ABSTRACT
Innovations in military ranks are uncommon. An exception has been the evolution of warrant officer grades in the United States armed forces. Viewed as enlisted personnel for much of their history, warrant officers have moved ever closer to the roles and status of commissioned officers. The steps in this process have included the appointment of enlisted personnel to warrant officer grades to meet service needs rather than to provide individual rewards, the creation of a longer warrant officer career ladder, the conferral of commissions on warrant officers, the application of more stringent standards for warrant officers, the enhancement of warrant officer training and education, the provision ofa rite ofpassage from enlisted to officer status, and the acknowledgement of the potential or actual command duties of warrant officers.
