Fitz, well-known as “Brother Ray,” served as president of UD between 1979 and 2002. After stepping down, Fitz moved into a position as Father Ferree Professor of Social Justice — a professorship named for his mentor — in the Fitz Center for Leadership in Community, the center UD named in his honor.
The Fitz Center represents a legacy and continuation of Fitz’s work to create partnerships among neighborhood, community nonprofit and government organizations and associations, UD said. As Ferree professor and chair from 2002-19, Fitz fostered collaborations with community and church leaders on generational poverty-reduction strategies, as well as listening sessions in West Dayton on the Catholic Church’s role in alleviating racial injustice.
“This honor is not about recognizing Brother Ray, the president emeritus; this is about Brother Ray the scholar, the faculty member, the citizen of the community, and the committed adherent to Catholic social teaching,” said current UD president Eric F. Spina. “Through Brother Ray’s deep belief and understanding of Catholic social teaching and social justice, he takes the core tenet of Catholicism and applies it to all that he does.”
During Fitz’s term as UD president, Dayton city commissioners asked him to co-chair the Montgomery County Family and Children First Council task force after five children in Dayton’s child welfare system died. He also helped launch neighborhood school centers in Dayton’s poorest elementary schools.
Fitz was part of a team behind the revitalization of Brown Street as part of an effort to make UD one of the top Catholic institutions in the United States, university officials said.
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