Necrology

Daniel James O’Leary

Apr. 27, 1939-Jul. 15, 2025

Daniel James O’Leary P’92,’95 died at his home in Jamestown, R.I., on July 15, 2025. He retired from Hamilton in 2004 after serving 24 years in several leadership roles, including vice president for administration and finance.

Dan was born on April 27, 1939, at the U.S. Naval Hospital in Brooklyn, N.Y., and grew up in Woodside, Queens. He attended Catholic parochial schools before graduating from St. John’s College where he majored in history and philosophy. He later attended New York University and earned his MBA from Fairleigh Dickinson.

After joining the U.S. Navy, Dan was commissioned as an ensign in the Navy Reserve. He served on active duty, primarily aboard destroyers in the North Atlantic, and retired from the active reserve as a captain in 1986.

After entering civilian life, Dan worked as an administrator at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the Smithsonian Institution. He came to Hamilton in 1980 and served as vice president for administration and finance for two decades, during which time he also filled in as acting president for one year. In 2001, his role expanded, and he worked four years as vice president for investments and treasurer, a new position created by then President Gene Tobin to focus on the College’s strategic investments, including the $475 million endowment at that time.

In a message announcing Dan’s passing, President Steven Tepper noted, “Dan’s disciplined approach to budgeting helped ensure a strong fiscal foundation that continues to serve Hamilton well, especially now as financial headwinds are more pronounced.”

Dan also cared deeply about the beauty of campus and played a key role in renovation and construction projects while simultaneously attending to the care and upkeep of the College’s trees, flora, and grounds. Much of that care led to the campus being designated an arboretum in 2020. 

“Just last week I had the privilege of calling Dan to tell him that many of his Hamilton friends, with the encouragement of Tom Schwarz ’66, P’01, had established an endowment in his name to support the Hamilton Arboretum,” Tepper wrote. “A plaque will be added near the entrance to the Root Glen to make people aware of the fund. There’s already a plaque in the Taylor Science Center that ‘acknowledges with grateful appreciation the extraordinary dedication and service’ of Dan for his leadership and for countless renovation projects.”

Dan O’Leary will be missed by his wife, Michol, with whom he had just celebrated 58 years of marriage. Other survivors include two sons, two daughters, seven grandchildren, two sisters, and many nieces and nephews.

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