Lauren Tyree
Saint Mark’s High School has announced Lauren Tyree ’26 has been named the 2024 American Legion National Eagle Scout of the Year!
Tyree was honored at two awards ceremonies in New Orleans and was awarded a $10,000 college scholarship.
“I have worked hard to make a difference in communities around the world. I am so honored that an organization as esteemed as the American Legion, an organization so relentlessly dedicated to service, would recognize me for my service work,” she said. “It proves that I am doing something right. As a legionnaire myself in the Women’s Auxiliary, I am so excited to join the work that the American Legion and the Women’s Auxiliary have been doing for so long.”
The vetting process for the National Eagle Scout of the Year is quite extensive and intense. Scouts are evaluated on a long list of qualifications which include their level of commitment to scouting activities, leadership skills, community service, past honors and awards, their Eagle Scout Project, extra-curricular activities, and career goals.
A quick glance at Tyree’s resume is all it takes to see why she was honored with this prestigious award. At just 16 years old, she has found a passion for service that inspires all those around her. While she never says “no” to a cause that needs her, she spends most of her volunteer hours serving her community, her school, and her scout troop.
In her community, she has started three non-profits, one that raised money for food banks during Covid by livestreaming weekly concerts, one that charters the Scout troop in which she is still an active member, and one that tackles post-covid loneliness by pairing students with doctors to serve in the impoverished villages in the sugarcane fields of the Dominican Republic. Tyree has raised over $300,000 for her organizations, helped raise millions of dollars for other non-profits, has recruited a team of over 150 volunteers, and has earned a lifetime achievement commendation from the President of the United States for her volunteering.
In school, Tyree is a Lead Delegate in Model UN, VP of International Service Trips in Students in Action, member of Treat Kids with Kindness, and events volunteer for The Muscle Movement Foundation. Tyree runs sound for school masses and, for the past three years, has produced a nine-camera video broadcast of the Saint Mark’s graduation ceremony. She has also conducted an interactive leadership seminar for the 50 most impactful student leaders in Saint Mark’s. Tyree has used her video production skills to create numerous compelling videos for admissions, advancement, and the school administration.
In scouting, Tyree is currently leading projects to promote scouting in the tri-state area. She is starting a new girls troop in West Grove, PA, building a scout camp on a land grant from a local township, running the National Youth Leadership Training for hundreds of aspiring youth leaders, helping friends with their Eagle projects, and running troop ski trips. She, herself, has been a scout for five years and completed her Eagle Scout project by building a gaga ball pit for her elementary school, as well as starting an annual fundraising dance. (For those not familiar with gaga ball, it is a fast-paced, high-energy game similar to dodgeball and is played in an octagonal pit.)
The American Legion National Eagle Scout of the Year award is just the latest in a long list of honors earned by Tyree (she’s going to have to ask her Dad to build a trophy case in her bedroom soon!). She is the epitome of what we call “Spartan Strong” and the Saint Mark’s community could not be more proud of her!
- 2024 American Legion National Eagle Scout of the Year
- Sons of the American Revolution Eagle Scout of the Year
- Philadelphia Chapter Champion 2022 & 2023
- Pennsylvania Chapter Champion 2022 & 2023
- National finalist – 9th in 2022 and 6th in 2023
- 2022 Eagle Scout of the Year for National Eagle Scout Association in Chester County, PA
- Film Festival Awards
- 20 awards in 17 film festivals for a short documentary she made about her service work. Awards include Best of Show, Best Short Documentary, Best Female Director, Most Inspirational, and Best Human Spirit, from festivals in places like Paris, Berlin, Cannes, Toronto, Vancouver, LA, Philadelphia, and Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania.
- Youth Philanthropy award from the Association for Fundraising Professionals in Delaware
- Streaming for Good award for helping The Digital Team and an ESPN production crew broadcast live events to help raise over $3.5M for organizations like Special Olympics and Sean’s House, a mental health safe haven in Newark, DE.
- Lifetime Achievement award from the President’s Volunteer Service Association bestowed on behalf of POTUS for volunteering over 4,000 hours in high school so far.
- Jefferson Award for most impactful public service work in Delaware
- National Gold Key Scholastic Writing award (more)
Moving forward, Tyree has plans to major in psychology or public policy when she heads off to college. She has expressed interest in pursuing careers running a non-profit to promote access and opportunity to underserved regions across the US and around the world, leading negotiations between countries in the United Nations, helping organizations manage their human experience, and conducting psychological research about environmental impacts on people’s psyche.
The sky is the limit for this Spartan! Saint Mark’s President Patrick Tiernan has high praise for Tyree. “Lauren’s passion to serve is an inspiration to her peers and demonstrates her commitment to our core values of faith, excellence, humility, and integrity. She is a testimony to what it means to make all things possible for and with others. The Saint Mark’s family is excited for what lies ahead in her continued commitment to justice.”
