In 2001, he was awarded an honorary doctorate by Northern Michigan University. In 2005, Ron received the John W. Gardner Leadership Award from the Independent Sector recognizing a career that has “transformed underserved neighborhoods into vibrant communities and inspired a community development banking movement worldwide.” Ron was the first person from a for-profit business to win this award. In 2006, Ron (along with ShoreBank co-founder Mary Houghton) received the Gleitsman Citizen Activist Award at Harvard University for work transforming “under-served urban neighborhoods across the country into vibrant communities.” In the same year, he accepted the 2006 Ethics Award from Western Illinois University. Also in 2006, he accepted an invitation to address the Skoll World Forum at Oxford University. In October 2007, he was named to the Affordable Housing Finance Hall of Fame. In November 2007, he was named to the list "America's Top Leaders 2007" by "U.S. News & World Report". In 2008, he received the Hesburgh Award for Ethics in Business from the University of Notre Dame.