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The Owen A. Roberts Scholarship

The Owen A. Roberts Scholarship was established in 1989 by Milton P. Kayle, Class of 1943, a former student of Mr. Roberts. Owen A. Roberts, Class of 1925, taught for many years at Utica Free Academy. It is awarded with preference given to graduates of that school or its successor institution.

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Born in Northern Wales, Owen A. Roberts was a lifelong educator. He graduated from Utica Free Academy in 1921 and enrolled at Hamilton, where he majored in English literature and history and was a member of the Charlatans  Following his graduation in 1925, he taught at Chadwicks High School and, subsequently, Utica Free Academy. At the school, he formed a “speaking choir,” which garnered the attention of Duke Ellington, who used Roberts’ choir technique in a musical he composed. In 1946, Owen became an English teacher and Dean of Men at Utica College, where he completed a master’s degree in 1948. He was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to teach at Pierce College in Greece in 1956, and retired from Utica College in 1969. He died in October 1986.

Milton “Milt” P. Kayle graduated Phi Beta Kappa in 1943. He majored in economics and political science at Hamilton and was active in debate and student government. He entered the U.S. Army soon after graduation and saw action in the European theater through the end of WWII. He obtained his J.D. degree in 1948 from Harvard Law School, and moved to Washington, D.C. for four years of government service, becoming special assistant in the White House, on President Truman’s staff. Milt then went on to various corporate executive positions in the entertainment industry until 1969, when he became counsel to the law firm of Gilbert, Segall & Young in New York City. He served as chairman of the College’s first Planned Giving Committee and as a Trustee.

August 2014