She is the first woman Marine to command a recruiting station, the first woman Marine to command Marine Corps Recruit Depot in San Diego, California and on May 12th, she was promoted to Major General at The Clubs At Quantico, VA. Maj. Gen. was accompanied to the ceremony by her mother and two sisters, Janie and Irene, who had the honor of pinning on her second star. “Family is very important in your success,� said Salinas, who also presented her mother and sisters with a bouquet of flowers.

Enlisted in the Marine Corps in 1974 and selected for the Enlisting Commissioning Program in 1977, Salinas spent 36 years on active duty. In June 1989, Major General Salinas assumed command of Recruiting Station Charleston and became the first woman in the Marine Corps to command a recruiting station. In June 1992, she became the first woman assigned as a combat service support ground monitor responsible for the assignments of over 1000 senior officers. She was the first female assigned as a plans and policy officer for a major combatant command in 1999, and in May 2001 when she assumed command of the 12th Marine Corps District, became the first woman to serve as a recruiting district commanding officer. She is the first woman to command the Marine Corps Recruit Depot/Western Recruiting Region in San Diego, CA.

Major General Salinas is a 1976 graduate of Dominican College of San Rafael, CA, where she received her B.A. in history. She received her Master’s from the Naval War College in 1992. She is a graduate of the Amphibious Warfare School, the Naval War College’s Command and Staff College and the Army War College.