the Honorable Leroy J. Contie, Jr. Scholarship

It is with great admiration and respect that The Honorable Leroy J. Contie Jr. Scholarship was established in recognition of the Honorable Leroy J. Contie Jr. in celebration of his 80th birthday and in honor of his retirement.

Judge Leroy J. Contie Jr., an honorary alumnus of The University of Akron School of Law, is a man of high personal and professional stature. He is a patriotic public servant whose career has spanned more than six decades. He is generous and thoughtful, an extraordinarily fair and impartial member of the judiciary, and one of the most productive federal judges in the 20th century. He is a man of many accomplishments, awards, and recognitions, yet he is humble in acknowledging these accolades. In discharging his judicial responsibilities, Judge Leroy J. Contie Jr. finds great wisdom and guidance in the legacy our nation’s founders provided in the Constitution of the United States of America.

It would not be an understatement to say that Judge Contie loves his work. His career has included trial work as a private practicing attorney, law director for the city of Canton, Ohio, and public service as a state court judge, a federal district court judge, and, most recently, as a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. Early on in his career, Judge Contie gained a reputation for hard work, meticulous reasoning, skillful draftsmanship, and boundless intellectual energy. He holds the distinctive privilege of being both a lawyer’s lawyer and a judge’s judge. While Judge Contie has received great pleasure from his lifelong dedication to dispensing justice, it is his family — his wife, Janice, his children, and his grandchildren — who provide the greatest joy to his life.

The purpose of The Honorable Leroy J. Contie Jr. Scholarship is to provide a scholarship to a law student attending The University of Akron School of Law who most exemplifies the characteristics and qualities of Judge Leroy J. Contie Jr. Consideration for The Honorable Leroy J. Contie Jr. Scholarship will be afforded to second- and third-year law students who submit an essay on the topic of public service and the role of the judiciary in deciding cases.

The Honorable Leroy J. Contie Jr. scholar will be selected by the dean of The University of Akron School of Law, upon the recommendation of a scholarship committee. The Honorable Leroy J. Contie, Jr. Scholarship committee will be comprised of a representative from The Timken Foundation, a member of the School of Law faculty, a representative of The Raymond C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics, the Honorable Leroy J. Contie Jr., Janice Contie, Leroy J. Contie III, Ann Contie Benson, and the School of Law’s director of Admissions and Financial Assistance, who will chair the committee. If due to future unforeseen circumstances The Honorable Leroy J. Contie, Jr. Scholarship committee is unable to participate in the selection process, the responsibility for recommending a candidate to the dean of the School of Law will be assumed by The University of Akron School of Law Scholarship Committee.