Case Western Reserve University

John J.R. Macleod, 1923 Nobel Prize winner for discovering Insulin and Western Reserve University Professor of Physiology.

Western Reserve College, the college of the Connecticut Western Reserve, was founded in 1826 in Hudson, Ohio, as the Western Reserve College and Preparatory School. Western Reserve College, or "Reserve" as it was popularly called, was the first college in northern Ohio.[13] The school was called "Yale of the West"; its campus, now that of the Western Reserve Academy, imitated that of Yale. It had the same motto, "Lux et Veritas" (Light and Truth), the same entrance standards, and almost the same curriculum.

The vision its founders had of Western Reserve College was that it would instill in students an "evangelical ethos", and produce ministers to remedy the acute shortage of them in Ohio. Liberal arts and sciences were important, but secondary. The college was located in Hudson because the town made the largest financial offer (to help in its construction).[14]^:422

Hudson was a quiet antislavery center from the beginning: its founder, David Hudson, was against slavery, and founding trustee Owen Brown was a noted abolitionist who secured the location for the college. The abolitionist John Brown, who would lead the 1859 raid on Harpers Ferry, grew up in Hudson and was the son of co-founder Owen Brown. Hudson was a major stop on the Underground Railroad.

Along with Presbyterian influences of its founding, the school's origins were strongly associated with the pre-Civil War Abolitionist movement,[15] primarily due to the influence of President Charles Backus Storrs, Elizur Wright, and David Hudson. In fact, Western Reserve was the first college west of the Appalachian Mountains to enroll (1832) and graduate (1836) an African-American student, John Sykes Fayette.[16] The abolitionist views were so strong, Frederick Douglass gave the commencement speech in 1854.[17]

In 1838, the Loomis Observatory was built by astronomer Elias Loomis, and today remains the second oldest observatory in the United States, and the oldest still in its original location.[18]

In 1852, the Medical School became the second ^medical? school in the United States to graduate a woman, Nancy Talbot Clark. Five more women graduated over the next four years, including Emily Blackwell and Marie Zakrzewska, giving Western Reserve the distinction of graduating six of the first eight female physicians in the United States.[19]

By 1875, Cleveland had emerged as the dominant population and business center of the area, and the city wanted a prominent higher education institution. In 1882, with funding from Amasa Stone, Western Reserve College moved to Cleveland and changed its name to Adelbert College of Western Reserve University. Adelbert was the name of Stone's son.[20]

Case alumnus Herbert Henry Dow, founder of Dow Chemical.

In 1877, Leonard Case Jr. began laying the groundwork for the Case School of Applied Science by secretly donating valuable pieces of Cleveland real estate to a trust. He asked his confidential advisor, Henry Gilbert Abbey, to administer the trust and to keep it secret until after his death in 1880.

On March 29, 1880, articles of incorporation were filed for the founding of the Case School of Applied Science. Classes began on September 15, 1881.[21] The school received its charter by the state of Ohio in 1882.

For the first four years of the school's existence, it was located in the Case family's home on Rockwell Street in downtown Cleveland. Classes were held in the family house, while the chemistry and physics laboratories were on the second floor of the barn. Amasa Stone's gift to relocate Western Reserve College to Cleveland also included a provision for the purchase of land in the University Circle area, adjacent to Western Reserve University, for the Case School of Applied Science. The school relocated to University Circle in 1885.

During World War II, Case School of Applied Science was one of 131 colleges and universities nationally that took part in the V-12 Navy College Training Program which offered students a path to a Navy commission.[22]

Over time, the Case School of Applied Science expanded to encompass broader subjects, adopting the name Case Institute of Technology in 1947 to reflect the institution's growth.[20]

Led by polymer expert Eric Baer in 1963, the nation's first stand-alone Polymer Science and Engineering program was founded, to eventually become the Department of Macromolecular Science and Engineering.[23]

Although the trustees of Case Institute of Technology and Western Reserve University did not formally federate their institutions until 1967, the institutions already shared buildings and staff when necessary and worked together often. One such example was seen in 1887, when Case physicist Albert Michelson and Reserve chemist Edward Morley collaborated on the famous Michelson–Morley experiment.

There had been some discussion of a merger of the two institutions as early as 1890, but those talks dissolved quickly. In the 1920s, the Survey Commission on Higher Education in Cleveland took a strong stand in favor of federation and the community was behind the idea as well, but in the end all that came of the study was a decision by the two institutions to cooperate in founding Cleveland College, a special unit for part-time and adult students in downtown Cleveland.

