Crow receives Distinguished Eagle Scout Award

When he was a teenager, Michael Crow accomplished a feat that few achieve each year: He earned the rank of Eagle Scout.

Now, Crow, who is president of one of the largest universities in the United States, has received another prestigious Scouting award: The Distinguished Eagle Scout Award (DESA).

Larry Abbott, Scout Executive/CEO of the Grand Canyon Council, Boy Scouts of America, presented the award – a plaque and golden eagle on a red, white and blue ribbon – to Crow at the ASU Founders Day Dinner.

The Distinguished Eagle Scout Award, established in 1969, also is an exclusive award. Granted to Eagle Scouts who received the Eagle rank 25 or more years ago, who have “gained status of fame or eminence in the life work, and have shared their talents with their communities on a voluntary basis,” the award has only been granted to only approximately 1,900 Scouts nationally since its inception.

The Grand Canyon Council has only presented 23 Distinguished Eagle Scout Awards in the past 40 years.
Awardees are nominated by a local council and selected by a committee of nationally prominent DESA recipients, said Abbott. “They had to have made a significant contribution to their community. It’s not how many boards they’ve served on, but what they’ve done. The DESA is not given to resume-builders. Dr. Crow was obviously a worthy candidate.”

Crow’s Eagle Scout project, in late 1968, was developing and implementing a campaign to secure food and clothing for a family of five in St. Mary’s County, Maryland.

The benefits obviously carried over into his present job: “I learned how to be a leader, and how to work with challenges,’ Crow said. “And I learned about people.”

Crow became the 16th president of ASU on July 1, 2002. In the past nearly nine years he has led ASU on its journey to becoming the New American University – a university that is committed to excellence, access and impact. In late 2009, Crow was profiled in Time magazine as one of the 10 best college and university presidents in the country.

In part, the nomination for Crow’s Distinguished Eagle Scout Award read,  “Under his direction, the university pursues teaching, research and creative excellence focused on the major challenges and questions of our time, as well as those central to the building of a sustainable environment and economy for Arizona. He has committed the university to global engagement, and to setting a new standard for public service.”

Crow also has been active in Scouting as an adult. He served as Scoutmaster for Troop 55 in Irvington, N. Y., his son Ryan’s troop.

To earn the rank of Eagle Scout, a Boy Scout must have been active in his troop for at least six months after receiving the rank of Life Scout, the ranking just below Eagle; demonstrate that he lives by the principles of the Scout Oath and Law in his daily life; submit references; earn a total of 21 merit badges in specific areas; and, most important, while a Life Scout, plan, develop, and give leadership to others in an approved service project helpful to any religious institution, any school, or the community.

Crow still has his merit badges, and now he can add a golden eagle to the mix.