University of Dayton: A Legacy of Notable Alumni
Founded in 1850 by the Society of Mary, the University of Dayton (UD) stands as a private, Catholic research university in Dayton, Ohio. It is one of three Marianist universities in the United States and the second-largest private university in Ohio. As of 2023, the university enrolls approximately 11,300 undergraduate and postgraduate students from a variety of religious, ethnic, and geographic backgrounds. UD offers more than 80 academic programs in the arts, sciences, business, education, health sciences, engineering, and law.
The University of Dayton has produced a diverse array of accomplished alumni who have made significant contributions to various fields. From sports and entertainment to politics and academia, UD graduates have left their mark on the world. This article highlights some of the most notable alumni, showcasing their achievements and the impact they have had on society.
In selecting distinguished alumni, special attention is given to accomplishments that embody the University's goal to participate effectively in the quest for a more perfect human society. To be eligible, a person must hold a degree from the University of Dayton and must have received the degree at least 25 years prior to being nominated for the award.
Notable Alumni in Sports
The University of Dayton has a rich athletic tradition, and many of its alumni have gone on to achieve success in professional sports.
- Jon Gruden: An American professional football coach and advisor for the Milano Seamen of the European League of Football. He held his first head coaching position with the Raiders franchise during their Oakland tenure from 1998 to 2001, winning two consecutive division titles and making an AFC Championship Game appearance. Traded to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2002, he led them to their first Super Bowl title in Super Bowl XXXVII the same season. At age 39, he was the then-youngest head coach to win the Super Bowl. After being fired from the Buccaneers, Gruden worked as an analyst for ESPN's Monday Night Football broadcasts from 2009 to 2017. He studied at the University of Dayton from 1982 to 1985.
- Kostas Antetokounmpo: A Nigerian-Greek professional basketball player for Panathinaikos of the Greek Basketball League (GBL) and the EuroLeague. He studied at the University of Dayton in 2016.
- Obi Toppin: An American professional basketball player for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A power forward, he played college basketball for the Dayton Flyers. Toppin studied at the University of Dayton from 2018 to 2020.
- Jim Paxson: An American former professional basketball player. A 1st round selection (12nd pick overall) of the Portland Trail Blazers in the 1979 NBA draft, Paxson played for Portland and the Boston Celtics of the NBA from 1979 to 1990 and was twice an All-Star. Paxson served as general manager of the Cleveland Cavaliers for six years and now works as a consultant with the Chicago Bulls where his brother John Paxson is an executive.
- Katie Moon: An American pole vaulter. She won gold medals at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, 2022 and 2023 World Athletics Championships (shared with the Australian Nina Kennedy), and silver medals at the 2022 World Indoor Championships and silver medals at the 2024 Summer Olympics. Moon was also the 2019 Pan American Games silver medalist.
- Brian Roberts: An American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of Dayton. At a height of 6 feet 2 inches (1.88 m) tall, he plays at the point guard position.
- Dyshawn Pierre: A Canadian professional basketball player for Fenerbahçe of the Turkish Super League (BSL) and the EuroLeague. He is from Whitby, Ontario and played college basketball for the Dayton Flyers. Standing at 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m), he plays at the power forward and small forward positions.
- Chris Johnson: An American professional basketball player for Hapoel Jerusalem of the Israeli Premier League and the EuroCup. He played college basketball for the University of Dayton. Standing at 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m), he plays at the small forward and the shooting guard positions.
- Anthony Grant: An American basketball coach who is the head men's basketball coach at the University of Dayton. Prior to that, he was the head coach at Virginia Commonwealth University from 2006 to 2009, and at the University of Alabama from 2009 to 2015. Prior to becoming the VCU head coach, he was an assistant coach at the University of Florida from 1996 to 2006.
- Craig Stammen: An American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Washington Nationals and San Diego Padres. He currently is a special assistant to the president of baseball operations of the Padres, A. J. Preller.
- DaRon Holmes: An American professional basketball player for the Denver Nuggets of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Dayton Flyers. He studied communication at the University of Dayton.
- Devin Oliver: An American professional basketball player for SLUC Nancy of the LNB Élite. He played college basketball for Dayton.
- Juwan Staten: An American professional basketball player who last played for the Maine Celtics of the NBA G League. He played for his hometown school, the University of Dayton, through his freshman year at college. Staten later led West Virginia in points, assists, field goal percentage, and steals during the 2013-14 season.
- Chris Rolfe: An American former professional soccer player. Playing both as a forward and winger, Rolfe primarily played for the Chicago Fire of Major League Soccer, in addition to spending time in the Danish Superliga, before joining D.C. United later in his career. He also earned 10 caps for the United States during his career. He has been the director of operations with the University of Notre Dame men's soccer program since July 2019.
- Scoochie Smith: An American professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Dayton.
- Mike Sylvester: An American and Italian retired basketball player who is currently coach at Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy. Due to the United States boycotting the 1980 Summer Olympics, he was the only American to win a medal at those games, using a dual citizenship to play for Italy.
- Trenton Meacham: An American former professional basketball player and current college basketball analyst. He played college basketball at both the University of Dayton and the University of Illinois.
- Jalen Crutcher: An American professional basketball player for the Birmingham Squadron of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the Dayton Flyers.
