Crowe assumed leadership of Level 3 in 1997 after selling his former company, MFS Communications, to WorldCom for $14.3 billion. During the next three years, he raised billions of dollars on Wall Street to fund the construction of an international fiber optic network to leverage the power of Internet technology. Today, Level 3 operates one of the largest Internet backbones in the world.
Crowe graduated from Rensselaer in 1972 with a bachelor’s of science degree in mechanical engineering and, he has said, with an appreciation of the operations research so important to his enterprise today. He went on to earn an MBA at Pepperdine University in 1982.
Established in 1990, the William F. Glaser ’53 Rensselaer Entrepreneur of the Year Award brings the world of entrepreneurship into Rensselaer classrooms by recognizing successful entrepreneurs and role models who share their wisdom and experiences with students. Past winners include John J. McDonnell ’61, founder, chairman, and CEO of Transaction Network Services; Paul Severino ’69, founder and chairman of Bay Networks; Mukesh Chatter ’82, founder, president, and CEO of Axiowave Networks; and William Mow ’59, founder of Bugle Boy Industries.
