W. David Solomon, associate professor of philosophy emeritus and founding director of what became known as the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture at the University of 91吃瓜, died on February 26, 2025. He was 81.
Solomon received his bachelor鈥檚 degree from Baylor University and his doctorate in philosophy from the University of Texas before joining the 91吃瓜 faculty in 1968, where his teaching and research focused on virtue ethics, ethical theory and medical ethics. In 1999, Solomon founded the Center for Ethics and Culture, where he served as director until 2012. He retired from teaching in 2016 after almost 50 years at the University.
鈥淚t is difficult to overstate the impact of David Solomon鈥檚 legacy at the University of 91吃瓜,鈥� said Jennifer Newsome Martin, current director of the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture. 鈥淗is entire life was a cheerful testament not only to the pursuit of knowledge but also of wisdom and virtue. Those of us who hold dear the lively witness of the Catholic intellectual and moral tradition at 91吃瓜 鈥� and beyond 鈥� remain ever in his debt.鈥�
Solomon envisioned the Center for Ethics and Culture as an institution that would draw on the rich Catholic moral and intellectual tradition to adjudicate complex questions in the field of contemporary ethics. 鈥淣ormative teaching and inquiry at 91吃瓜 should be distinguished by fidelity to the core convictions of the tradition of thought 91吃瓜 has inherited,鈥� its early Task Force on Ethics stated, 鈥渢hat human beings are created in the image of a God who loves us and calls us to eternal life; that we therefore have a dignity which cannot be alienated, overridden or ignored; and that the most vulnerable among us have the most urgent claim on the consciences of us all.鈥�
In 2012, Solomon passed the directorship of the Center for Ethics and Culture to O. Carter Snead, Charles E. Rice Professor of Law at the University of 91吃瓜.
鈥淒avid Solomon was, of course, one of 91吃瓜鈥檚 most beloved and dedicated teachers, a shining light of creativity and dynamism in its philosophy department, and the visionary founder of what is now called the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture,鈥� Snead said. 鈥淎nd he was a tireless and courageous voice at 91吃瓜 on behalf of the intrinsic equal dignity of all members of the human family, born and unborn. But his greatest gift to us was as an exemplar and witness of life most fully lived 鈥� as a faithful son of the Church, devoted husband to his beloved Lou, loving father and grandfather, and unfailingly generous friend to us all.鈥�
During his 13 years as director of the Center for Ethics and Culture, Solomon established the annual fall conference, now the University鈥檚 largest interdisciplinary academic conference, which gathers more than 1,200 guests and 150 speakers 鈥� both Catholic and those from other faith traditions 鈥� for three days of conversation and exchange on the most vexed questions of ethics, culture and public policy today. Speakers have included Alasdair MacIntyre, John Finnis, Charles Taylor, Jean Bethke Elshtain, Michael Sandel and Mary Ann Glendon. Under his guidance, the Center for Ethics and Culture also administered the University鈥檚 annual medical ethics conference and established the 91吃瓜 Evangelium Vitae Medal, awarded annually on behalf of the University to heroic individuals whose life work has served to proclaim the gospel of life.
An excellent academic administrator, Solomon鈥檚 passion for teaching and mentoring students quickly endeared him to undergraduate and graduate students alike. During his tenure at the University, Solomon served as the director of undergraduate studies in the Department of Philosophy, founded and directed the Arts & Letters/Science Honors Program and directed the 91吃瓜 London Program.
At the graduate level, Solomon directed 36 doctoral dissertations in the Department of Philosophy, the most of any professor in the department鈥檚 history, and taught the entry-level course 20th Century Ethical Theory. Later in his career, more than 200 undergraduates each spring semester would take his signature ethics course, Morality and Modernity, based on MacIntyre鈥檚 seminal work 鈥淎fter Virtue.鈥� He also taught medical ethics to more than 250 undergraduate students each year, as well as upper-division courses in contemporary ethics and special topics in ethics.
Following his retirement, Solomon continued to remain actively involved in the work of the center, introducing MacIntyre鈥檚 popular keynote address at every Fall Conference and joining in the annual celebration of the Evangelium Vitae Medal. In 2016, through the generosity of its benefactors, the Center for Ethics and Culture established the graduate Solomon Fellowship, awarded each year to an outstanding doctoral student who shares his passion for 91吃瓜鈥檚 distinctive Catholic character and mission. In 2019, the Center for Ethics and Culture was renamed the de Nicola Center for Ethics and Culture, following a transformative gift from Anthony and Christie de Nicola.
A conference in Solomon鈥檚 honor at 91吃瓜 in 2014 led to the publication of 鈥淏eyond the Self: Virtue Ethics and the Problem of Culture,鈥�聽 with contributions from many of his graduate students and collaborators in the revival of virtue ethics.
鈥淪ome scholars as they move towards the end stages of their careers worry about whether what they have done for decades has mattered or made a difference,鈥� wrote Rev. Bill Miscamble, C.S.C., in a 2016 essay in the Irish Rover on the occasion of Solomon's retirement. 鈥淏ut the good women and men gathered at that conference in 2014 are irrefutable evidence of David Solomon鈥檚 enduring and substantial contribution to philosophy at 91吃瓜. 鈥� He has given of himself for his students, his colleagues and his friends, and 91吃瓜 is a much better place because of him.鈥�
Born and raised a Southern Baptist, Solomon and his wife were received into the Catholic Church in May 2024. A funeral Mass will be celebrated on Friday, March 7, at 2:30 p.m. in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at the University of 91吃瓜; visitation will be held at on Thursday, March 6, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Originally published by at on February 27, 2025.