John Francis Leddy, (April 16, 1911 – September 17, 1998) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

academic and President of the

University of Windsor , mottoeng = Goodness, Discipline and Knowledge , established = , academic_affiliations = CARL, COU, Universities Canada , former_names = Assumption College (1857-1956)Assumption University of Windsor (1956-1963) , type = Public universit ...

from 1964 to 1978. Born in

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, he received a B.A. in honours

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

and French from the

University of Saskatchewan A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

in 1930 and an M.A. in Latin from the

in 1931. After attending the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

, doing graduate work in Latin and

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from 1932 to 1933, he was elected a

Rhodes Scholar The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford, in the United Kingdom. Established in 1902, it is the oldest graduate scholarship in the world. It is considered among the world' ...

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( Exeter College), where he studied

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, graduating Bachelor of Letters (B.Litt.) in 1935 and Doctor of Philosophy (D.Phil.) in 1938. From 1936 until 1961, he taught Classics at the

. In 1946 he became Professor of Classics and Head of the Classics Department. From 1949 to 1964, he was also Dean of the College of Arts and Science, and from 1961 to 1964 Vice President (Academic). In 1964, he was appointed President of the

, holding that position until his retirement in 1978. In his honour the University of Windsor central library is named the "Leddy Library". He also received many honorary degrees during his lifetime. Leddy was also instrumental in establishing Canada's version(s) of the Peace Corps. In June 1961 at a Conference at McGill University Leddy along with Louis Perinbam, Keith Spicer,

Guy Arnold Guy Arnold (6 May 1932 – 4 January 2020) was a British explorer, travel writer, political writer and specialist in north-south relations, who wrote mainly in the areas of African history, politics, and international affairs. He was based i ...

established the organization Canadian University Service Overseas (CUSO) which sent young volunteers overseas to work on community development projects. Due to his work with CUSO, Leddy was chosen by Prime Minister Lester B Pearson in 1965 to establish the

Company of Young Canadians The Company of Young Canadians (CYC) was a short-lived Canadian youth program sponsored by the Canadian federal government, which existed from 1966 to 1977. It was designed to be run autonomously without government direction. It generated considera ...

, which was also dubbed as Canada's version of the Peace Corps, even though its volunteers remained at home in Canada to work among disenfranchised communities (urban

inner cities The term ''inner city'' has been used, especially in the United States, as a euphemism for majority-minority lower-income residential districts that often refer to rundown neighborhoods, in a downtown or city centre area. Sociologists somet ...

, First Nations reserves). In 1972, he was made an Officer of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

, the centrepiece of Canada's honours system which recognizes a lifetime of achievement and merit of a high degree, especially in service to Canada or to humanity at large. In 1938, he married Kathleen Beatrice White. They had no children.

Honours

* Knight Grand Cross of the Holy Sepulchre * Bailiff Grand Cross of Obedience - Sovereign Military Order of Malta * Grand Cross of Merit - Sovereign Military Order of Malta * Officer of the Order of Canada * Knight Commander of the Order of St. Gregory * Gentleman of His Holiness {{DEFAULTSORT:Leddy, Francis 1911 births 1998 deaths Canadian Rhodes Scholars Canadian university and college faculty deans Academics from Ottawa Presidents of the University of Windsor Knights of the Holy Sepulchre Knights of Malta Papal gentlemen Officers of the Order of Canada