Brother Raymond Fitz, the longest-serving president in UD history, instituted a plan that helped elevate UD to a national leader in Catholic higher education. During his 23 years as president, the university became known as one of the best Catholic universities in the country.
Dr. Daniel Curran, the university’s first lay president, turned the school into a dominant Catholic research university and helped grow the Dayton area economically.
This is the second of two installments of the history of the University of Dayton presidents, this one from 1908 to the present. Read the first installment here.
Reverend Bernard O’Reilly, 1908-1918, 1923-1932
Reverend Bernard O’Reilly was born on June 3, 1874, in Rochester, N.Y. and entered the Society of Mary in 1889. He studied in France and taught at St. Mary’s Institute before becoming president in 1908. In 1909, he opened the athletic fields east of the gym, set up Zehler library in the basement of Chaminade Hall and sold the property north of Union Avenue for a public cemetery (Woodland Cemetery). The following year he opened the College of Engineering and received accreditation of the Preparatory Department from the North Central Association of Secondary Schools and Colleges. In 1912, the name of the school changed to St. Mary’s College. Reverend O’Reilly witnessed the Dayton flood of 1913 and he temporarily closed the school so the brothers could help with the relief work. In 1915 the Convent of the Society of Mary Motherhouse was moved to Mt. St. John. This same year St. Mary’s College was reincorporated to include: College, High School, the Business Department, the Elementary Department, and the Premedical Department. A year prior to his first time leaving office Reverend O’Reilly started Military Training on campus.
Reverend O’Reilly became president of the school for a second time in 1923 and introduced the first summer sessions. In 1924 Alumni Hall was opened with the new stadium being dedicated a year later. In 1928 the University of Dayton was accredited by the North Central Association and Albert Emanuel Library was opened. In 1930 Law classes were started and when Reverend O’Reilly retired from the presidency in 1932 he became Regent of the church in Osborn (now Fairborn), Ohio where he served until his retirement. Reverend O’Reilly passed away in Dayton in 1955.
Reverend Joseph Tetzlaff, 1918-1923
Reverend Joseph Tetzlaff was born in 1884 and entered the Society of Mary in 1898. In 1918 Reverend Tetzlaff became president of St. Mary’s College. During this same year the War Department recognized the College of Engineering and established the Student’s Army Training Corps (S.A.T.C.) on campus from August 8 to December 2 and in 1919 Reverend Tetzlaff established the first R.O.T.C. unit. In 1920 St. Mary’s was incorporated as the University of Dayton and was admitted to the Association of Ohio Colleges. This same year the Elementary Department was discontinued and the College of Education and Evening Classes were inaugurated and in 1921 Reverend Tetzlaff opened the Commerce and Finance Department. In 1922 the Law School was established. After his presidency Reverend Tetzlaff worked in Cleveland, Puerto Rico, and New York, and he also served as Provincial of the Cincinnati Province for ten years. He passed away in 1968 in Dayton.
Reverend Walter C. Tredtin, 1932- 1938
Reverend Walter Tredtin was born in Dayton, Ohio in 1881. Before becoming president he taught at various Marianist schools and studied at St. Mary’s College and the University of Fribourg, Switzerland where he earned his Bachelors of Science. Reverend Tredtin became president of the university in 1932 and a year later he introduced a new system of Deans in the college. In 1935 he started the College of Women and the University of Dayton entered the Buckeye Conference. In 1936 the first biophysics course was introduced. This course was the first of its kind in colleges in the United States. Also in 1936 Reverend Tredtin closed the Preparatory Department, opened the Employment Bureau, launched the Greater University Campaign, and he grouped classes according to departments: Arts, Science, Business, Education, and Engineering. The following year the College of Women was discontinued and both male and female students were put into one group. Upon leaving the presidency Reverend Tredtin became Provincial of the Cincinnati Province and 10 years later became the first Provincial of the Pacific Province. He retired in Santa Cruz where he died in 1972.
Reverend John A. Elbert, 1938-1944
Reverend John Elbert was born on March 15, 1895 in Brooklyn, N.Y. and entered the Society of Mary in Dayton, Ohio in 1912. On March 20, 1926 Reverend Elbert was ordained a priest in Fribourg, Switzerland. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Dayton in 1915 as well as a Masters in 1916. Reverend Elbert received a second Master’s degree in 1926 at the University of Fribourg, Switzerland and in 1932 he received his Ph.D. from the University of Cincinnati. He held his first teaching position at West Philadelphia Catholic High School from 1916-1918 and from 1918-1921 he taught at the University of Dayton Prep School. In 1926 he became a Professor of Philosophy at the University of Dayton and in 1928 was named principle of Purcell High School in Cincinnati, Ohio and after three years there he was named president of Trinity College Sioux City, Iowa. In 1938 Reverend Elbert was named president of the University of Dayton where he held the position until 1944. Reverend Elbert established the first graduate curriculum and founded the Marian Library in 1943, which is now the largest library on Mary in the world and he also approved the establishment of a student council. He was a member of the Knights of Columbus, Ohio College President’s Association, Executive Committee, and the National Catholic Educational Association. In 1944 he returned to Trinity College as Professor of Philosophy and in 1947 he returned to the University of Dayton to take the position of Professor of Philosophy. At the time of his death Reverend Elbert was Professor of Philosophy at the University of Dayton and a member of the Board of Trustees. He also served as Dean of the Graduate School of the College of Arts and Sciences when graduate work was renewed at UD in 1960.
