Barack Obama, 44th President of the United States, will receive the 2024 Sylvanus Thayer Award from the West Point Association of Graduates during ceremonies hosted by the U.S. Military Academy Thursday, Sept. 19. The Corps of Cadets will conduct a parade in his honor at 5 p.m. on the Plain, before the award presentation.

The Thayer Award, established in honor of Col. Sylvanus Thayer, “Father of the Military Academy,” is presented to an outstanding citizen whose service and accomplishments in the national interest exemplify the military academy’s motto, “Duty, Honor, Country.” The Association of Graduates has presented the award annually since 1958.
Obama will be the fifth U.S. president to receive the Thayer Award during its 67-year history following Dwight Eisenhower, Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush.

“I want to thank the West Point Association of Graduates for this distinguished award,” said Obama. “I’ve been a longtime supporter of West Point’s mission and have always admired the leaders of character it has produced for our nation.”