The Coed Affiliates Pershing Rifles (CAPER) was established in 1966 as the first officially recognized female auxiliary to the National Society of

Pershing Rifles The National Society of Pershing Rifles is a military-oriented honor society for college-level students founded in 1894 as a drill unit at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. It is the oldest continuously operating US college organization dedic ...

. It was disbanded in the early 1980s when women were fully integrated into Pershing Rifles. The organization has also been called the Coed Affiliates of Pershing Rifles and CAPERS over the years.

Mission

Like Pershing Rifles, the Coed Affiliates Pershing Rifles was focused on drill and ceremony and CAPER teams competed in local and national drill meets.

History

Over the years various women's auxiliaries to Pershing Rifles were formed at the local level. One of the earliest coed group know to be associated with Pershing Rifles was the Cadence Countesses established at the

University of Nebraska A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, ...

in 1959. In 1963 women at the

University of Oklahoma , mottoeng = "For the benefit of the Citizen and the State" , type = Public research university , established = , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.7billion (2021) , pr ...

asked to start a female drill group affiliated with Pershing Rifles Company H-7. This led to the formation of the Kaydettes drill team. By the fall of 1965, the Kaydettes members thought that there should be a national level organization for coed groups affiliated with Pershing Rifles. They petitioned the National Headquarters of Pershing Rifles in Lincoln, Nebraska and were given permission to establish such an organization. They then contacted existing coed groups across the country to start the foundation for a nationwide organization. On January 1, 1966 the Kaydettes were established as the national female auxiliary for Pershing Rifles under the supervision of the Seventh Regimental Headquarters. However the Kaydettes name was not acceptable because it would cause already established coed groups to change the unique names of their local units. So on November 26, 1966, at the Pershing Rifles Fall Little National Convention the organization's name was changed to the Coed Affiliates Pershing Rifles (CAPER) and came under the direct supervision of Pershing Rifles National Headquarters. The first CAPER National Convention was held in Washington DC in the spring of 1967 in conjunction with the Pershing Rifles National Convention and Drill Meet. Five CAPER Companies were present, as well as observers from universities considering charting with CAPER. By the end of the 1967 school year seven companies had been chartered with CAPER. By 1968 the number of chartered companies had doubled to 14. In 1969, several CAPER Regiments were established and they aligned with existing Pershing Rifles Regiments which provided some oversight. Establishment of CAPER Regiments allowed for more concentration on unit expansion and better support to local CAPER Companies. That same year, Colonel Iris Rodriguez was promoted to CAPER Brigadier General to elevate her to a rank above that of the regimental commanders. On February 5, 1972 CAPER Headquarters moved to the Kansas State University. At this time the National Staff consisted of 17 officers which had oversight for 4 Regiments and 35 Companies. At the 1973 National Convention CAPER held a separate drill meet for the first time. Around 1976 CAPER National Headquarters moved to Auburn University, In 1978 it moved to Appalachian State University and in 1979 when it again moved to

Seton Hall University Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Seton Hall is the ...

. The U.S. Armed Forces move towards fully integrating women signaled the beginning of the end of the CAPER organization. By the mid 1970s, female students were able to take

Reserve Officers Training Corps The Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC ( or )) is a group of college- and university-based officer-training programs for training commissioned officers of the United States Armed Forces. Overview While ROTC graduate officers serve in all ...

(ROTC) classes at their universities and soon were able to join Pershing Rifles. Around that same time Pershing Rifles units started allowing non-ROTC cadets to join. Eventually Pershing Rifles Companies integrated CAPER members into their organization. Although the exact date is unknown the CAPER was disbanded in the early 1980s. Some CAPER Companies chose not to join Pershing Rifles and established a new national organization called Pershing Angels that still exists today.

Units

CAPER units were predominantly on the East coast and in the South. Many CAPER companies shared the same numbering as their affiliated Pershing Rifles Company. Known Coed Affiliates Pershing Rifles (CAPER) units and other female auxiliaries to Pershing Rifles: CAPER 1st Regiment *

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a public land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, the university is one of the state ...

(Lexington, KY) "Kentucky Babes" and "Les Sabres" affiliated with Pershing Rifles Company C-1 *

Ohio University Ohio University is a public research university in Athens, Ohio. The first university chartered by an Act of Congress and the first to be chartered in Ohio, the university was chartered in 1787 by the Congress of the Confederation and subseq ...

(Athens, OH) CAPER Company F-1 *

West Virginia State University West Virginia State University (WVSU) is a public historically black, land-grant university in Institute, West Virginia. Founded in 1891 as the West Virginia Colored Institute, it is one of the original 19 land-grant colleges and universities ...

