McCauley’s tenure is one of the primary reason’s he was nominated as a Community Gem by community member Holly Michael, who praised McCauley’s commitment to the arts.
“The arts in Dayton are so important, and he works tirelessly to make sure these performances can continue to be funded,” said Michael. “He keeps the foundation running, and he’s really the heart and soul of an important organization that a lot of people don’t know much about.”
McCauley is currently leading the work to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the arts foundation. He first joined the board of the Miriam Rosenthal Foundation in 1983, and one of the first projects he took on was to formalize the foundation’s grant program. He was asked to be the chairman in 1987, and he continues as its chair today.
“He has such a passion for this foundation, and it’s been around so long that the original participants and funders are long gone, but thanks to all the work Richard does, it lives on and it continues to be able to fund the arts in Dayton and fulfill the legacy of Miriam Rosenthal, who herself, worked to fund so many important institutions in the city, including the arts,” Michael said.
Like Rosenthal, McCauley is described as being devoted to furthering the arts in Dayton.
“The foundation was created by the people of Dayton, all kinds of citizens, whose lives were touched by the work Miriam Rosenthal did. So, the average gift to create the foundation was $25, and there were hundreds of people that gave that kind of money,” said McCauley.
McCauley came to Dayton in 1968 after completing graduate school, and he served as the associate dean of student life at the University of Dayton.
One of the things he did during his five-year stint at UD was work with the Dayton Philharmonic on a joint venture. He also served on the Artist Series Committee at the University of Dayton. In 1973, he was asked to become the general manager of the Dayton Philharmonic, where he served until 1978.
He later went on to help create the Dayton United Arts Fund, leading its philanthropic efforts.
With McCauley championing the efforts, the Miriam Rosenthal Foundation is celebrating its milestone anniversary by awarding major funding to four projects/performances during the 2025-2026 arts season. These projects include:
- Muse Machine hosted a performance on Aug. 13 at the Victoria Theatre, which highlighted the talents of local students and Muse Machine alumni.
- Dayton Philharmonic will debut Keitaro Harada on Sept. 19-20 as the philharmonic’s fifth music director with soloist Garrick Ohlsson.
- Dayton Opera to present Bizet’s “Carmen” on Nov. 1-2. The production will include the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra, the Dayton Opera Chorus and the Dayton Youth Chorus.
- Dayton Ballet and Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Dayton’s leading dance companies, will collaborate to present “Rhythm in the City” on April 10-12, 2026.
McCauley has a desire to continue to lead the foundation “to make decisions that hopefully will have longer-term implications for the betterment of the arts and the betterment of the people in Dayton,” he said.
The Miriam Rosenthal Foundation for the Arts was established in 1965 in memory and honor of Rosenthal’s contributions to the quality of life throughout the greater Dayton community. The foundation’s primary focus is advancing the cultural life of the Dayton community and helping assure access to arts programs for all residents.
To learn more, go to www.miriamrosenthalfoundation.org.
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