List of United States Military Academy first captains
The Corps of Cadets at the United States Military Academy (USMA), at West Point, New York, is organized into a brigade. The senior ranking cadet, the brigade commander, is known traditionally as the first captain, a leadership position created in 1872. The first captain is responsible for the overall performance of the 4,400-strong Corps of Cadets, including the implementing of a class agenda and acting as a liaison between the corps and the administration. The rigid screening process begins with the applications for enrollment being submitted to either Federal-level legislators, or to the president or vice president of the United States. Once enrolled at the academy, each student's performance is closely tracked through the first three years, at the end of which, the individual top-performing cadet is named first captain for the ensuing academic year. Among the notable historical figures who held that position were John J. Pershing, Douglas MacArthur, and William Westmoreland. During the academy's first 174 years, only men were admitted, with Henry Ossian Flipper in 1877 being the first African-American graduate. Vincent K. Brooks in 1980 was the first African American to hold the rank of first captain, and John Tien, who became the Deputy Secretary of