The good stewards

When three University of Dayton presidents gathered to chat with alumni and friends during Reunion Week 2021, the moment felt extraordinary.

And it was. Over 42 years, only three presidents have shepherded UD, providing a level of continuity in leadership virtually unheard of in higher education. Between them, they have awarded more than 100,000 degrees. By every measure, the University has blossomed under their leadership, growing in size, prestige — and aspiration.

“Today is a rare and special opportunity,” said moderator Sharon Howard ’78, member of the Alumni Association’s board of directors. “While they’ve posed for photos together, this is the first time they’ve gathered together in a room. Well, it’s a Zoom room, but a room all the same.”

With candor, warmth and respect for each other’s leadership, Brother Ray Fitz, S.M. ’64, Daniel J. Curran and Eric F. Spina talked about their proudest moments, the issues that kept them up at night and what’s ahead as UD emerges from the pandemic. The 45-minute conversation can be viewed on YouTube.

When Fitz reflects on his 23-year presidency, he’s gratified by students who make the Dayton community an extended classroom and graduates who “serve the common good.” He praised lay leaders Curran and Spina for keeping UD’s Catholic, Marianist mission at the forefront.

“Engaging faculty and staff in our mission and our purpose has sustained us,” he said. “The Marianists will play a role (in the future), but that needs to be supplemented by a strong cadre of lay leadership who buy into the educational tradition and the charism.”

During the job interview process, trustees told Curran to “be bold.” With a strong administrative team and the support of federal and state legislators and local economic development leaders, he expanded the University’s footprint to the Great Miami River with the acquisition of two parcels of NCR property, including the former world headquarters that now bears his name.

“I want us to be the best possible version of ourselves. I want us to be the best University of Dayton we can be.”

“Most people focus on the land, but the land wasn’t the great deal,” he said. UD acquired almost a million square feet of building that provided space for academic programs, classes and a highly visible home for the growing UD Research Institute, he said.

“It was a joyful time,” Curran said of his 14-year tenure. “We had some challenges, but we pushed through them.”

Neither of his predecessors faced the kind of test the pandemic posed for Spina, who asked faculty and staff to rethink the delivery of education and leaned on medical experts for advice during the greatest global health crisis of our times.

“We’re not quite out of it,” said Spina, who’s finishing his fifth year at the helm. “There’s no way that one person or just the cabinet could do this alone. A community came together to prioritize and make good decisions.”

Spina is making his mark by diversifying the campus, quietly raising private support to new levels and solidifying UD’s reputation as an anchor institution through the OnMain and Dayton Arcade initiatives.

What’s on the horizon?

“The answer is straightforward,” Spina said. “I want us to be the best possible version of ourselves. I want us to be the best University of Dayton we can be.”