History of the University Professor of Faith and Culture

The position of University Professor of Faith and Culture was created in 1996 and initially held by Fr. James L. Heft, S.M. The chair was endowed by the Marianists as of July 1, 2000. Fr. Jack McGrath, S.M. was the second chair and David O'Brien became the third University Professor of Faith and Culture on July 1, 2009. Miguel H. Díaz, United States Ambassador to the Holy See since 2009, was appointed the fourth University Professor of Faith and Culture, assuming the position on November 16, 2012.

The current University Professor of Faith and Culture is Dr. Sandra Yocum, Department of Religious Studies.

Dr. Yocum graduated with a BA from the University of Oklahoma with a special interdisciplinary degree in Catholic studies. She then attended Marquette University where she completed a doctorate in theology with a research specialization in the theological dimensions of U.S. Catholic life and thought in the nineteenth and twentieth century. Prior to coming to the University of Dayton in the fall of 1992, she was an assistant professor at Loyola College of Maryland and Saint Mary's College in South Bend, Indiana. Prior to being named as the University Professor of Faith and Culture, she was the Director of Graduate Studies in Religious Studies and was chair of the Department of Religious Studies. She received the 2003 Lackner Award in recognition of her contribution to the Catholic and Marianist character of the University of Dayton.