Second Presidential Reception Held in Shanghai
On November 6, Shanghai-area alumni, as well as several parents, families and friends of current students, joined President Barbara R. Snyder at The Peninsula Shanghai Hotel. The second presidential reception to be held in Shanghai since 2017, the event attracted 200 attendees, including alumni representing College of Arts and Sciences, School of Graduate Studies, Case School of Engineering, the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, School of Law, School of Medicine and Weatherhead School of Management. The group was welcomed by Chair of the Board of Trustees James C. Wyant (CIT ‘65).
In her remarks, President Snyder shared an update on activities and programs at Case Western Reserve University, which currently has more than 5,000 undergraduate students and more than 6,600 graduate students, more than 110,000 alumni, and 16 Nobel Laureates. For the class of 2022, 13% are from outside the United States, representing 50 different countries.
Translation for Dr. Wyant and President Snyder was provided by current member of the Board of Directors for The Alumni Association and co-chair of the Beijing and Shanghai Alumni Chapters Roger Wei (CWR ‘96). On behalf of The Alumni Association of Case Western Reserve, Wei also shared updates regarding two alumni chapters in China — Beijing and Shanghai — established in June of this year. During the last five months, these alumni chapters supported three major activities for CWRU — the Beijing and Shanghai Summer Send-offs and the Presidential Reception in China. Also, the alumni chapters in China announced its WeChat Public Account and continue to recruit through this group, which is currently at 475 members. The aim of the alumni chapters in China is to provide connections among school, alumni, students and parents, as well as providing social, employment and business opportunities within China.
Improvement in International Rankings Reflects Initiative to Raise Case Western Reserve University’s Global Footprint
A new campus-wide international rankings initiative has yielded improvements this year in each of the four major measures of colleges and universities across the world.
The early progress shows that even modest efforts can make a significant difference in how global audiences view Case Western Reserve—a perception that carries increasing impact for U.S. higher education institutions. Rankings can play a pivotal role in international students' choices to continue their educations—and also influence decisions involving educational and research collaborations.
“We are looking at rankings as a way to see where we can improve in quality, not just play the numbers game,” said Molly Watkins, executive director for International Affairs, who began leading the rankings efforts this summer. “It helps our faculty and helps our research.”
In the fall of 2016, Vice Provost for International Affairs David Fleshler and Associate Provost and University Librarian Arnold Hirshon began working to draw attention to the opportunities and challenges of international rankings. The issue resonated strongly among several faculty and, by the spring of 2017, Fleshler and Hirshon began convening staff and faculty from across multiple departments as an International Rankings Committee. With guidance from a consultant, the committee learned more about the various indicators and methodologies organizations apply to their lists. During the process, the committee recognized that the university could improve its standing simply by providing more consistent, accurate and thorough information to ranking organizations.
From that effort, the Office of Institutional Research has begun submitting more complete and precise data to ranking organizations. Kelvin Smith Library has worked extensively on the university’s bibliometrics—cleaning up data on faculty citations. And the Center for International Affairs has created initiatives to enhance the university’s global reputation. Simon Peck, associate professor of design and innovation at the Weatherhead School of Management, and Victoria Wright, associate vice president for University Planning and Administration, provided additional leadership.
The group’s effort is reflected in recent improvements among key international rankings:
- In the 2019 Times Higher Education (THE) World University Rankings, Case Western Reserve moved to 132 from 158.
- Case Western Reserve moved to 186 from 213 in the 2019 QS World University Rankings.
- In the 2018 CWTS Leiden Ranking, which analyzed 938 universities based on the number of Web of Science indexed publications, Case Western Reserve jumped to 57 from 143.
- In the Academic Ranking of World Universities, the university edged up to 123 from 124.
The most recent ratings, the 2019 Times Higher Education World University Rankings announced just last week, evaluated 1,258 universities from 86 countries on metrics such as teaching, research, international outlook, reputation and more. In the THE rankings, the university improved the following scores:
- 49.2 from 44.4 in Teaching (based on faculty-student ratio and reputation);
- 36.2 from 34.9 in Research (number of published research articles in specific high-impact journals);
- 93.2 from 90.1 in Citations (how many times research is cited);
- 51.5 from 46.1 in International Outlook (number of international faculty and students, and number of published research articles written with an international collaborator); and
- 40.8 from 36.7 in Industry Income (corporate investment for research).
“We have a lot of potential to continue to improve our rankings moving forward,” Watkins said. “With this international rankings initiative, we can make some good strides.”
This article originally ran in The Daily.
