The Robertson School of Government Honors Virginia’s Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears with the Distinguished Statesman Award

VIRGINIA BEACH, VA (June 29, 2023) – The Robertson School of Government has selected Winsome Earle-Sears, Lieutenant Governor of Virginia, as a recipient of its Distinguished Statesman Award—an honor that recognizes those who have sacrificially enhanced our country through their extraordinary contribution to public service.

Prior to securing the office of lieutenant governor in 2021 and making Virginia history as the first Black female elected to statewide office, Earle-Sears served her country in the United States Marine Corps from 1983 to 1986. She continued her career of service as Vice President of the Virginia State Board of Education, the presidential appointee to the U.S. Census Bureau, and as Co-Chair of both the African American Committee, as well as the Advisory Committee on Women Veterans to the Secretary of Veterans Affairs.

In addition to this new honor, Earle-Sears was named the Regent University Alumnus of the Year in 2022. She earned her M.A. in Organizational Leadership from the School of Business & Leadership in 2003.

“The Honorable Winsome Earle-Sears has surrendered her life to the service of Christ and country,” said the Hon. Michele Bachmann, Dean of the Robertson School of Government. “She has taken on the responsibility of government and uses the values and goals of the gospel to implement wise and effective policies.”

Lt. Governor Earle-Sears becomes the third recipient in an elite group of trailblazers. Attorney General John Ashcroft, a distinguished professor at Regent University, was awarded the honor at the start of 2023. The Honorable Michael R. Pompeo was the inaugural recipient of the Regent University Robertson School of Government’s Distinguished Statesman Award in early 2022.

The Distinguished Statesman Series seeks to celebrate truly extraordinary heroes: men and women of character and honor who have served in government in the pattern of America’s earliest brilliant statesmen.

About Regent University

Founded in 1977, Regent University is America’s premier Christian university, with more than 13,000 students studying on its 70-acre campus in Virginia Beach, Virginia, and online around the world. The university offers associate, bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in more than 150 areas of study including business, communication and the arts, counseling, cybersecurity, divinity, education, government, law, leadership, nursing, healthcare, and psychology. Regent University has been ranked the #1 Best Accredited Online College in the United States (Study.com, 2020), the #1 Safest College Campus in Virginia (YourLocalSecurity, 2021), and the #1 Best Online Bachelor’s Program in Virginia for 11 years in a row (U.S. News & World Report, 2023).

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