How I got here: Pine Bluff, Ark. native, Sgt. Maj. Murphy

Photo By Sgt. Tyler Main | Sgt. Maj. Stephanie Murphy shattered stereotypes throughout her career and continued to push to achieve more than what was expected or allowed for her gender. She now serves as the sergeant major of Officer Candidates School at Marine Corps Base Quantico, Va.  

MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, VA, UNITED STATES

04.08.2014

Courtesy Story

Defense Media Activity - Marines

MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, Va. - Twenty-six years ago, a single mother joined the Marine Corps so she could have money for an education. She had every intention of getting out after her first enlistment. However, she soon found her niche in an environment that rewarded hard work and challenged her to keep striving for more.

Now she serves as the sergeant major of the command that shapes the Marine Corps’ future officers.

Here we borrow fragments of Sgt. Maj. Stephanie Murphy’s 26 years of service in the Corps as she continually pushed the limits of what was accepted for her gender and consciously sacrificed ever finding true love.

The Marine Corps wasn’t my first choice. I had an appointment with the Navy, but the Navy recruiter wasn’t there. And that’s how I joined the Marine Corps.

My mother was upset when I joined. She still gets upset right now.

Nowadays, you can have a child when you come in the Marine Corps. It’s not a big deal. At that time, you could not have an illegitimate child. You had to be married.

I had to give my daughter up for adoption. It was a temporary adoption to my parents. My daughter was six months when I left for boot camp.

I was only going to do four years in the military. I was only coming in for my education. It was all about me initially.

The first time I reenlisted I was a lance corporal — I didn’t have any money. I couldn’t get out — I was still as broke as when I came in.
When you’re in the Marines, you’re expected to do whatever they want you to whenever they want you to do it. But that isn’t always the case as a single parent.

If I had to stay late when I first came in, I always had to walk across the street to the childcare center, get my daughter and bring her over to my job. Childcare is the biggest problem.
A MarAdmin was published requesting five drill instructors for the Naval Officer Candidate School at Pensacola. I put a request in and got a phone call from the monitor. The monitor asked me if I knew it was only training for men and a few women. I asked if there was something that said I couldn’t go. He said no … so I put in for it.

They did not want me to go.

When I checked in, I was a movie star and I didn’t even know it.
The first class I got of officer candidates was all male — not one female in the class. Not one.

The master guns had given me a warning before I got there. He said they hadn’t had any females at OCS, and they hadn’t had any problems; and they didn’t want to start having any problems.
Don’t do what others want you to do — you have to have it in your heart to do it yourself. If you’ve got it in your heart, I don’t care what it is or how tough it is, you’ll be able to do it because it’s something that you want. But if you’re doing it for someone else, then it’s the wrong reason and it’s going to be hard to achieve.
The biggest thing I’ve sacrificed, I think, is love. If I weren’t pushing myself to do other things and change the path I was taking, I wouldn’t have been moving from duty station to duty station so fast.

Then I could have slowed down and maybe found somebody to love.

My daughter made my lunch, or whatever I needed her to do, she did all of that. She’s a good, old housewife, that’s what I call her when I’m messing with her.

I don’t think women have to sacrifice more. I think that we have to demonstrate more to get higher because of the unbelief that we can.

There aren’t that many of us in the Marine Corps, so when you spread us out thin, there are none of us.

Being selected for sergeant major was awesome. When I got selected, there were only 53, which is none. That’s some slim pickings.

What motivates me every day is that I’ve still got a little bit to give. That’s motivating in itself, you know, not to be old and tore up. I like to get out there with the Marines and run around like a buck just like them.

Every day isn’t a sunny day, but it’s a good day.

Do I want to stay in the Marine Corps for 30 years? I’d love to stay in the Marine Corps for 30 years, but I have to take it one day at a time.

I do know there is life after I get out. I’m not afraid to go out into the civilian world. I don’t know if I’m going to fall right in, but I think I’ll soon get there.

We all have to leave the Marine Corps one day and be better citizens in society. If you focus on that, you’ll be a good Marine.
Always learn something. Every day there is something to learn. When you stop learning, you’re not here anymore.

Sgt. Maj. Stephanie Murphy lists the top four achievements that helped shape her career.

Billet Assignments

During my career, I have PCS’d to 12 different duty stations ranging from East Coast and West Coast to overseas assignments. My billet assignments have widened my range of examples of leadership. They have also opened my aperture for experiences from many senior leaders.

PME

I have completed all levels of Professional Military Education (PME) from Leading Marines to the Command and Staff Program. PME has given me the opportunity to learn at each level of the ranks by increasing my role in garrison and operational environments. PME has equipped me with the analytical skills necessary to exercise sound military judgment and professionally grow and develop as a Marine.

Special Duty Assignment

I have completed three successful tours on Special Duty Assignment as a drill instructor. I am currently on my fourth tour as the Sergeant Major of Officer Candidates School. These SDAs have enabled me to go outside of my primary military occupational specialty of Traffic Management Specialist. The different types of experiences of making a Marine, making Naval Officers and making Marine Officers have given me the institutional understanding of the importance of developing and transforming future leaders.

Deployments

Deployments allowed me to capture the true experience of being a Marine.

• Date Taken: 04.08.2014
• Date Posted: 04.15.2014 13:38
• Story ID: 126046
• Location: MARINE CORPS BASE QUANTICO, VA, US
• Hometown: PINE BLUFF, AR, US