(Institute, WV) CAPER Company H-1 "Kaydettes" *

Marshall University Marshall University is a public research university in Huntington, West Virginia. It was founded in 1837 and is named after John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the United States. The university is currently composed of nine colleges: ...

(Huntington, WV) CAPER Company N-1 and CAPER 1st Regimental Headquarters * Central State College (Wilberforce, OH) CAPER Company T-1 Units affiliated with 2nd Regiment Pershing Rifles * University of Nebraska - Lincoln (Lincoln, NE) "Cadence Countesses" affiliated with Pershing Rifles Company A-2 *

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public land-grant research university in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. ...

(Minneapolis, MN) CAPER Company E-2 * St. John's University (Collegeville, MN) "Petticoat Platoon" at St. Benedict College affiliated with Pershing Rifles Company H-2 * Lincoln University (Jefferson City, MO) Pershing Angels Company A-7-5 affiliated with Pershing Rifles Company M-7 * South Dakota State College now University (Brookings, SD) "Pershingettes" affiliated with Pershing Rifles Company K-2 Units affiliated with 3rd Regiment Pershing Rifles *

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universi ...

(Bloomington) CAPER Company A-3 "Crimson Cadettes" CAPER 4th Regiment *

Tennessee Tech Tennessee Technological University, commonly referred to as Tennessee Tech, is a public research university in Cookeville, Tennessee, United States. It was formerly known as Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, and before that as University of Dixie ...

(Polytechnic Institute) (Crossville, TN) CAPER Company B-4 *

Clemson University Clemson University () is a public land-grant research university in Clemson, South Carolina. Founded in 1889, Clemson is the second-largest university in the student population in South Carolina. For the fall 2019 semester, the university enr ...

(Clemson, SC) CAPER Company C-4 and CAPER 4th Regimental Headquarters *

Wake Forest University Wake Forest University is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The Reynolda Campus, the un ...

(Winston-Salem, NC) CAPER Company D-4 * Auburn University (Auburn, GA) CAPER Company G-4 and CAPER National Headquarters (1976–77) *

South Carolina State University South Carolina State University (SCSU or SC State) is a public, historically black, land-grant university in Orangeburg, South Carolina, United States. It is the only public, historically black land-grant institution in South Carolina, is a memb ...

(Orangeburg, SC) CAPER Company K-4 / Pershing Angels Company K-4 * North Carolina State University (Raleigh, NC) CAPER Company L-4 * Appalachian State University (Boone, NC) CAPER Company M-4 and CAPER National Headquarters (1978) * North Carolina A & T University (Greensboro, NC) CAPER Company N-4 / Pershing Angels Company N-4 *

Virginia State University Virginia State University (VSU or Virginia State) is a public historically Black land-grant university in Ettrick, Virginia. Founded on , Virginia State developed as the United States's first fully state-supported four-year institution of hi ...

(Petersburg, VA) Pershing Angels Company O-4 *

Tuskegee University Tuskegee University (Tuskegee or TU), formerly known as the Tuskegee Institute, is a private, historically black land-grant university in Tuskegee, Alabama. It was founded on Independence Day in 1881 by the state legislature. The campus was de ...

(Tuskegee Inst, AL) CAPER Company P-4 / Pershing Angels Company P-4-5 *

Norfolk State University Norfolk State University (NSU) is a public historically black university in Norfolk, Virginia. It is a member of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund and Virginia High-Tech Partnership. History The institution was founded on September 18, 1935 ...

(Norfolk, VA) CAPER Company C-15 / Pershing Angels Company R-4-5 * Hampton University (Hampton, VA) CAPER Company D-15 / Pershing Angels Company U-4-5 *

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

(Nashville, TN) Coed group at University of South Alabama, "Kaydettes" affiliated with Pershing Rifles Company V-4 CAPER 5th Regiment * Pennsylvania State University - Altoona Campus CAPER Company A-5 * Pennsylvania State University - University Park Campus CAPER Company B-5 and CAPER 5th Regimental Headquarters *

University of Pittsburgh The University of Pittsburgh (Pitt) is a public state-related research university in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The university is composed of 17 undergraduate and graduate schools and colleges at its urban Pittsburgh campus, home to the univers ...

(Pittsburgh, PA) CAPER Company K-5 Units affiliated with 6th Regiment Pershing Rifles *

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University (officially Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as LSU) is a public land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The university was founded in 1860 nea ...

