serve as a U.S. Coast Guard Special Agent; she served in this capacity until July 2004 Fall - General Janet E. A. Hicks was promoted to Brigadier General, becoming the first female one-star general who would later be promoted to Major General in 2002, also becoming the first two-star mother and the first female Commanding General of Ft. Gordon in Augusta, Georgia. 2001 January 3 - Hillary Clinton was the first and only former First Lady of the United States to serve in the U.S. Congress; she elected to represent New York in the U.S. Senate, making her the first woman to hold that office. January 20 - Ann Veneman became the first woman to serve as Secretary of Agriculture; she served under President George W. Bush. January 31 - Gale Norton became the first woman to serve as Secretary of the Interior; she served under President George W. Bush. Stephanie Ready was the first female coach of a men's professional league team in 2001, as an assistant coach for the now defunct Greenville Groove of the National Basketball Development League (the minor league of the National Basketball Association). Margaret C. Wilmoth, United States Army Reserve, was promoted to Brigadier General, becoming the first nurse and first woman to command a medical brigade as a general officer. 2002 January 15 - Nancy Pelosi became the first woman elected House whip, making her the first woman to hold such a position in either chamber of U.S. Congress. Melanie Wood was the first American woman and the second woman overall named a Putnam Fellow. 2003 January 3 - Nancy Pelosi became the first woman elected House floor leader and minority leader, making her the first woman to lead a major political party in either chamber of U.S. Congress. 2005 Danica Patrick was the first woman to lead the Indianapolis 500. Rosa Parks was the first woman to lie in honor in the Capitol.Memorial or Funeral Services in the Capitol Rotunda, senate.gov (United States Senate); content cited to Architect of the Capitol. Retrieved November 23, 2011. 2006 Effa Manley was the first woman inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. 2007 January 4 - Nancy Pelosi became the first woman elected to serve as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives. 2008 Hillary Clinton was the first woman to win a major American party's presidential primary for the purposes