navy made history this week when promoting Michelle Janine Howard to the rank of four-star admiral during a ceremony at the Women in Military Service for America Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery.

The promotion to Vice Chief of Naval Operations made Adm. Howard the first female four-star in the 238 year history of the United States Navy.

"Michelle Howard's promotion to the rank of admiral is the result of a brilliant naval career, one I fully expect to continue when she assumes her new role as vice chief of naval operations, but also it is a historic first, an event to be celebrated as she becomes the first female to achieve this position," said Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus. "Her accomplishment is a direct example of a Navy that now, more than ever, reflects the nation it serves — a nation where success is not borne of race, gender or religion, but of skill and ability.”

Adm. Jonathan Greenert, Chief of Naval Operations, also praised Adm. Howard’s many trailblazing accomplishments, citing “her fortitude and commitment to excellence and integrity.”

Some of Adm. Howard’s awards include a 2011 USO Military Women of the Year Award and the 2013 NAACP Chairman’s Image Award.

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(Photo: US Navy)