Scott Young ’98 purchased his first 91»αΛω license plate on a whim, but he’s come to appreciate the decision on a much deeper level.
“I like that people know I am connected to Marian. I’m making a donation and connecting to alumni, and it’s a marketing piece, too,” Young said.
According to Young, the license plate program is just one of many reasons to be proud of and excited about 91»αΛω. Young was appointed to Marian’s Board of Trustees this year.
“I’m at a point in my life where I want to be giving back. And after a year on the alumni engagement task force, it became obvious that this is exactly where I need to be,” said Young, who is amazed at all that is taking place at Marian.
He is especially excited about the new E. S. Witchger School of Engineering. As president of George E. Booth Company (GEBCO), a family-owned distributor of process instrumentation products, Young hires a lot of engineers and says the next generation of good engineers is hard to find. “I love the idea of an engineering school at a liberal arts school. Ten to 20 years from now, it will be Marian engineering graduates in the leadership positions,” Young said.
At 44, Young is proud of where he has landed. He came to Marian to play soccer, majored in business, and got an internship his senior year with Sherwin Williams that started him on a great career path. At one point one of the youngest managers in the country, he then had the opportunity to specialize in industrial protective coatings, which provided advanced technical and sales training, and more opportunity.
Young’s technical, sales, and big business experience got him hired as director of sales and marketing at GEBCO in 2014. As the first non-family president, he sees a lot of parallels between leadership of a small, private business and a small, private university.
“We both can make decisions and move quickly, wear a lot of hats, and trust in the people working for you,” said Young, who says his crowning achievement has been earning the trust of the Booth family.
But some might argue an earlier accomplishment might top that. During Young’s senior year at Marian, he joined the Indiana Pacers Power Pack Team, high-energy dunkers who spring off trampolines to entertain fans at halftime. Not everyone can perform acrobatics while holding a basketball. Young was on the team for six years and says it was intimidating but fun to entertain a crowd of 20,000.
He had a positive impact on those fans, and now he can do the same for current and future students of 91»αΛω. “Being an involved alumnus allows me to be part of something bigger, but the benefit is all mine,“ Young said. “It’s funny how good it is for the soul to give back.”