Dr. L. Allen Smith
The Dr. Allen Smith Memorial Scholarship honors the late Dr. L. Allen Smith, a native of Jackson, Ohio, and graduate of Ohio University. The Smith Scholarship also honors the work and legacy of Dr. Smith’s mother, the late Mary Ellen Smith.
Dr. Smith was a man of many interests and led two distinguished careers simultaneously. He was a professor in the Graduate School of Library and Information Science at Simmons College in Boston for 31 years, where he also served as associate dean from 2006 until his death in August 2008. At the same time, Dr. Smith was also a highly skilled farrier, a shoer of horses, serving two terms as president of the American Farriers Association.
A native of Jackson County, Mary Ellen Smith served as the first female member of the Jackson City School Board, including serving as president of the board.
The Dr. Allen Smith Memorial Scholarship Fund provides a permanent source of scholarship support to students graduating from Jackson City High School, where Dr. Smith was a student and his mother served.