Center for Women Veterans: Advisory Committee on Women Veterans

United States Department of Veterans Affairs

The Advisory Committee on Women Veterans (ACWV) was established and chartered in November 1983 by Public Law 98-160. The Advisory Committee on Women Veterans assesses the needs of women Veterans, with respect to VA programs such as compensation, rehabilitation, outreach, healthcare, etc. The Committee reviews VA's programs, activities, research projects and other initiatives designed to meet the needs of women Veterans; and makes recommendations to the Secretary on ways to improve, modify, and affect change in programs and services for women Veterans and follows up on all those recommendations.

• Shirley Ann Quarles, (Chair), McCormick, SC. Colonel, U.S. Army Reserve, Nurse Corps; currently a professor at Medical College of Georgia’s School of Nursing.

• Matrice W. Browne, M.D., Olney, MD. A retired Army Colonel; currently in private practice, specializing in women’s health and gynecology-- from adolescent to post menopausal care--to include surgical management of gynecological problems and preventative care. She also serves as adjunct assistant professor of obstetrics/gynecology at two universities.

• Jack Phillip Carter, Jr., Bradenton, FL. A retired Marine Corps Lieutenant Colonel, decorated for valor during the Persian Gulf War; currently serves as lead detective of the economic crimes section for the Sarasota police department.

• Valerie Cortazzo, Pittsburgh, PA. A former Navy Third Class Petty Officer, served as an administrative assistant and former employee of the Pittsburgh VA Health Care System; currently serves as an advocate for Veterans in southwestern Pennsylvania, specializing in mental health and women’s issues.

• Karen S. Etzler, Port Charlotte, FL. A former U.S. Air Force pneudraulic aircraft mechanic and personal affairs counselor; retired Veterans service officer/counselor and the women Veteran coordinator/counselor for the Missouri Veterans Commission.

• Nancy A. Glowacki, Silver Spring, MD. A former Army Reserves officer; currently owns a consulting firm, where she serves as a subject matter expert on Veterans’ transition issues, specializing in employment and special challenges of disabled Veterans and Veterans of the Global War on Terrorism.

• Nancy Kaczor, Franklin, WI. A retired Air Force Colonel, with service in Kosovo, Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan; currently serves as an active volunteer for a number of Veterans and community service organizations.

• Lindsay M. Long, Knoxville, TN. A former Marine Lance Corporal, served as an aviation electronics technician trainee; currently works as a chemical operator for a private contractor, and serves as the American Indian representative for the Department of Energy’s Native American Committee.

• Gundel M. E. Metz, Madison, WI. A retired Army Sergeant First Class; currently serves as a Women Veterans Coordinator for the State of Wisconsin Department of Veterans Affairs.

• Terry F. Moore, Stetson, ME. A retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel; currently serves as chair of the Maine Advisory Commission on Women Veterans, and serves on several professional and Veterans service organizations.

• Barbara Ward, Sacramento, CA. A former Air Force staff nurse; currently serves as the Deputy Secretary for Women and Minority Veterans Affairs for the California Department of Veterans Affairs.

• Kayla Williams, Ashburn, VA. A former Army Sergeant, served as an interpreter, with service in Iraq; currently employed as a project associate in a private research organization, conducting research and analysis on intelligence, defense, military, and Veterans’ issues.