Reverend George J. Renneker, 1944- 1953
Reverend George Renneker was born on August 6, 1889 in Cincinnati, Ohio and entered the Society of Mary in 1904. He first came to UD in 1906 (when the school was still called St. Mary’s Institute) as a graduate of a Cincinnati parochial school and graduated from St. Mary’s in 1910. On August 3, 1919 in Fribourg, Switzerland Reverend Renneker was ordained a priest. He served the University of Dayton for 43 years working as professor, registrar, dean, vice president, and president. During his time as president a Veteran’s Training and Guidance Program was introduced, the Art, Music, Home Economics, Business, and Physical Education Departments were accredited by the Ohio State Department of Education, and the Miami Valley Hospital School of Medical Radiological Technique was also affiliated. Reverend Renneker also presided over the University’s centennial celebrations. During his term student enrollment grew from 900 to 3800. Many of these students were veterans going to college on the G.I. Bill. After his retirement from the presidency in 1953 Reverend Renneker became director of Mt. St. John and acted as director of the Cincinnati Province from 1959 until his death in December 1969.
Reverend Andrew L. Seebold, 1953-1959
Reverend Andrew Seebold was born in Louisville, Kentucky in 1903 and was a graduate of the University of Dayton in 1924 and was ordained a priest ten years later in Fribourg, Switzerland. He received his M.A. in sociology from the Catholic University of America in 1943 and went on to receive his Ph.D. in sociology in 1947 from the same institution. Reverend Seebold taught in Cincinnati, Cleveland, Philadelphia, Convington, and Dayton and was president of Cleveland’s Cathedral Latin High School before becoming president of the University of Dayton. During his term as the university’s president the first community wide fundraising drive for new physical facilities was launched and by 1959 Wohlleben and Sherman Halls were built. The University then joined the prestigious Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges. In 1954 UD was named one of the fastest growing universities in Ohio and the largest private undergraduate university. Reverend Seebold also witnessed the beginnings of UDRI in 1956. He instituted a University Self-Survey, a document that laid the groundwork for the plans and growth of the 1960s. After leaving the presidency Reverend Seebold was named Dean of the School of Education at the Catholic University of Puerto Rico. In 1961 he returned to UD to serve as administrative director of psychological services and professor of sociology. He retired from teaching in 1968 but continued as director of psychological services until 1972. Reverend Seebold passed away in 1979.
Reverend Raymond Roesch, 1959-1979
Reverend Raymond Roesch was born in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania in 1914 and joined the Society of Mary in 1933. Three years later he graduated from the University of Dayton. He went on to receive his M.A. degree in psychology from the Catholic University of America in 1954. He prepared for the priesthood at the Catholic University of America and St. Meinrad Seminary in Indiana. He was ordained at Mt. St. John Seminary in Dayton on May 30, 1944. After receiving his Ph.D., Roesch came to work at UD as a professor in the psychology department serving as the department chair for seven years before becoming president in 1959. Reverend Roesch continued the building program started by Reverend Seebold. During his twenty year term Kettering Lab, Roesch Library, Kennedy Union, Miriam Hall, the Arena, Marycrest and other student housing, the Physical Activities Center, and the Music and Theater Building were constructed. Reverend Roesch presided over the largest student enrollment growth in UD’s history, from 3700 in 1959 to 7500 in the late 1960s. In 1960 the Graduate School was reopened and in 1974 the Law School was reopened. Reverend Roesch passed away on July 7, 1991 in Dayton.
Brother Raymond Fitz, 1979-2002
Brother Raymond Fitz enrolled at UD in 1959 and joined the Society of Mary. In 1964 he earned a B.S. in Electrical Engineering from UD and an M.S. and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Polytechnic University in Brooklyn, New York. He returned to UD as a professor in 1969 and taught industrial and electrical engineering. From 1976-1977 he worked at the Kettering Foundation on complex social systems and urban planning. During his presidency (the longest in UD history) he instituted Vision 2005, a plan to help UD become a national leader in Catholic higher education. Nine new campus buildings were constructed during his term including the Jesse Philips Humanities Center and Keller Hall. It was during his time as president that the University of Dayton became known as one of the top Catholic Universities in the country. Brother Fitz has a strong interest in the health of the community and some of the organizations he works with include the Family and Children First Council, the Homeless Solutions Leadership Team, the Fitz Center for Leadership in Community, and the Dayton Public School Community Advisory Council. He currently holds the position of the Ferree Professor of Social Justice at the University of Dayton and has taught classes in Politics and Social Justice, Christianist, Citizenship, and Society, and Leadership in Building Community. In 2001 he was honored by the President’s Club and received the Citizen Legion of Honor Award and in 2011 he received the Cardinal Bernardin Community Service Award.
Dr. Daniel Curran, 2002-2016
Dr. Daniel Curran is the University’s first lay president. He received his Bachelors in sociology from St. Joseph’s University in 1973, Masters in sociology from Temple University in 1978, and a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Delaware in 1980. Prior to becoming president of the University of Dayton, Dr. Curran worked as the executive Vice President of St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. He is the author of eight books (many of which he co-authored with his wife). Dr. Curran is committed to social justice and this is what his writing focuses on. During his time as president he has nearly doubled the size of campus with the purchase of surrounding land including the purchase of the former NCR World Headquarters (a Fortune 500 Company). Marianist Hall was built in 2004, the RecPlex was finished in 2006, and there have been renovations to Marycrest and Stuart Halls along with the construction of a new Central Mall. Dr. Curran also introduced one of the nation’s first bachelor’s degrees in human rights studies.
Dr. Eric F. Spina, 2016 –
Eric Spina was previously with Syracuse University.
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