Francis J. Conte Special Service Award
Recipients of the Francis J. Conte Special Service Award have supported the School of Law through extraordinary service and donations of time, talent or financial assistance. Members of the Alumni Association Board of Trustees nominate candidates for this award.
The Honorable Daniel G. Gehres
Marybeth Rutledge
William H. Frapwell
Bruce Snyder
2005 Glen Dewar '89
Charlie Faruki
Mary Louise Dreety
2007 Honorable G. Jack Davis
2008 Dave Barnette '79
Jeff Winwood
Terry Ali
A.J. Wagner '77
A. J. Wagner is a 1977 graduate of the University of Dayton School of Law. He is a former Montgomery County auditor and remains a partner in the law firm Shively & Wagner in Dayton. He is also a past president of the law school's Alumni Association.
Wagner received his undergraduate degree in elementary education from the Franciscan University of Stuebenville. He has worked as a teacher, probate court referee, and acting judge in the Dayton Municipal Court before establishing a private legal practice. Wagner has served as a trust officer for Society Bank and is a member of the board of trustees for the Miami Valley Regional Transit authority in 1986. He has also served on the Dayton Civil Service Board.
Involved with other area politicians prior to running for county auditor, Wagner ran the re-election campaign for Mayor Richard Clay Dixon and served as treasurer for County Commission President Chuck Curran during his state senate campaign. Wagner has also sat on the Democratic Central and Executive Committees.
Kel Dickinson, 2006 Recipient
Before joining the faculty of the School of Law in 1979, Dickinson practiced in a small law firm in Michigan and served as assistant general counsel and secretary to the Renegotiation Board. The Renegotiation Board was a small federal agency charged by Congress with eliminating excessive profits on nation defense and space contracts and no longer exists. "We weren't very popular," he says, "especially with defense contractors."
Professor Dickinson was attracted to the School of Law, which was then only five years old, by its people, faculty, staff and students. He saw an opportunity to have significant impact on the formative years of the institution. He also liked that it was at a major Catholic university, with a beautiful campus in a vibrant and active city. Referring to the old law school building, Dickinson says, "Albert Emanuel Hall looked like a law school to me."
Originally teaching business courses, he served as associate dean of academic affairs from 1980 to 1983, from 1987 to 1992, and again from 2001 to 2005. In this role, Dickinson had a hand in many of the major developments at the school, including the creation of the Legal Profession Program in the 1980s, and space and budget for Keller Hall in the 1990s. "I like seeing people and things work the way they ought to," he says. "Our primary goal is to educate our students, and what I do furthers that goal."
Thomas P. Whelley II '77, 2007 Recipient
Thomas P. Whelley II is a lawyer at Chernesky, Heyman & Kress P.L.L. and an adjunct professor at the University of Dayton School of Law teaching Civil Trial Practice. He has wide experience in the preparation of complex business litigation cases, the defense of employment law cases, and other litigation matters. He holds a J.D. from the University of Dayton School of Law, where he served as editor-in-chief of the Law Review' a master's from the University of Scranton' and an A.B. from Kings College. After graduating from law school, Whelley became a lawyer at Smith & Schnacke in Dayton for 12 years and then became a partner in the law firm Thompson, Hine & Flory. In 1992 he joined Chernesky, Heyman & Kress P.L.L. as head of its litigation group.
A Master of the Carl D. Kessler Inn of Court, Mr. Whelley is also a member of the Ohio Civil Trial Lawyers Association and the Defense Research Institute. He has been president of the Legal Aid Society of Dayton, has been on the board of directors for the Dayton chapter of the American Red Cross, and is a former chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Western Ohio Chapter of the Multiple Sclerosis Society, and has been on the board of trustees and of legal council to both the Youth Drug Program and to Aware, Inc. In addition, Whelley was the 1998 co-chairman of the Montgomery County Bench Bar Conference and has been president of UDSL's Board of Advisors.