By the 1960s, Reserve President John Schoff Millis and Case President T. Keith Glennan shared the idea that federation would create a complete university, one better able to attain national distinction. Financed by the Carnegie Corporation, Cleveland Foundation, Greater Cleveland Associated Foundation, and several local donors, a study commission of national leaders in higher education and public policy was charged with exploring the idea of federation. The Heald Commission, so known for its chair, former Ford Foundation President Henry T. Heald, issued its final report, "Vision of a University." The report predicted that a federation could create one of the largest private universities in the nation.

In 1967, Case Institute of Technology, a school with its emphasis on engineering and science, and Western Reserve University, a school with professional programs and liberal arts, came together to form Case Western Reserve University.[24]

In 1968, the Department of Biomedical Engineering launched as a newly unified collaboration between the School of Engineering and School of Medicine as the first in the nation and as one of the first Biomedical Engineering programs in the world.[25] The following year in 1969, the first Biomedical Engineering MD/PhD program in the world began at Case Western Reserve.[26]

The first computer engineering degree program in the United States was established in 1971 at Case Western Reserve.

The "Forward Thinking" campaign was launched in 2011 by President Barbara Snyder to fundraise $1 billion, the largest in school history. The goal was reached in 2014 after 30 months. The Board of Trustees unanimously agreed to expand the campaign to $1.5 billion, which reached its mark a few years later in 2017.[27] The campaign ultimately raised $1.82 billion.[28]

On September 29, the first 2020 United States presidential debate occurred at the Samson Pavilion of the Health Education Campus (HEC), shared by the Cleveland Clinic.[29]

In February 2020, president Barbara Snyder was appointed the president of Association of American Universities (AAU). Later that year, former Tulane University president Scott Cowen was appointed interim president. On October 29, 2020, Eric W. Kaler, former University of Minnesota president, was appointed as the new Case Western Reserve University president, effective July 1, 2021.[30]

The Case Quadrangle, known also to students as the Engineering Quad, is located south of Euclid Avenue between Adelbert Road and Martin Luther King Jr. Drive. Most engineering and science buildings are located on this quad, notably the John D. Rockefeller Physics Building.[32] The Case Quad also houses administration buildings, including Adelbert Hall. The famous Michelson-Morley experiment occurred here, where a historical marker and the Michelson-Morley Memorial Fountain stand as commemoration. Other notable campus buildings include the Strosacker Auditorium and Nord Hall. The southernmost edge consists of athletic areas—Adelbert Gymnasium, Van Horn Field and the Veale Convocation, Recreation and Athletic Center (commonly referred to as the Veale Center). The Veale Center houses the Horsburgh Gymnasium and the Veale Natatorium.

Haydn Hall on the campus of Case Western Reserve University (Flora Stone Mather Quadrangle) in Cleveland.

The Flora Stone Mather Quadrangle, known to students as the Mather Quad, is home to many humanities and social sciences subjects. The quad is located north of Euclid Avenue between East Blvd., East 115th Street, and Juniper Road. The Flora Stone Mather College Historic District is more strictly defined by the area between East Blvd, Bellflower Road, and Ford Road north of Euclid Avenue. Named for the philanthropist wife of prominent industrialist Samuel Mather and sister-in-law of the famous statesman John Hay, the Mather Quad is home to Weatherhead School of Management, School of Law, Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences, and many departments of the College of Arts and Sciences. The Kelvin Smith Library, Thwing Center, and Tinkham Veale Student Center (known also as "The Tink") sit on the western edge of the Mather Quad and are often considered the center of campus.

Kelvin Smith Library

Situated on the northeast end of campus, the North Residential Village (NRV) is home to all Case Western Reserve's first-year students and many second-year students residing on campus. Constructed in the 1960s, the NRV consists of 12 4-floor buildings, an 11-floor building, Leutner (a dining hall), and a building containing the NRV area office and rehearsal space for Case Western Reserve's music department.

Triangle Towers are buildings located within Uptown that house both current students and staff, and is also available for rent to the public. There are two towers, Tower 1 and Tower 2. Both overlook Uptown shops like Michel's Ice Cream and ABC Tavern.

Located between East 115th Street and East 118th Street, the Village at 115 opened in the fall of 2005 for upper-class students. The Village consists of seven houses that surround DiSanto Field and the Bill Sudeck Track. Village housing is apartment style, with apartments that house one to nine people (excluding eight person units). The apartments are fully furnished. The Village is also LEED Gold certified. Houses 1-4 & 6-7 are certified silver while house 5 is certified gold.

