May 31, 2024
Elizabeth Reynard, Virginia Gildersleeve, and the Birth of the WAVES
Elizabeth Reynard, an English professor, was the second in command of the WAVES, or Women Accepted for Volunteer Emergency Service, during World War II. Together with Virginia Gildersleeve, the politically and socially well-connected dean of Barnard College, Reynard laid the foundation for the Women’s Reserve, which opened doors to naval service