Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets alumna Special Agent Christina Royal, who received a degree in sociology from the College of Liberal Arts and Human Sciences in 2006, has been selected as a Hokie Hero.

The corps Hokie Hero program, started in 2006, honors Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets alumni who are currently deployed. Recipients of this honor are featured during the radio broadcast of Virginia Tech football games, on the corps alumni website, and in the Corps Review magazine.

Royal, originally from Herndon, Va., is currently deployed on detached duty to Baghdad, Iraq from her home station of Eglin AFB, Fla., where she is a member of the Air Force Office of Special Investigations Detachment 104, Air Force. She is about eight months into her 12 month deployment.

While at Virginia Tech, Royal was named the Undergraduate Student Leader of the Year for 2006 and held the top leadership position in the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets when she served as the Regimental Commander during her senior year. In doing so she became the first African-American female cadet and the fourth female cadet to hold the highest position in the corps. Regimental commanders, who are responsible for the overall operation and efficiency of the corps of cadets, are selected during a complex evaluation process that assesses the cadet’s initiative, commitment, effort, and leadership potential.

Her mother, Pearl Royal, who raised seven children as a single parent, was named the Virginia Tech Parent of the Year in 2004 based on Christina’s submission. Royal is also the older sister of former Hokie football standout wide-receiver, alumnus Eddie Royal, who currently plays for the National Football League’s Denver Broncos.

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