WASHINGTON ( CNN ) -- America 's first female four-star general has been nominated , the Pentagon announced Monday . Lt. Gen. Ann E. Dunwoody was nominated to be America 's first four-star female general . President Bush nominated Lt. Gen. Ann E. Dunwoody to serve as head of the Army 's supply arm . By law women are excluded from combat jobs , the typical path to four-star rank in the military . `` This is an historic occasion for the Department of Defense and I am proud to nominate Lt. Gen. Ann Dunwoody for a fourth star , '' said Defense Secretary Robert Gates . `` Her 33 years of service , highlighted by extraordinary leadership and devotion to duty , make her exceptionally qualified for this senior position . '' The Senate must approve the nomination . Dunwoody , a native of New York , was commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1975 after her graduation from the State University of New York in Cortland . She also holds graduate degrees in national resource strategy and logistics management . She became the Army 's top-ranking woman in 2005 when she received her third star and became deputy chief of staff for Army logistics . `` I am very honored but also very humbled today with this announcement , '' said Dunwoody . `` I grew up in a family that did n't know what glass ceilings were . This nomination only reaffirms what I have known to be true about the military throughout my career ... that the doors continue to open for men and women in uniform . '' The Army Materiel Command handles all material readiness for the Army . During her career , Dunwoody has been assigned to the 82nd Airborne Division , 10th Mountain Division and the Defense Logistics Agency . She served with the 82nd Airborne in Saudi Arabia during the 1991 Persian Gulf War . She has been awarded the Distinguished Service Medal , Defense Superior Service Medal , the Legion of Merit , the Meritorious Service Medal , the Army Commendation Medal , the Army Achievement Medal , Master Parachutist Badge and the Army Staff Identification Badge . The first woman to become a general officer in the U.S. armed services was Brig . Gen. Anna Mae Hays , chief of the Army Nurse Corps , who achieved the rank in 1970 and retired the following year . Elizabeth Hoisington , the director of the Women 's Army Corps , was promoted to brigadier general immediately after Hays . She also retired the following year . Maj. Gen. Jeanne M. Holm , the first director of Women in the Air Force , was the first woman to wear two stars , attaining the rank in 1973 and retiring two years later . In 1996 , Marine Lt. Gen. Carol A . Mutter became the first woman to wear three stars . Mutter retired in 1999 . Currently , there are 57 active-duty women serving as generals or admirals , five of whom are lieutenant generals or vice admirals , the Navy 's three-star rank , according to the Pentagon .
Bush nominated Lt. Gen. Ann E. Dunwoody to be head of Army 's supply arm . By law women are excluded from combat jobs , the typical path to four-star rank . Dunwoody has served 33 years , and became Army 's top-ranking woman in 2005 . There are 57 active-duty women serving as generals or admirals .