U.S. Air Force Academy, Colo. (April 4, 2025) — The U.S. Air Force Academy Association of Graduates has announced the recipients of the 2024 Leadership Achievement Award: Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Dondi Costin, Class of 1986, and Col. (Ret.) Carolyn Benyshek, Class of 1987.

The Leadership Achievement Award honors Academy graduates who have distinguished themselves through exceptional professional accomplishments, whether in the military or the private sector. Recipients exemplify the Air Force core values of Integrity First, Service Before Self, and Excellence In All We Do. The winners are selected through a rigorous process by the AOG board of directors and members of the graduate community, from a highly accomplished pool of nominees. Graduates between 16 and 39 years post-graduation are eligible for the award.

Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Dondi Costin ’86, president of Liberty University in Virginia, had a distinguished 32-year career in the U.S. Air Force, culminating as the 18th Air Force chief of chaplains. He served as president of Charleston Southern University in South Carolina prior to his current role.

Graduating from the Academy with a degree in operations research, Gen. Costin later completed five master’s and two doctoral degrees. He earned numerous accolades during his career, including AFROTC Company Grade Officer of the Year, the JCI USA Ten Outstanding Young Americans Award, Air Force Large Chapel of the Year, and the Military Chaplains Association Distinguished Service Award. His military awards and decorations include the Distinguished Service Medal and the Bronze Star Medal. As Air Force chief of chaplains, Gen. Costin enhanced the Chaplain Corps’ mission by emphasizing religious liberty, warfighter support and family readiness. His “Faith Works” campaign highlighted the evidence-based role of faith in warfighter resilience and mission success, fully embracing the spiritual component of Comprehensive Airman Fitness.

During a one-year deployment to the Middle East, Gen. Costin served as the U.S. Air Forces Central command chaplain, overseeing the spiritual well-being of 28,000 warfighters. He led 22 teams across 10 countries, providing over 72,000 hours of face-to-face engagement, 31,000 counseling sessions, and 7,000 worship services, ensuring comprehensive mental and spiritual support for airmen in combat. As the Pacific Air Forces command chaplain, Gen. Costin supported 45,000 airmen and their families across nine major bases.

As a university president, Gen. Costin led an award-winning response to COVID-19, launched South Carolina’s only four-year aviation program, increased new student enrollment by 20 percent, served as president of a NCAA Division 1 athletic conference, and led the university to unprecedented recognition as Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce’s Business of the Year. At Liberty, he now leads one of the world’s largest universities, educating more than 140,000 students around the globe. He is a member of the USAFA AOG, Sabre Society, 1954 Society and Polaris Society.

Col. (Ret.) Carolyn Benyshek ’87 served in the U.S. Air Force for 31 years, taking on pivotal roles that impacted space operations and engineering. Col. Benyshek acted as the 2nd Space Operations director of operations, and she commanded the National Reconnaissance Office operations squadron. Most notably, Col. Benyshek commanded a squadron of 160 military and civilian personnel and an operations center conducting over 95,000 satellite operations with a 99.9% success rate. She also played a key role in supporting satellite missions for the intelligence community and the Department of Defense during Operation Iraqi Freedom, and led 25 NRO and DoD satellite launches, delivering more than $13 billion in assets to orbit.

In her role as chief of vehicle operations and engineering, Col. Benyshek oversaw a $4 billion satellite constellation, managing a team of 200 government and contractor personnel.

At USAFA, Col. Benyshek served as the special assistant to the superintendent and as the director of admissions, where she was responsible for recruiting, evaluating and selecting top students for the Academy. She led a 60-person permanent staff and an Admissions Liaison Officer program of nearly 1,700 Reserve and active-duty Air Force officers to accomplish that mission. 

Throughout her career, she received numerous accolades, including Officer of the Year recognitions and NRO Director’s Circle awards and NRO Gold and Silver medals. She is also a USAFA Prep School Hall of Fame inductee, and the Prep School Class of 2022 named her its exemplar.

Since retiring from active duty, Col. Benyshek has remained deeply involved with the Academy. She has been a lifetime member of the USAFA Association of Graduates since 1987, is a member of the AOG’s Sabre Society and has served as chairperson of the Falcon Foundation Scholarship Committee. She is he vice chair of the Way of Life board of directors, and she works as a keynote speaker and remains actively engaged in community organizations, including the National Charity League and 100 Women Who Care.

Contact:
Bryan Grossman, Senior Director of Strategic Communications and Publications
719.247.8743 (o) | 303.523.8410 (m)

About the U.S. Air Force Academy Association & Foundation:
The Association of Graduates and Air Force Academy Foundation exists to serve USAFA graduates, support the Academy in its mission to develop leaders of character for the Air Force and Space Force, and preserve the heritage of the institution.