About President Kaler

Eric W. Kaler is the 11th president of Case Western Reserve University and the Morton L. Mandel Presidential Chair. He joined Case Western Reserve on July 1, 2021 from the University of Minnesota, where he served as president from 2011-2019 and professor of chemical engineering and materials science from 2011-2021.

An accomplished chemical engineer and visionary university leader, President Kaler’s career in higher education spans more than 40 years and includes leadership and faculty roles at premier public research universities. He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and was elected as a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences for both his leadership in engineering and in higher education.

President Kaler has significant expertise in elevating research, expanding fundraising, forming collaborative partnerships, encouraging entrepreneurship and advocating for access to education for all.

University Priorities

The university embraces its core values, each of which guides President Kaler’s three priorities—to elevate academic excellence, expand the university’s research enterprise and enhance community engagement and impact.

Under President Kaler’s leadership, CWRU has: 

• Become the fastest-growing research university in the country (according to data from the 2025 National Science Foundation Higher Education Research and Development Survey).
• Received a historic and transformative $125 million gift from the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation that will: establish the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Humanities Building; more than double student scholarships at the Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences; create the Morton L. Mandel Presidential Chair, currently held by President Kaler; and expand the Experimental Humanities Program in the College of Arts and Sciences. 
• Grown undergraduate enrollment by 13% for a total undergraduate, graduate and professional enrollment of approximately 12,400 students. 
• Begun and nearly completed construction on the Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Building (ISEB), a 189,000-square-foot, $300 million research building located on the Case Quad that will be dedicated to interdisciplinary discovery and collaboration. The ISEB will celebrate its grand opening in October 2026. 
• Led an unprecedented coalition of more than 70 industry, nonprofit, government and education—known as NEO-SMART (Northeast Ohio Strengthening Manufacturing for American Resilience through Technology)—that was awarded a National Science Foundation Engines grant of up to $160 million to solidify Northeast Ohio as a national center for manufacturing innovation, technology and jobs.
• Committed to hiring 100 net new tenured and tenure-track faculty by 2028, a 15-percent increase for the university.
• Achieved four of its five best years in philanthropy, with a record year of philanthropy in Fiscal Year 2026, raising more than $335 million.
• Received a $25.5 million Cancer Center Support Grant in 2025, marking 38 years of continuous National Cancer Institute Funding for the Case Comprehensive Cancer Center.
• Ranked in the top 25 universities in the country in TIME magazine’s World’s Top Universities of 2026. 
• Earned recognition on Forbes’ New Ivies list, which includes 10 public and 10 private U.S. universities; and an A+ grade in Forbes’ America’s College Financial Grades list, which ranks the financial health of 900 colleges and universities in the United States.
• Opened the 11000 Cedar Startup Incubator, a community that supports startups in healthcare and technology.
• Celebrated the opening of the Midtown Collaboration Center, a hub for several CWRU School of Medicine programs dedicated to improving health outcomes for the people of Cleveland.
• Strengthened partnerships and connections with community members through the creation of a Neighborhood Advisory Council, expansion of Pre-College Programs, and the opening of the Wade Park Community Engagement Center.
• Won its first-ever NCAA Division III national team championship with Men’s Tennis in 2023.

Experience, Memberships and Education

President Kaler began his career in higher education as a research and teaching assistant at the University of Minnesota, where he earned his PhD in chemical engineering in 1982. He then joined the faculty at the University of Washington, where he was an assistant professor and associate professor of chemical engineering from 1982-1989. 

His first leadership positions followed at the University of Delaware, which he joined as an associate professor in 1989. He was promoted to professor in 1991 and appointed the Elizabeth Inez Kelley Professor in 1998. He also served as the chair of the chemical engineering department from 1996-2000 and dean of the College of Engineering from 2000-2007. He joined Stony Brook University in 2007 as provost and senior vice president for academic affairs and professor of engineering and chemistry. He also served as the university’s vice president for Brookhaven Affairs from 2008-2011. In 2011, he began his presidency at the University of Minnesota.

President Kaler holds 10 patents and has published more than 200 peer-reviewed papers. In addition to election to the National Academy of Engineering and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, President Kaler is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the American Chemical Society, the Neutron Scattering Society of America, and he was a member of the inaugural class of the National Academy of Inventors. Currently, he serves on the Board of Directors of the Greater Cleveland Partnership, where he also co-chairs the Innovation and Growth Committee. 

President Kaler earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1978 from the California Institute of Technology.

Family

Born in Vermont, President Kaler is a first-generation college graduate. He credits his wife, Karen, as the major contributor to his success. Karen Kaler, a Tennessee native, is well known for her warmth, enthusiasm, and advocacy. The couple have been married since 1979.