The Honorable Dixie Park is the first woman elected Judge of the Probate Division, Stark County Court of Common Pleas. She has served in this capacity since January, 2004.
A resident of Alliance, Judge Park graduated from Mount de Chantal Visitation Academy, received a B.S. in Integrated Life Sciences from Kent State University and her Juris Doctorate from the University of Akron School of Law.
Judge Park served as a judicial clerk and then magistrate in the General Division of the Stark County Court of Common Pleas. She also served as an Assistant Law Director for the City of Alliance and as an Acting Judge in the Alliance Municipal Court.
Judge Park is a member of the Ohio Association of Probate Judges, Ohio Judicial Conference, American Judges Association, National College of Probate Judges, Ohio State Bar Association and Stark County Bar Association. She serves as first Vice-President of the Ohio Association of Probate Judges and was recently elected President-Elect. Judge Park chairs the Probate Forms Committee and also chairs the Subcommittee on Adult Guardianship of the Advisory Committee on Children, Families and the Courts of the Supreme Court of Ohio. She is also a member of the Ohio Judicial Conference Probate Law and Procedure Committee. Judge Park serves on the Supreme Court Task Force on the Funding of Ohio Courts.
Judge Park served on the Supreme Court Commission on Continuing Legal Education and the Task Force to Review the Ohio Disciplinary System. She has presented at numerous seminars and participates in planning and presenting judicial seminars and local probate seminars. She has served as a faculty member for the Ohio Judicial College since 2008 teaching new probate judges. Judge Park was a 2010 Jurist-in-Residence at the University of Akron School of Law. She recently co-chaired the Ohio Judicial Conference 50th Anniversary Planning Committee.
Judge Park serves on the National Advisory Board of the National First Ladies Library.
She completed Leadership Stark County and is a member of the 12th Class.
On July 1, 2004 Judge Park adopted the Stark County Probate Court’s first mediation rule that allows families to resolve issues more amicably. Due to her special interest in guardianships, Judge Park reinstituted the Guardian Visitor Program in 2005. Volunteers for this program report on the status and well-being of the more than 1,600 wards who are under the Probate Court's supervision.
In 2006, Judge Park was instrumental in the inception of Guardian Support Services (GSS), which provides training and support for volunteer guardians, and coordinates the provision of guardianship services.
In 2007, Judge Park initiated the creation of the Guardian Oversight Council (GOC) consisting of members of the community from different disciplines and experience to assist and make recommendations to the Probate Court on community standards for guardianship cases.
Most recently, Judge Park initiated the formation of the Stark Multidisciplinary Advocacy/Protective Resources Team (“SMART”) comprised of a network of various agencies and government offices that provide services to individuals who are disabled and/or elderly to provide a forum for the development and implementation of resources to address the needs of the disabled and/or elderly population. SMART presents an annual program on elder/disabled abuse to raise awareness in the community of this growing issue. In 2014, SMART received the Robert and Patricia Horowitz Award for Outstanding Leadership in Developing Innovative and Collaborative Practices on behalf of the Elderly and Disabled from the Stark County Prosecutor’s Office and the Stark County Victims’ Rights Coalition.
In 2008, Judge Park received the Ohio Association of Probate Judges Judicial Excellence Award. She also received awards for Meritorious Service in 2006, 2007, and 2009 through 2012 from the Ohio Association of Probate Judges. In 2012, Judge Park was inducted in the YWCA Stark County Women’s Hall of Fame. Judge Park was the 2008 Honoree of the Greater East Ohio Alzheimer’s Association.
Judge Park is the administrative judge of the Stark County Probate Court and has also served as the presiding judge of the Stark County Court of Common Pleas.
She is married to Dr. John Park and they have three adult children.
