Elizabeth Groppe, a Roman Catholic theologian who uses the wisdom of the Christian tradition to address social and cultural concerns, was appointed the University of Dayton’s sixth University Professor of Faith and Culture.
Housed in the College of Arts and Sciences, this endowed chair serves as an intellectual leader on the UD campus. Groppe, a professor in the UD Department of Theology and Religious Studies, started her four-year term Aug. 16.
Groppe succeeds Sandra Yocum, who served from 2017 until her retirement as professor emerita in May 2026. Yocum’s accomplishments included coordinating events to foster dialogue around difficult topics in the Catholic Church; working with colleagues on interfaith events that brought leading Jewish scholars to campus; and helping organize the annual Catholic Intellectual Traditions symposium.
“My gratitude for the support that I received throughout my work as University Professor of Faith and Culture is only exceeded by my delight in engaging with all of my colleagues in exploring Catholic intellectual traditions,” Yocum said.
Created in 1996 and endowed by the Marianists as of July 1, 2000, the University Professor of Faith and Culture is charged with advancing a program of high-quality scholarship, teaching and faculty development that examines the roles of faith in addressing major issues in contemporary culture, drawing on the resources of the Catholic intellectual tradition.
The UD Professor of Faith and Culture administers the annual Marianist Award, which recognizes a Roman Catholic who has made a significant contribution to Catholic intellectual traditions. The endowed chair also advances academic discourse on Catholic faith and contemporary culture by organizing conferences, symposia, institutes and seminars.
As chair, Groppe plans to consult broadly with faculty to learn about topics they would like to address in these public conversations.
“Topics that I myself would propose for consideration include scholarly exploration and development of the Catholic social tradition’s vision for a ‘civilization of love,’ a philosophy of society that offers an alternative to the fractiousness, human and ecological degradations, and loneliness of our time,” Groppe said.
“I am also particularly interested in academic programming that constructively addresses issues of ecology and sustainability; the relationship of the natural sciences, theology and religious traditions; the digitalization of culture, including the effects of smartphone culture on youth and society at large; and the importance of the humanities in the history and future of human culture.”
Groppe’s areas of research and reflection include a theological approach to ecological conservation and sustainability. She plans to write a book-length work on this topic and has published four related, peer-reviewed theological essays; three invited book chapters; and a number of articles for a general audience.
Her scholarship also focuses on the urgent need to foster cultures of peacebuilding. Groppe’s work in this area includes the book chapter, “‘This is My Body:’ The Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist and the Call to be Peacemakers;” a book chapter on the Holy Spirit and nonviolent action; and a forthcoming article in the Journal of Moral Theology, written with a Purdue University anthropologist, about the catastrophic effects of the 2003 Iraq war on women.
In addition, Groppe is committed to interfaith dialogue and scholarship. She has published three peer-reviewed essays and five invited book chapters on Catholic-Jewish relations and one essay on Catholic-Muslim relations.
“I will approach the responsibilities of the UD Professor of Faith and Culture with care for the inclusion of representatives of multiple faith traditions in planning and programming,” she said.
Groppe holds a doctoral degree in systematic theology and a master’s degree in theology from the University of Notre Dame, and a bachelor’s degree in moral education and development from Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana.
She joined the UD faculty in 2017 as a full professor. Previously, she was an associate professor at Xavier University, where she served for three years as co-director of the interdisciplinary ethics/religion and society program.
Kelly Johnson, associate professor of religious studies and the Fr. William J. Ferree Chair of Social Justice, chaired the search committee in collaboration with College Dean Danielle Poe, who recommended Groppe for the appointment.
Johnson described Groppe as an impressive scholar with a record of successful and collaborative leadership, whose publications on topics such as sustainability, interfaith relations, racism, sexual violence and peacebuilding address key issues in our culture and in the Catholic Church seriously and constructively.
“Dr. Groppe's ability to collaborate with community partners and colleagues from a variety of fields on practical efforts was displayed in her leadership of a 2023 local conference on the Laudato Si' Action Platform which drew more than two hundred participants,” she said. “Dr. Groppe's vision for the UPFC builds on existing strengths while expanding practical and intellectual engagement, particularly through connections to local and global Catholic and Marianist networks.”
The search committee also included John McCombe, professor and College associate dean for curriculum and student academic success; Tim Gabrielli, associate professor and Gudorf Chair in Catholic Intellectual Traditions; and Karolyn Hansen, associate professor of biology.