Honoring an alumnus with the right chemistry for teaching

James Stephen Swinehart, PhD, had an immeasurable gift as a professor: He made the study of organic chemistry more approachable. Now, thanks to the generosity and vision of Swinehart’s family, future students will be educated by faculty members who share Swinehart’s enthusiasm for the field through the new James Stephen Swinehart, PhD, Endowed Professorship in Organic Chemistry at Case Western Reserve.

For Swinehart (ADL ’50), teaching wasn’t just a job—it was a calling. After taking an introductory course in organic chemistry, Swinehart later said, he realized he had found his vocation. The subject so intrigued him that he devoted his career to sharing his enthusiasm with new generations of students.

“This professorship is more than a tribute—it’s a beacon for educators who share Dr. Swinehart’s passion for making science accessible and exciting,” said College of Arts and Sciences Dean David Gerdes, PhD. “Through this gift, his legacy will live on in the very same department where Case Western Reserve professors helped set him on the path to a long and meaningful career.”

Swinehart spent 27 years on the faculty at the State University of New York at Cortland, where he not only taught organic chemistry but championed the early adoption of computers in the classroom to make learning more accessible. A beloved teacher and mentor, Swinehart frequently received testimonials in the “My Favorite Professor” column of the campus newspaper. He died in 2004.

“Our dad was able to convince a lot of the brighter students to aim high and go the pre-med route to medical school,” his daughter, Susan Cholette, said. “He saw potential everywhere, especially in students who hadn’t yet discovered it in themselves.”

The Swinehart professorship elevates what began as a teaching fellowship created with a $1.25 million gift from his wife, Ann, and Susan Cholette in 2017, to honor Swinehart’s commitment to undergraduate education. The gift has now grown to $2.5 million, thanks to the family’s continued support through the James and Ann Swinehart Foundation. But the goal remains the same: to reward and encourage teaching that sparks curiosity and keeps students excited about science.

At the time of the original gift, Ann Swinehart, who passed away in 2023, said the purpose was “to add value to the teaching of organic chemistry” and, in a sense, to allow her husband “to return to and live on at the university that he so loved and that provided him that special time and nurturing space to flourish and to find his life’s passion.” 

Read More: Expanded gift creates endowed professorship in Case Western Reserve University alumnus’ honor