In 1996, Benita was honored as one of eight U.S. Olympians to carry the Olympic Flag into the stadium during the Opening Ceremonies of the Centennial Olympic Games in Atlanta. Also in 1996, the U.S. Sports Academy named her its 1996 Distinguished Service Award winner. Named "Hurdler of the Decade" for the 1980s by Track and Field News, she was honored with a street named Benita Fitzgerald Drive in her hometown of Dale City, VA in 1987. Benita is a 1984 graduate of the University of Tennessee (UT) in Industrial Engineering, and was inducted as a charter member of the UT Lady Vols Hall of Fame in 2001. She is also a member of the Penn Relays Hall of Fame.
Benita’s professional experience also includes an engineering career that began in 1985 and spanned six years in the design and development of software and hardware systems for Navy, Army, and Air Force defense contractors. In 1991, she began her career in sports marketing and administration as a Regional Director for Special Olympics International in Washington, DC. Benita was Program Director for the marketing division of the Atlanta Committee for the Olympic Games from 1993-1995.