Amber Whitted named 2026 Lincoln Laureate
By Zion Banks, Triad Editor
Governors State University (GovState) Business major Amber Whitted is a writer, dancer, a spoken word artist, and now the 2026 student Lincoln Laureate.
Recognized for her leadership and service to the community, Amber is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc. , Beta Gamma Sigma International Honor Society, and Tau Sigma National Honor Society with a 3.6 GPA.
Amber has also won awards for her poetry, penned four books and prides herself on being the University’s unofficial resident poet.
In the last three years, Amber has paid homage to two GovState presidents during pivotal moments in the institution’s history.
In 2025, Amber celebrated retiring president Cheryl Green with a piece she wrote as Dr. Green’s alter ego. “This Road I Walk," looked back over Green's 36-year career in higher education.
“Under His guidance, I continued to ascend stairs and sit in chairs that many Black Women have been told they’re ineligible to see.
I mean, for real, how many sistas’ do you know that are presidents of a university?"
Later that year, the University welcomed President Joyce Ester, who grew up in nearby Phoenix, Illinois, and returned “home” to lead Governors State University as its seventh president.
During President Ester’s investiture ceremony, Amber saluted her with a moving rendition of the song, ‘Home’ from The Wiz, which brought members of the audience to tears.
Amber returned to GovState in 2024 to complete a degree she’d started years before at Prairie State College. Already an accomplished writer and dancer, Amber enrolled as a nontraditional student years after high school with a goal to complete a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration with a focus in Human Resources Management. She’d worked in the insurance industry for years and developed a passion to help others understand their benefits.
Each fall, the Lincoln Academy of Illinois selects an outstanding senior from each of the four-year-degree-granting institutions of higher learning in the state as student laureate. The laureates are honored for their leadership and service in addition to their overall excellence in both curricular and co-curricular activities. For their outstanding achievements, they are rewarded the Abraham Lincoln Civic Engagement Award, bestowed by the governor.
Amber said she wants students of all ages and backgrounds to know what she learned along the way. “It’s never too late to pursue your dreams and to follow your path, no matter what.”