(Baton Rouge, LA) CAPER Company D-6 * Loyola University (New Orleans, LA) CAPER Company I-6 Units affiliated with 7th Regiment Pershing Rifles *

University of Kansas The University of Kansas (KU) is a public research university with its main campus in Lawrence, Kansas, United States, and several satellite campuses, research and educational centers, medical centers, and classes across the state of Kansas. T ...

(Lawrence, KS) E-Co "Berets" affiliated with Pershing Rifles Company E-7 * Kansas State University (Manhattan, KS) CAPER Company G-7 and CAPER National Headquarters (1972–76) *

(Norman, OK) "Kaydettes", CAPERS Headquarters Company H-7 and CAPER National Headquarters (1966–72) * Lincoln University (Jefferson City, MO) PA com A-7-5 affiliated with Pershing Rifles Company M-7 Units affiliated with 8th Regiment Pershing Rifles *

Howard University Howard University (Howard) is a Private university, private, University charter#Federal, federally chartered historically black research university in Washington, D.C. It is Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education, classifie ...

(Washington, DC) Pershing Angels Company G-8-5 *

Morgan State University Morgan State University (Morgan State or MSU) is a public historically black research university in Baltimore, Maryland. It is the largest of Maryland's historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). In 1867, the university, then known a ...

(Baltimore, MD) CAPER Company H-15 / Pershing Angels Company J-8-5 *

(South Orange, NJ) CAPER Company K-8, CAPER National Headquarters (1979-?) * St. Peters College (Jersey City, NJ) CAPER Company N-8 / Pershing Angels National Headquarters * Hofstra University (Hempstead, NY) CAPER Company Q-8 CAPER 9th Regiment *

University of Colorado The University of Colorado (CU) is a system of public universities in Colorado. It consists of four institutions: University of Colorado Boulder, University of Colorado Colorado Springs, University of Colorado Denver, and the University o ...

(Boulder, CO) CAPER Company B-9 and CAPER 6th Regimental Headquarters Units affiliated with 10th Regiment Pershing Rifles *

New Mexico State University New Mexico State University (NMSU or NM State) is a public land-grant research university based primarily in Las Cruces, New Mexico. Founded in 1888, it is the oldest public institution of higher education in New Mexico and one of the state's ...

(Las Cruces, NM) CAPER Company C-10 Units affiliated with 12th Regiment Pershing Rifles *

University of Connecticut The University of Connecticut (UConn) is a public land-grant research university in Storrs, Connecticut, a village in the town of Mansfield. The primary 4,400-acre (17.8 km2) campus is in Storrs, approximately a half hour's drive from H ...

(Storrs, Conn) CAPER Company F-12 Units affiliated with 16th Regiment Pershing Rifles * Alcorn State University (Lorman, Mississippi) CAPER Company B-16 *

Florida A & M University Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University (FAMU), commonly known as Florida A&M, is a public historically black land-grant university in Tallahassee, Florida. Founded in 1887, It is the third largest historically black university in the Un ...

(Tallahassee) CAPER Company C-16 / Pershing Angels Company C-16 * Florida State University (Tallahassee) CAPER Company M-16 *

Fort Valley State University } Fort Valley State University (FVSU, formerly Fort Valley State College and Fort Valley Normal and Industrial School) is a public land-grant historically black university in Fort Valley, Georgia. It is part of the University System of Georgia and ...

(Fort Valley) Pershing Angels Company A-16 Units affiliated with 17th Regiment Pershing Rifles * Hardin-Simmons University (Abilene, TX) CAPER Company L-17 * Prairie View A&M University (Prairie View, TX) CAPER Company Q-17 * Trinity University (San Antonio, TX) CAPER Company R-17

Commanders

*1966 – COL Gloria Robinson / COL Tanya (McDonald) Miller *1967 – COL Patricia Gail (Todd) Kish / COL Kathryn "Kay" Sykes *1968 – COL Nina Rose Jacoby / COL Gwen Coley *1969 – BG Iris Rodriguez *1970 – BG Linda Grissette *1971 – BG Paulette (Kikugawa) Lum *1972 - BG Gwen (Howell) Kelly /BG Susan Linholm *1973 – BG Rhonda (McGuire) McCommons *1974 – BG Elizabeth Cramer *1975-77 - Unknown *1978 – BG Susan B. Rice *1979 – BG Cheryl Beers-Cullan *1980 - BG Sharon Sanders *1981 – BG Shirley Jones *1985- BG Fran Lopes *1986- BG Irene Rodriguez

External links

CAPER National Alumni Association
{{authority control Military education and training in the United States 1966 establishments in Oklahoma Honor societies Pershing Rifles Student organizations established in 1966