Bull, VanWagoner to receive Boy Scouts Community Leadership Award

Alicia Dicks to deliver keynote address

On Wednesday, Oct. 9, 2019, the Boy Scouts of America Leatherstocking Council will host its annual Leadership Dinner at the Delta Hotels by Marriott in Utica to present BSA Community Leadership Awards to Larry Bull, president and CEO of Bull Bros., Inc., and co-founder of Fastrac Markets; and to Randall VanWagoner, president of Mohawk Valley Community College since July 1, 2007.

The keynote address on leadership will be delivered by Alicia Dicks, president/CEO of The Community Foundation of Herkimer & Oneida Counties.

The BSA Community Leadership Award is presented to those who exemplify in their daily lives the ideals of the Boy Scouts of America as expressed in the scout oath and law. The recipients are chosen for their outstanding community service, as evidenced by the interest and leadership given to many worthwhile organizations, as well as the respect and esteem in which they are held by their colleagues.

Bull has served the Boy Scouts of America in many volunteer positions, from cub master to council president. After serving as a U.S. Army officer including one year in Vietnam, he completed his studies at Utica College, receiving a B.S. in business administration in 1974. He is active in the community, having served on numerous boards, including the Valley United Way, General Herkimer Scout Council, Mohawk Valley EDGE, Herkimer County Community College Foundation Board and trustee and chairperson of the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties, Inc.; he serves as trustee and past chairperson of the Utica College Board of Trustees and as trustee of the Mohawk Valley Hospital System board.

Bull is an avid bicyclist, hiker, fisherman and pilot. He and his wife Corky live in New Hartford and have two sons, Kevin and Andrew.

VanWagoner has served on the board of 13 local organizations, including a term on the BSA Council board, in addition to his current service on the boards of the Boilermaker Road Race, the Community Foundation of Herkimer and Oneida Counties and Mohawk Valley EDGE. He has served on multiple community initiatives and has co-chaired the Oneida County Executive’s Vision 2020 initiative the past six years.

VanWagoner initiated a partnership with Leadership Mohawk Valley to create the Center for Leadership Excellence at MVCC and recently finished serving four years as president of the New York Community College Association of Presidents. He is a member of the Jobs for the Future national policy trust and is the co-facilitator of the national Strategic Horizon Network that brings nine community colleges together to explore disruption, innovation and equity outside of higher education.

VanWagoner recently published his first book, “Competing on Culture: Driving Change in Community Colleges,” as part of the future series with the American Association of Community College Trustees and presents around the state and country on organizational culture and change. He has worked in community colleges for the past 28 years and held administrative positions at community colleges in Omaha, Denver and Ann Arbor.

VanWagoner and his wife Jennifer, who also is very active in the community, have two daughters and live in New Hartford.

“Each year, I wonder if we will be able to find two individuals who so perfectly represent BSA values and leadership expertise, as well as the prior year’s honorees – and – and each year our committee successfully identifies individuals who absolutely exemplify our organization’s ideals,” said John Devlin, BSA Leatherstocking Council president.

“The 2019 BSA Community Leadership Award Honorees have made and continue to make lasting and extremely valuable contributions to our community,” said Sam Berardino, chairman of the BSA Leadership Dinner committee. “We are truly honored to bring attention to all they have done and look forward to inspiring another generation of leaders by highlighting their outstanding service.”

“It is fitting Alicia Dicks will deliver the keynote address,” said Ray Eschenbach, scout executive/CEO of the Leatherstocking Council. “Who better than Alicia to share firsthand experience of what it takes to motivate others to set new standards of excellence for themselves, their teams and our community?”

Since 2015, Dicks has served as president and CEO of The Community Foundation of Herkimer & Oneida Counties. Building on The Community Foundation’s grantmaking investments in nonprofit organizations, she has led its transformation to an organization leading and driving significant social impact. Her leadership is supported by a volunteer board of trustees and a professional staff, both committed to The Community Foundation’s vision: a vibrant community with opportunity for all.

Prior to joining The Foundation, Dicks managed the construction, maintenance and operations of SUNY Polytechnic Institute’s Computer Chip Commercialization Center, as president of the Fort Schuyler Management Corporation, and she spent more than a decade at National Grid as a regional executive director, managing National Grid’s business operations for the Mohawk Valley and Northern New York and as a director of market strategy. She began her public policy career at the Albany Local Development Corporation and in Albany city government, facilitating urban planning, development and construction projects as a senior economic developer.

Alicia has a master’s degree in urban and regional planning from the University at Albany and a bachelor’s degree in international relations from SUNY Cortland. She serves on many local boards, including the Save of the Day Foundation, the School & Business Alliance and Mohawk Valley EDGE.

Dicks lives in Whitesboro with her husband and two daughters.

The annual Eagle Scout Project of the Year award will again be a highlight of the event. The four finalists and their families will be on hand to hear U.S. Congressional Representative Anthony Brindisi announce who completed the Leatherstocking Council’s 2019 Eagle Scout Community Service Project of the Year.

For more information, or to purchase sponsorship packages, program advertisements or tickets, call 315.735.4437, ext. 223, or email James.Hastie@Scouting.org.