The Toledo Way Series
"Still Driven: Career, Caregiving, and Courage"
Thursday, Apr. 10, 2025 | 12 p.m.
Law Center, McQuade Law Auditorium
Join Corey Minor Smith for an interactive discussion guided by Toledo Law’s Alumni and Student Engagement Manager, Kate Abu-Absi. Attendees will hear about her career as a prosecutor, time in politics, caregiving, mental health, and her book #Driven.
About the Speakers
Corey Minor Smith is a distinguished attorney, mental health advocate, and author, recognized with the 2024 Secretary’s Mission Support Excellence Award and a certificate from the Harvard Business School 2023 Women of Color Executive Leadership Program. Rolling Out magazine describes her as a “legendary lawyer,” and The New York Times has highlighted her extraordinary journey—moving 21 times, attending 14 schools, overcoming personal challenges, and becoming a successful attorney.
Born in Canton, Ohio, Minor Smith earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Bowling Green State University before obtaining her Juris Doctorate from the University of Toledo. With over 23 years in law, she has served as an Assistant Prosecutor, Judicial Attorney, and Mayoral cabinet member. She made history as the first African American elected to a city-wide position in Canton, later serving as General Counsel for a public housing authority that once housed her family. She also worked as Senior Counsel for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and is now General Counsel for Pratum Companies.
A mental health advocate and trained NAMI facilitator, she has appeared in national media, authored #Driven, and consulted for Fortune 500 companies.
DIRECTIONS & PARKING
McQuade Law Auditorium is on the main level of the Law Center — located at 1825 West Rocket Drive, immediately inside the UToledo West Entrance off of Secor Road and south of Bancroft Street.
You will need a guest permit which can be obtained at guestparking.utoledo.edu for $5.75/day. Alternatively, you can use the ParkMobile app in most areas on campus which allows you to pay for short term parking.
About the Series
The Toledo Way sums up the culture of the Toledo legal community. It stands for the proposition that attorneys are collegial and cordial to each other. We stand by our word, and we treat even opposing counsel with respect and integrity. In addition, the Toledo Way means that we nurture and instruct our new lawyers so that they will become competent attorneys in their own right. For a list of guest speakers from previous years, please visit our past speakers page.
Questions?
Kate Abu-Absi, Program Manager, Alumni and Student Engagement
katherine.abu-absi@utoledo.edu
419.530.5108