- Robert Lowery: An American professional basketball player who last played for MLP Academics Heidelberg of the Basketball Bundesliga. Standing at 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in), he plays the point guard position. After two years at Cecil College and two years at Dayton, Lowery entered the 2010 NBA draft but was not selected in the draft's two rounds.
- Jim Katcavage: An American professional football defensive tackle in the National Football League (NFL) who played thirteen seasons for the New York Giants.
- Lalas Abubakar: A Ghanaian professional footballer who plays as a centre back for Major League Soccer club FC Dallas.
Notable Alumni in Politics
The University of Dayton has also produced a number of prominent figures in the world of politics.
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- Kristina Keneally: An American-born Australian politician who served as the first female Premier of New South Wales from 2009 to 2011 and was later a Labor Senator for New South Wales from February 2018 until April 2022. She resigned from the Senate to contest the House of Representatives seat of Fowler, but was unsuccessful. From 2019 to 2022 she served as Deputy Leader of the Opposition in the Senate, Shadow Minister for Home Affairs, and Shadow Minister for Immigration and Citizenship. She graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of Dayton.
- Mike Turner: Serving as a U.S. representative from Ohio's 10th congressional district since 2013. He is a member of the Republican Party. Turner's district, numbered as the 3rd district from 2003 to 2013, contains Dayton and Springfield, taking in part of Clark County and all of Montgomery and Greene Counties. He has served on the House Intelligence Committee including as its chair. He was removed as chair by Speaker Johnson. He served as mayor of Dayton, Ohio.
- Nan Whaley: An American politician who served as the 56th mayor of Dayton, Ohio, from 2014 to 2022. A member of the Democratic Party, she was first elected to the mayorship in November 2013, after serving on the city commission for two terms. Whaley presided over the United States Conference of Mayors from 2021 to 2022. She was the Democratic nominee in the 2022 Ohio gubernatorial election, losing to incumbent Mike DeWine. She enrolled in the University of Dayton from 1994-1998 and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in chemistry.
- David Joyce: An American politician and attorney currently serving in the United States House of Representatives for Ohio's 14th congressional district since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Joyce was previously the prosecutor of Geauga County, Ohio. He graduated from the University of Dayton in 1979 with a Bachelor of Science and in 1982 with a Juris Doctor.
- Jon A. Husted: An American politician serving as the junior United States senator from Ohio since 2025. A member of the Republican Party, Husted served as the 66th lieutenant governor of Ohio from 2019 to 2025 and as the 50th secretary of state of Ohio from 2011 to 2019. He graduated from the University of Dayton in 1989 with a Bachelor of Arts and in 1992 with a Master of Arts.
- Michael B. Coleman: An American politician of the Democratic Party who served as the 52nd mayor of Columbus, Ohio. He was the first African-American to serve as the mayor of Ohio's capital city.
- Keith Powers: An American politician, Democrat, and council member for the 4th district of the New York City Council. He succeeded former council member Daniel Garodnick in 2018, and was appointed Majority Leader in 2022. On January 3, 2024, Amanda Farias replaced Keith Powers as Majority Leader of the New York City Council. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Dayton.
- Bob Schaffer: An American businessman and a former Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from the State of Colorado in the 105th Congress and the two succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1997 - January 3, 2003). Schaffer was co-chairman of the Congressional Ukrainian Caucus, and an outspoken leader in promoting American interests and human rights in Eastern Europe. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Dayton in 1984.
- Joseph Schember: An American banker and politician and serving as the 48th mayor of…
Notable Alumni in Arts and Entertainment
The University of Dayton has also produced notable alumni in the fields of arts and entertainment.
- Amy Schneider: An American writer and game show contestant. Winning 40 consecutive games on the quiz show Jeopardy! from November 2021 to January 2022 and the November 2022 Tournament of Champions, she holds the second-longest win streak in the program's history, behind only Ken Jennings (74 games), who hosted the show as she competed. Her streak is the longest win streak by a woman. She is the most successful woman and most successful transgender contestant ever to compete on the show, in terms of both the length of her streak and her $1.6 million in winnings.
- Don Novello: An American actor, comedian, writer, singer, film director and producer.
- Mark Giangreco: The former sports director and lead sports anchor for WLS-TV in Chicago, Illinois. Until 2021, Giangreco had anchored the sports segment on ABC7 during the 5pm and 10pm newscasts. He remains an ESPN Radio contributor.
Notable Alumni in Academia and Other Fields
- Richard Rohr: An American Franciscan priest and writer on spirituality based in Albuquerque, New Mexico. He was ordained to the priesthood in the Roman Catholic Church in 1970, founded the New Jerusalem Community in Cincinnati in 1971, and the Center for Action and Contemplation in Albuquerque in 1987. In 2011, PBS called him "one of the most popular spirituality authors and speakers in the world".
- Erica Chenoweth: An American political scientist, professor of public policy at the Harvard Kennedy School and the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. They are known for their research work on nonviolent civil resistance movements. Chenoweth graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Dayton.
- Richard Schoen: An American mathematician known for his work in differential geometry and geometric analysis. He is best known for the resolution of the Yamabe problem in 1984 and his works on harmonic maps.
- Peter J. Phipps: A United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. He graduated from the University of Dayton in 1995 with a Bachelor of Science in physics.
- Jeff Jones: An American business executive.
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