Judge Thomas K. Jenkins Scholarship Fund

In 2009, the late Judge Thomas K. Jenkins (1937-2025) created this fund at Marion Community Foundation to provide resources in perpetuity for Marion area students pursuing degrees and careers in law. The scholarship fund recognizes Jenkins’ lifetime career of legal service to the Marion community.

“Law has been my life,” Tom said. “It is important to the community, state, and nation to encourage competent young people enter the field of law.”

Jenkins graduated from Harding High School in 1955 and Ohio Wesleyan University in 1959. He earned a law degree from Ohio Northern University and a Masters of Tax Law from Southern Methodist University. He was admitted into the Ohio Bar in 1962. He returned to Marion in 1963 and practiced law for 22 years with his father-in-law, the late John K. Bartram, and brother-in-law, John C. Bartram, until he was elected Probate and Juvenile Judge for Marion County in 1984. Judge Jenkins served in that role for over 24 years until his retirement in January 2009. He was a member of the Ohio State Bar Association and served on its Council of Delegates and Board of Governors. He was also a Life Fellow and Past President of the Ohio State Bar Foundation and a Past President of the Marion County Bar Association.

Judge Jenkins was active in the community, and in 1994, he was appointed as an original member on the Board of Trustees of The Ohio State University at Marion. He served on the Marion County Board of Mental Health, and he was a board member and Past Chairman of the Marion Community Foundation. Judge Jenkins was a 60-year member of the Marion Rotary Club and a member and Past President of the Order of Symposiarchs in Marion County.

The Jenkins scholarship makes awards to graduates of Marion County high schools pursing a degree in law at any accredited college or university, with special consideration given to applicants attending Tom’s alma mater, Ohio Northern University School of Law.