Alumni Feature: David Scott
After graduating cum laude with a history major in 1974, David Scott continued on to SCU Law School and passed the California bar in 1977. Following a stint in private practice, in 1981, he went to work for a semiconductor company, drafting and administering sales contracts. The sales force seemed to be having more fun than himself, so David made a career jump. He went on to teach himself a little about electrical engineering and semiconductor fabrication, and by the end of 1982, he was selling semiconductors to companies like Apple.
David worked for Fujitsu for 14 years and recalls that a Japanese history class with Professor Thad Flood served him very well. Fujitsu had a major U.S. customer for which David was the main interface, and they would have regular meetings in both Japan and the U.S. Usually following a dinner, they would hold a "Quiz Time" where the Japan-based Fujitsu employees would quiz David’s customer on U.S. history and geography, and the customer was expected to do the same for Japanese history. He ended up ghost-writing the questions and silently thanked Professor Flood every time his team won. David’s secret weapon was that he kept his history textbooks and used them for frequent reference!
In 1983, David helped start up a company that was a hired sales force for semiconductor companies that didn't wish to employ their own salesperson. He had his own accounts, helped manage the company, and was the liaison for outside counsel. He sold his share of the business and retired in 2002. David also tried his hand at real estate development near his second home in Basalt, CO, eventually building eight homes there – but did not enjoy the experience as much as his work in Silicon Valley.
David was gracious enough to mentor first-year law students at SCU for about 10 years, going a long way to strengthen student-alumni relations. He was also a volunteer for the United States Tennis Association for 20 years, and was named the Northern California Section's Volunteer of the Year in 2015.
David and his wife made friends all over the world in their travels, particularly in Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. His love of history, nurtured no doubt by his time at SCU, resulted in a “bucklet list” of cathedrals he aimed to visit. Alas, David has managed to see them all, some more than once. His favorite was the cathedral at Chartres, as his grandfather was stationed near there in WWI. He was an aviator, and David has some images of him and his last flight log booklet.
Currently, David takes care of his wife, who has Alzheimer's, and spends as much time as he can with his two granddaughters (ages 9 and 6), who live in Portola Valley. He and the girls’ father (another SCU Law Alum!) coach the girls’ soccer and basketball teams – one of the most fun things he has ever done.