GREENSBORO, NC, June 23, 2020 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Marquis Who's Who, the world's premier publisher of biographical profiles, is proud to present C. Robin Britt Sr. with the Albert Nelson Marquis Lifetime Achievement Award. An accomplished listee, Mr. Britt celebrates many years' experience in his professional network, and has been noted for achievements, leadership qualities, and the credentials and successes he has accrued in his field. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
Mr. Britt has served as a naval officer, lawyer, a Member of Congress, Secretary of what is now the North Carolina Department of Health & Human Services, and as a nationally-recognized advocate for young children in poverty with a career spanning decades of service. Holding a Bachelor of Arts and Doctor of Jurisprudence (law degree) from the University of North Carolina, he concluded his studies at New York University School of Law, where he earned a graduate law degree (Masters in Law in taxation).
After college, Mr. Britt was commissioned as an Ensign in the Navy and served on active duty from 1963 until 1965 on the USS Kearsarge (CVS 33) where he and his shipmates received the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for service off the coast of Vietnam. He also received a Letter of Commendation for inaugurating a People to People Program with the port cities visited by the Kearsarge. After active duty, he remained in the Naval Reserve for 21 years, retiring as a Navy Captain. Mr. Britt served a term as President of the Old North State Chapter of the Naval Reserve Association.
Mr. Britt previously represented the 6th District of North Carolina in the United States House of Representatives where he served on the House Armed Services Committee, the Small Business Committee, and the Select Committee on Hunger. His experience on the Select Committee on Hunger led to his subsequent career of working on behalf of young children in poverty and their families. He was one of four Members of Congress sent to investigate the bombing of the Marine Barracks in Beirut in 1983.
After leaving Congress, Mr. Britt founded and devoted full-time to Project Uplift Inc, a nonprofit which was honored as one of President George W Bush's Thousand Points of Light. Later Mr. Britt was appointed Secretary of what is now the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services by Governor Jim Hunt where he inaugurated the Governor's Smart Start early childhood program. Smart Start received the Innovation in American Government Award from Harvard University and the Ford Foundation. While Secretary, he chaired the Southern Alliance of States in which seven states negotiated a multi-billion dollar contract with CitiBank (with federal involvement) for the electronic transfer of food stamp benefits, establishing a prototype for other states to follow.
After serving under Governor Hunt, Mr. Britt directed Guilford Child Development, a nonprofit organization in Greensboro, NC (Mr. Britt's hometown), which became a champion of the nationally recognized Nurse-Family Partnership Program (NFP) and the largest Head Start Program in North Carolina. Guilford Child Development had the first, and for many years the only, NFP program in North Carolina. Serving on the national Board of Directors of NFP for 14 years, Mr. Britt co-chaired the Public Policy Committee which was instrumental in the passage of the Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program (MIECHV Program) by Congress which provides over $90 million a year in funding to NFP programs in over 40 states. With regard to Head Start, during his tenure the number of children served increased from 600 children to more than 1,400 Head Start/Early Head Start children annually. Guilford Child Development's budget expanded from $9 million in 1998 to more than $20 million dollars in 2019. He also inaugurated capital projects that resulted in more than $10 million in funding for child development centers and other related projects. During this time Mr. Britt served as Chairman of Governor Beverly Perdue's Early Childhood Advisory Council which received a $70 million Race to the Top-Early Learning Challenge Grant for North Carolina with the highest score of 37 states participating. During this time he also served as Chairman of the Advisory Board of the School of Nursing and Chairman of the Human Environmental Sciences Foundation at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. After 21 years Mr. Britt retired in 2019 as President and CEO of Guilford Child Development.
Honors include: Faith in Action in Public Life Award from the North Carolina Council of Churches; the Order of the Longleaf Pine from Governor Jim Hunt; the Old North State Award from Governor Roy Cooper; Tarheel of the Week Award from the Raleigh News & Observer; Excellence in Equity Award from the North Carolina Association of Educators; Lewis Hine Award from the National Child Labor Committee; Frances Newsom Miller Award from the North Carolina Nurses Association; James and Carolyn Hunt Early Childhood Award from the Child Care Services Association: Child Advocate of the Year Award from the United Way of Greater High Point; and recognition as one of the 20 Most Admired CEOs in the Triad for 2019 by the Triad Business Journal.
Mr. Britt is also active in Christ United Methodist Church in Greensboro, where he teaches Sunday school and leads a centering prayer group. He is a former Methodist Lay Leader. Mr. Britt considers the link between his spiritual journey and his career callings to be the key to the realization of his lifelong goals.
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