Since 1996, the Women of Color STEM gala has had many trailblazers walk across the stage. In 2002, Sarah M. Salazar, the first Hispanic female Regimental Commander at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, won the Student Leadership Award at the undergraduate level.
As a Cadet 1st Class, she distinguished herself as the highest-ranking cadet in a corps of more than 850 cadets.
Cadet 1/c Salazar is celebrated in the "Women in the U. S. Coast Guard - Moments in History" list
In 2021, another trailblazing cadet received the Student Leadership Award at WOC DTX 2021.
The award went to former first-class cadet Emi Siler. At the academy, she served as the company commander’s representative and assisted the company commander in the execution of all duties.
She also supervised the company officer of the day, a first-class cadet or second-class cadet responsible for ensuring adherence to the plan of the day.
