Francis Leddy

John Francis Leddy (April 16, 1911 – September 17, 1998) was a Canadian academic and President of the University of Windsor from 1964 to 1978.

Born in Ottawa, Ontario, he received a B.A. in honours Latin and French from the University of Saskatchewan in 1930 and an M.A. in Latin from the University of Saskatchewan in 1931. After attending the University of Chicago, doing graduate work in Latin and Greek from 1932 to 1933, he was elected a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University (Exeter College), where he studied Ancient History, 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 University of Saskatchewan. 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 University of Windsor, holding that position until his retirement in 1978. He received many honorary degrees during his lifetime.

In 1972, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada, 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.