Building Bridges Around the World
In October, CWRU celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Uganda-CWRU Research Collaboration with the presentation How Decades of Success Battling HIV/AIDS Can Help Shape the Future. The event included a cocktail reception and a panel discussion featuring:
- Dr. Peter Mugyenyi, chair of the Uganda National Academy of Science Research Committee, former executive director of the Joint Clinical Research Centre, and recognized by the World Health Organization as one of the world's foremost specialists in HIV/AIDS
- Dr. Robert Salata, professor and chairman of the CWRU Department of Medicine, physician-in-chief and master clinician in infectious diseases at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center
- Dr. Harriet Mayanja-Kizza, professor at Makerere University in Uganda
- The panel was moderated by John R. Corlett, president and executive director of The Center for Community Solutions
Learn more about all of CWRU's major international partnerships here.
Study Abroad-Alumni Connections Continues
Case Western Reserve University’s Study Abroad-Alumni Connections program was created by the Center for International Affairs and The Alumni Association to bring current students and alumni together around the globe. This fall, the program connected 12 students who are studying abroad with alumni living and working in United Kingdom, China, France, Denmark, Spain and Germany.
For the 2019 spring semester, students will be studying in 20 countries:
- Buenos Aires, Argentina
- Sydney, Australia
- Vienna, Austria
- Hong Kong
- Copenhagen and Lyngby in Denmark
- Galapagos and Quito in Ecuador
- Paris, France
- Munich and Frankfurt, Germany
- Dublin and Cork, Ireland
- Rome, Italy
- Tokyo, Japan
- Amman, Jordan
- Leiden and Maastricht, Netherlands
- Auckland, New Zealand
- Singapore
- Cape Town, South Africa
- Daejeon and Seoul, South Korea
- Madrid, Spain
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Oxford, London, Edinburgh, Manchester in the United Kingdom
Introductions between students and alumni will be made by CWRU, either before or during the student’s international stay.
The relationships formed through this program benefit both students and alumni. Whether it’s sharing a dinner, answering questions about local culture, or exploring the city, CWRU alumni living abroad play an important part in helping students adapt to a new country. In return, alumni hear about life at CWRU from a current student.
Sign up for next semester's Study Abroad-Alumni Connections here.
Pave It Forward This Holiday Season
This holiday season, celebrate your CWRU connection or honor someone with a customized brick paver in the courtyard of the Linsalata Alumni Center.
Each paver stone is an eight-inch square that accommodates up to five lines of text with 20 characters per line. This custom inscription is a lasting way to celebrate your Case Western Reserve University connection or honor a relative or friend.
Each inscribed paver stone costs $500 and is a 100% tax deductible purchase.
Leave a permanent mark at CWRU >
Find Out What's on the Horizon with the
Weatherhead School of Management's
Bowers 2019 Economic Forecast
Receive an insider’s view of the near-term U.S. economic landscape from Ellen Zentner, chief U.S. economist and managing director at Morgan Stanley, at the 45th Annual David A. Bowers Economic Forecast Luncheon. Zentner was named to the “Bloomberg Best” list of top forecasters of the U.S. economy and with more than 20 years’ experience as a Fed watcher and markets-based economist, she brings a keen eye to early identification of market-moving trends.
In 2018, Zentner and her team received the Lawrence R. Klein Award for the most accurate economic forecasts from 2014 to 2017. Zentner serves on the Economic Advisory panel for the New York Federal Reserve Bank and the Academic Advisory Panel for the Chicago Federal Reserve Bank. Prior to joining Morgan Stanley, Zentner was a senior economist at Nomura Securities International and senior economist at Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ, Ltd.
For more than forty years, Weatherhead's David A. Bowers Economic Forecast Luncheon has provided emerging trends and market factors to help attendees benchmark the near-term economic outlook.
December 7, 2018
11 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
Cleveland Marriott Downtown at Key Tower
1360 West Mall Drive | Cleveland, OH 44114
Excited About the Browns This Season?
Discount tickets are being offered to CWRU for the following Browns games:
December 9 - Cleveland Browns vs. Carolina Panthers
December 23 - Cleveland Browns vs. Cincinnati Bengals
Join CWRU at CES 2019 – January 8-11
Start the new year with all the inspiration you need to think beyond the possible!
For 50 years, the Consumer Electronics Show has been a launch pad for innovation that has changed the world. Meet this year’s CWRU alumni and student innovators as you enjoy complimentary food and beverages at one of our most exciting receptions of the year!
Tuesday, January 8
5-7:30 p.m.
Eureka Park at Sands Hall G Level 1, Booth 51541
201 Sands Ave, Las Vegas
Register here >
A CES badge is required to access the reception area. A limited number of free show badges are available. Register by 12/12/18 to claim yours!
Sponsored by the Case Alumni Association, The Alumni Association of Case Western Reserve University and Weatherhead School of Management.
