The Ashland University Alumni Board of Directors (Ashland, OH) has announced that Harold “Bud” Boughton will be the recipient of its 2019 Special Achievement Alumni Award. This award is given annually to an alumnus/alumna who has proven leadership abilities, excelled in his or her chosen field and has given faithful service to Ashland University and the community. He will be honored on the Ashland University campus at the Annual Alumni Award Luncheon on April 27th.
While Bud began his college career attending the University of Buffalo on a full NCAA Grant-In-Aid Football Scholarship, he transferred to Ashland University (then Ashland College) when UB dropped their football program following the 1970 season. In 1972, playing for the Eagles’ Undefeated (11-0) football team, he won the team’s Best Defensive Back Award and became Ashland’s first-ever Academic All-American in football. He also represented Ashland in the first ever All-Ohio Shrine Bowl played in Ohio State’s stadium. Also a member of the Ashland Lacrosse team, he was inducted into Ashland University’s All-Sports Hall of Fame in 1991. Bud graduated Cum Laude from Ashland in 1973 with a Bachelor of Science degree and later completed his Master’s Degree while coaching at Ball State University.
Over the course of his career, he has coached college football, held professional sales positions with three FORTUNE 500 companies and helped take a banking software company public in 1996. Staying close to his “roots” in athletics, in his adult life he has run nine full marathons (including both the Boston Marathon and the NYC Marathon) and successfully summited Mount Rainier in 1998, often considered one of the most challenging and arduous climbs in the lower 48 states. Bud is the author of three books and has had numerous articles published. His comments and opinions have appeared on the pages of FORTUNE magazine, INC. Magazine and numerous banking and professional journals. He is currently a certified official with both USA Hockey and US Lacrosse and he serves as an assistant coach and Team Chaplain for the Franklin College football team (NCAA Div. III) in Franklin, Indiana.
Bud and his wife, Cindy, live in Greenwood, Indiana. He has two sons, four stepsons and nine grandchildren. In his words, he is “Beyond blessed!”
