LADIES Federal Law Enforcement

In 1972, a cohort of mostly male students at the FBI Academy recognized that the Bureau was forever changed and saw red -- in the shape of a female form -- as Joanne Pierce Misko and Susan Roley Malone, the first women special agents reported for training in Quantico, Virginia when the Bureau began accepting applications from women. Until then, the FBI maintained that women were not physically equipped for the rigors of being a special agent, which includes making arrests, participating in raids, and engaging in self defense.

Up until that point, women who applied would receive rejection letters signed by

President J. Edgar Hoover, whose decision it was to exclude women from the FBI for roles other than secretarial positions. It wasn’t until after Hoover’s death that women were permitted to apply, and today, copies of Hoover’s infamous rejection letters are often given to women once they’re hired to signify how far women have come.

Today, there are more than 2,600 female special agents who serve and lead the FBI’s counterterrorism, cyber, counterintelligence, and criminal squads. Despite the FBI’s acceptance of women for more than 50 years, they continue to face stigma and inequality.

At the FBI El Paso Division, women occupy a multitude of roles that are dispelling stigma surrounding women in law enforcement, while also inspiring younger generations.

The City Magazine sat down with Special Agent Jeanette Harper, equipment specialist Elvira Flores, and supervisory intelligence analyst Veronica Stockard to discuss breaking glass ceilings in the FBI, while also contributing to catching bad guys.

“When I was in Quantico, I had classmates tell me that I didn’t belong there,” says Harper. So, it really kind of just pushed me to show them wrong. Like, ‘I deserve to be here just as much as you do. And I’m probably better than you.’ There are a lot of different aspects that women bring to the table.”

Flores is one of the only women auto mechanics within the Bureau but plays a pivotal role, literally ensuring the wheels keep rolling. The FBI El Paso Division has 117 agents who are issued vehicles that Flores and two other mechanics provide regular maintenance to and fix if involved in an accident.

“If not for them, we wouldn’t be out on the streets, conducting surveillance, and our specialty vehicles would not be functional,” explains Harper. “She has a very important role as far as keeping us out on the streets of the community.”

For Flores, it’s all about teamwork.

“Knowing that I’m helping catch the bad guys,” says Flores, “is a win-win for me.” mechanics from other states. I’ve not had one issue with disrespect or any doubt as to my abilities,” she says.

Flores has been with the FBI as an auto mechanic for a decade and says that she remains the only female mechanic she’s encountered.

The FBI launched its Office of Diversity and Inclusion in 2012 to provide guidance and implement programs that promote diverse and inclusive workplaces for its employees.

“The FBI’s efforts to diversify are crucial to creating an inclusive workforce and to being increasingly effective and efficient in our investigations and keeping the American public safe,” says Scott McMillion, FBI Chief Diversity Officer.

The impact of women in the FBI has enhanced the Bureau’s mission and priorities.

“We have a different perspective and how we look at things or combat things. We bring that to the table and have been able to achieve a higher level than before,” says Harper.

In El Paso, women born and raised in the community are able to give back by working for the FBI and contribute to positive change.

“I grew up in a law enforcement household, but I was determined to not work in law enforcement,” explains Stockard. “But as I was going through grad school, I needed a job, so I started working for the sheriff’s department and loved it. I think I just ended up where I needed to be.”

Stockard’s work as an intelligence analyst involves gathering and interpreting information in an investigation that assists the agents in making an arrest.

“I will say though, I have not had one problem with any of the mechanics that I’ve met. We have trainings, and so I get to meet the other

“Intel tends to be primarily female. It’s an interesting, almost like a sibling dynamic sometimes between as and the agents,” says Stockard. “But for intel, recently we’ve seen more women rise to high levels within the Bureau. It’s an exciting time because we are promoting higher and we’re starting to be at the same level as the agents, but now we have women in those roles.”

Despite the rise of women within the FBI, stigma still exists that special agents like Harper use to their advantage.

“Many people are used to seeing males in that role,” she explains. “So they assume that you’re going to be wearing a pantsuit, but when you show up in a dress, they’re like ‘Wait a minute, women agents can wear a dress?’ That’s not the persona people think of as an agent, so we bring all sorts of different feminine energy towards that role that a lot of people are not used to, which also works in our favor. I can be out on surveillance and I’ll look like a soccer mom and nobody will know I’m undercover.”

Harper was the first in her family to graduate college, with her sister and stepsister following in her academic footsteps shortly after. Although able to go undercover, Harper and her female colleagues are also in the spotlight as role models to their communities and families as examples of women who took a chance at flight and soared.

“Growing up as just a poor kid from Lower Valley, I never saw myself working for the FBI,” says Flores. “That was not something you saw on TV. You didn’t see female mechanics on TV. I’m glad that I listened to myself, and said ‘Just do it. If it works, it works. And if it doesn’t, you tried.’”

Flores, Harper, and Stockard are all incredibly proud of their personal and professional accomplishments within the FBI and encourage other women to consider a career as a federal law enforcement officer:

“Women, in general, we underestimate ourselves -- we underestimate our full potential. I think we have to work on that in order to be that strong, independent person. Because once you overcome that, you can achieve whatever you set your mind to,” says Harper.

“I think the proudest day was the day I got sworn in at Quantico, and I will never forget that feeling of just complete pride. I felt like my heart was going to jump out of my chest as we’re getting sworn in,” says Stockard.

“Surround yourself with good people, supportive people, because you always have the naysayers, especially if you’re going to get into a role that is typically male,” says Flores. “You want to surround yourself with people who are going to encourage you and you know most importantly is is to work on yourself and to be a strong person on your own.”