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Chuck Smith (businessman)
Encyclopedia
Charles H. "Chuck" Smith is an African-American businessman who is the retired President and CEO of AT&T West, a Fortune 500
company. Smith has a life-long interest in the Boy Scouts of America
(BSA).
Smith graduated from California State University, Los Angeles
in 1967. His childhood interest in radio led to a career with Pacific Telephone, which became AT&T West. Smith was named one of the 50 Most Important African Americans in Technology by US Black Engineer and Information Technology magazine in 2003.
Smith is committed to helping young people through Scouting and other venues. As a youth, he found a support system in Scouting
, which helped him deal with his dyslexia
and shyness. Smith became an Eagle Scout
in 1959 and a 2005 recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award
. Audiences are captivated when he talks about the positive impact Scouting had on him as a youth. He is also a member of BSA's National Executive Board and the board of BSA's Mount Diablo Silverado Council
. Much of that work is aimed at increasing minority involvement in Scouting. In 2010 he was honored with the Silver Buffalo Award
by the Boy Scouts of America
, its highest award for adults.
Chuck is also a great speaker having the ability to inspire his audiences. Very recently he came to the University of San Francisco MBA Alumni Society Luncheon Series and gave a wonderful talk, covering not only the future of the Telecom industry but also business ethics and his vision for the future of the University. There was also a big surprise during the speech, when he announced his retirement for the first time in public! You can listen to the entire speech at the USF MBA Podcast.
Fortune 500
The Fortune 500 is an annual list compiled and published by Fortune magazine that ranks the top 500 U.S. closely held and public corporations as ranked by their gross revenue after adjustments made by Fortune to exclude the impact of excise taxes companies collect. The list includes publicly and...
company. Smith has a life-long interest in the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
(BSA).
Smith graduated from California State University, Los Angeles
California State University, Los Angeles
California State University, Los Angeles is a public comprehensive university, part of the California State University system...
in 1967. His childhood interest in radio led to a career with Pacific Telephone, which became AT&T West. Smith was named one of the 50 Most Important African Americans in Technology by US Black Engineer and Information Technology magazine in 2003.
Smith is committed to helping young people through Scouting and other venues. As a youth, he found a support system in Scouting
Scouting
Scouting, also known as the Scout Movement, is a worldwide youth movement with the stated aim of supporting young people in their physical, mental and spiritual development, that they may play constructive roles in society....
, which helped him deal with his dyslexia
Dyslexia
Dyslexia is a very broad term defining a learning disability that impairs a person's fluency or comprehension accuracy in being able to read, and which can manifest itself as a difficulty with phonological awareness, phonological decoding, orthographic coding, auditory short-term memory, or rapid...
and shyness. Smith became an Eagle Scout
Eagle Scout (Boy Scouts of America)
Eagle Scout is the highest rank attainable in the Boy Scouting program of the Boy Scouts of America . A Scout who attains this rank is called an Eagle Scout or Eagle. Since its introduction in 1911, the Eagle Scout rank has been earned by more than 2 million young men...
in 1959 and a 2005 recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award
Distinguished Eagle Scout Award
The Distinguished Eagle Scout Award is a distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America . It is awarded to an Eagle Scout for distinguished service in his profession and to his community for a period of at least 25 years after attaining the level of Eagle Scout...
. Audiences are captivated when he talks about the positive impact Scouting had on him as a youth. He is also a member of BSA's National Executive Board and the board of BSA's Mount Diablo Silverado Council
Scouting in California
Scouting in California has a long history, from the 1910s to the present day, serving thousands of youth in programs related to their environments.-Early history :...
. Much of that work is aimed at increasing minority involvement in Scouting. In 2010 he was honored with the Silver Buffalo Award
Silver Buffalo Award
The Silver Buffalo Award is the national-level distinguished service award of the Boy Scouts of America. It is presented for noteworthy and extraordinary service to youth on a national basis, either as part of, or independent of the Scouting program...
by the Boy Scouts of America
Boy Scouts of America
The Boy Scouts of America is one of the largest youth organizations in the United States, with over 4.5 million youth members in its age-related divisions...
, its highest award for adults.
Chuck is also a great speaker having the ability to inspire his audiences. Very recently he came to the University of San Francisco MBA Alumni Society Luncheon Series and gave a wonderful talk, covering not only the future of the Telecom industry but also business ethics and his vision for the future of the University. There was also a big surprise during the speech, when he announced his retirement for the first time in public! You can listen to the entire speech at the USF MBA Podcast.