Lori Shaw '87, 2007 Recipient
A member of the Legal Profession faculty at the School of Law since 1988, Lori Shaw was appointed dean of students in 2003. She listens to, works with, and counsels students concerning personal and academic issues; serves on the management team for UDSL; and acts as a liaison between students, faculty and members of the administration. She also helps develop and enforce student policies; serves as an advocate for student needs and represents the student body on law school and university committees; oversees and provides leadership for various student programs and organizations; and organizes special events. "Law students sometimes need a friendly ear, to share problems or good news," she says. "I provide a place for them to turn."
She is also the faculty coordinator for the Honorable James J. Gilvary Symposium on Law, Religion and Social Justice. Dean Shaw writes a bimonthly column on legal ethics in the American Bar Association Student Lawyer and previously co-wrote a regular column for the Columbus Bar Journal. She is a recipient of the TWEN Award for Innovation in Teaching from West Group and in 2006 received her second national award from the American Society of Business Publication editors.
Despite her many roles in and outside the School of Law, Dean Shaw said her favorite job is still teaching and working with her students. "Teaching's not just standing in front of a large classroom," she says. "I enjoy the one-on-one contact. Seeing my students grow and teaching them something they'll use for the rest of their lives is a joy."
Michael Ledbetter '97, 2009 Recipient
After serving with the 1st Armored Division in Erlangen, West Germany, Mike Ledbetter earned a B.A. from Bowling Green State University and then a J.D. from the University of Dayton School of Law in 1997.
He worked for 10 years as an associate attorney and partner in a Dayton-based labor law firm. In 2006, Mike left to establish his new office, where he has represented clients in proceedings in state and federal court, in arbitration proceedings, and before administrative agencies. Mike regularly speaks at conferences hosted by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans and has authored articles published in the Foundation's Benefits and Compensation Digest.
Mike serves on the Kessler Scholarship Golf Tournament Committee and coordinates the Community Service Project at St. Vincent's during Alumni Weekend, often bringing his whole family along to serve and put UD's Catholic-Marianist philosophy into practice.
Ria Farrell Schalnat '99, 2010 Recipient
Ria Farrell Schalnat is a patent attorney at Frost Brown Todd, LLC, and has a technology focus in telecommunications, billing, and other software-oriented inventions. Her substantive practice includes prosecution, litigation, due diligence reviews and portfolio management.
She graduated magna cum laude from the University of Dayton School of Law in 1999. She worked for several years as a programmer after graduating in 1995 with a B.S. in Computer Science from Northern Kentucky University.
An adjunct professor at the School of Law, Ria teaches the Patent Litigation Capstone. She is a board member of the Cincinnati Intellectual Property Law Association. She served as president of that organization in 2008 and 2009 and previously as vice president. She is also a member of the Intellectual Property Owners Subcommittee on Open Source. She performs pro bono legal services through Volunteer Lawyers for the Poor in the area of adoption law.
Ria is an amateur chess player and enjoys singing in choirs. She placed first in the 2009 Cardinal Open Chess Tournament for the U1000 Division.
Thomas Hurney, Jr. '83, 2011 Recipient
Thomas Hurney, Jr., Class of 1983, has long-standing ties to both the University of Dayton and the School of Law. He received a bachelor's in business administration from UD in 1980. Three years later he graduated cum laude from the University of Dayton School of Law. As a law student, he was the comments editor of the Law Review.
Since graduating, Hurney has remained active with the School of Law and regularly interviews students on behalf of his law firm, Jackson Kelly in Charleston, West Virginia. Tom manages Jackson Kelly's litigation practice group.
Currently, the firm employs 13 Dayton Law graduates, including seven associates, the largest single contingent of Dayton Law attorneys employed by any private employer outside of Ohio. Over the years, Jackson Kelly has hired dozens of other Dayton Law graduates who have moved on to other opportunities where they have flourished, thanks in large part to the tutelage provided by Hurney and his colleagues.
Hurney said he was humbled to receive the Conte Special Service Award. "I can't tell you much it meant to go to this law school," he told his fellow alumni. "This award has a lot more to do with our firm than it does with me."
