Sharp has received numerous awards, including the only "Texas Quality Award" ever presented to a governmental agency. Texas State University presented Sharp with the "Distinguished Alumnus Award" in 1996, where he also taught a course on Texas state government for several semesters in the early 2000s. On August 9, 2012, Sharp was selected as "Mr. South Texas" for 2013 by the Washington's Birthday Celebration in Laredo. In conferring the honor, the birthday association cited Sharp's long record of public service to his state.