We were honored to present the Ursula Gentile Lowerre Outstanding Alumni Service Award to Conner Crawford ’12 at Commencement this year in recognition of his dedication and long-term commitment to Franklin. The award was established by the Board of Trustees in 2006 to recognize outstanding members of the alumni community for exemplary service to the University and for their enthusiastic leadership and support of its mission and goals. The award reflects the honor and credit that recipients bring to the University through their actions and contributions. 

Crawford has been working closely with Franklin in various roles as a student and since graduating in 2012 with a major in History and Political Science. While studying at Franklin he sought an active role; serving for four years in the Student Government Association, including as its President. He also worked tirelessly to assist a number of Franklin clubs, served on the editorial board of the campus paper, and was an LLLS scholar for the IT and Registrar’s offices. For his hard work and involvement, he received the FUS Outstanding Freshman Award.

Crawford joined the Franklin Alumni Council in 2012 immediately after graduation and has served as its Funds Officer since 2016. He is also Chair of the Franklin Club of Southern California and serves as an admissions ambassador. In 2019 Crawford served as the alumni representative on the University’s VIEW committee to establish and articulate Franklin's core values.

Upon accepting the Ursula Gentile Lowerre Outstanding Alumni Service Award, presented to him by Kim Hildebrant, Chairman of the Board of Trustees, together with Emily Boynton, President of the Alumni Council, Crawford stated “I am deeply honored to be considered among the alumni that won this award before me. It is something that I deeply appreciate… Advice to Class of 2023:  Don’t wait too long. You’ll never be younger than you are now. I look forward to meeting more of you as I go forward with our work on the Alumni Council and I want to leave you just with this: we want to hear from you, we want to earn your support, and we want to learn how we can work together to support this University that we adore.”

by Kristen Bodammer