The Stephanie Tubbs Jones Residence Hall is located the north side of campus along East 115th Street before Wade Park Avenue. The hall is for upperclassman and is LEED Gold certified.[33] As of 2019, the building is the newest residential hall on campus and consists of 5 floors along with 106 apartments. In addition to the apartments, the building also contains 8 townhouse-like residential units.[34]

Located between Murray Hill, Cedar, Edgehill, and Overlook roads, the South Residential Village (SRV) is home to most of Case Western Reserve's sophomore class. SRV is divided into two sections: Murray Hill Complex and Carlton Road Complex (known to students as bottom of the hill and top of the hill, respectively, due to the hill separating the two complexes). Carlton Road Complex includes three sophomore-only dormitories and several Greek life houses. Murray Hill Complex includes four sophomore only buildings and Fribley, the SRV dining hall. It also includes five Greek Houses.

On and near campus, CircleLink serves as the free public shuttle service for residents, employees and visitors in University Circle and Little Italy with routes running every 20–30 minutes during service hours. Colloquially, the shuttle buses are known as Greenies.[35] To supplement evening and nighttime hours, the Safe Ride Program provides personal pickup of students and staff upon request.[36]

For city public transit, rail and bus access are managed by the Greater Cleveland Regional Transit Authority (RTA). RTA passes of unlimited use are provided to undergraduate and full-time graduate students. The two Red Line rapid train stations are Little Italy–University Circle and Cedar–University. Notably, the Red Line connects campus to Cleveland Hopkins Airport and Downtown Cleveland. The bus rapid transit (BRT) HealthLine runs down the center of campus along Euclid Ave. Numerous RTA bus routes run through campus.[37]

Case Western Reserve parking is managed by Standard Parking, and includes a network over 50 surface lots and 15 parking structures.[38] Pay-by-phone parking is an available option for meters throughout campus.[39]

In U.S. News & World Report's 2021 rankings, Case Western Reserve was ranked as tied for 42nd among national universities and 155th among global universities.[49][50] The 2020 edition of The Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education (WSJ/THE) rankings ranked Case Western Reserve as 52nd among US colleges and universities.[51]

In 2018, Case Western Reserve was ranked 37th in the category American "national universities" and 146th in the category "global universities" by U.S. News & World Report. In 2019 U.S. News ranked it tied for 42nd and 152nd, respectively. Case Western Reserve was also ranked 32nd among U.S. universities—and 29th among private institutions—in the inaugural 2016 edition of The Wall Street Journal/Times Higher Education (WSJ/THE) rankings, but ranked tied for 39th among U.S. universities in 2019.[51]

Also in 2018, "The Hollywood Reporter" ranked CWRU's Department of Theater Master of Fine Arts program with the Cleveland Play House as 18th in the English-speaking world. In 2019, this ranking improved to 12th.[52]

In 2014, Washington Monthly ranked Case Western Reserve University as the 9th best National University,[53][54] but in the 2018 rankings, Case Western Reserve was ranked the 118th best National University.[55]

In 2013, Washington Monthly ranked Case Western Reserve as the nation's 4th best National University for contributing to the public good. The publication's ranking was based upon a combination of factors including social mobility, research, and service.[56] In 2009, the school had ranked 15th.[57] Although Washington Monthly no longer ranks contributions to the public good as such, in its 2018 rankings of National Universities Case Western Reserve was ranked 180th in Social mobility and 118th in Service.[55]

In 2014, The Times ranked Case Western Reserve 116th worldwide, but in 2019 it ranked the university 132nd.[58]

In 2013, Case Western Reserve was among the Top 25 LGBT-Friendly Colleges and Universities, according to Campus Pride, a national organization that aims to make universities safer and more inclusive for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) individuals. The recognition follows Case Western Reserve's first five-star ranking on the Campus Pride Index, a detailed survey of universities' policies, services and institutional support for LGBT individuals.[59]

Case Western Reserve ranks 13th among private institutions (26th among all) in federal expenditures for science and engineering research and development, per the National Science Foundation.[60]

The six most popular majors for graduates were Biomedical Engineering, Biology/Biological Sciences, Social Work, Nursing, Mechanical Engineering, and Psychology. Since 2016, the top fields for graduating CWRU undergraduate students have been engineering, nursing, research and science, accounting and financial services, and information technology.[61]

Case Western Reserve has an acceptance rate of 27% for the class of 2023.[62]

The Class of 2023 had 82 percent of students from outside the state of Ohio and 16 percent from outside the United States. 70 percent graduated in the top 10 percent of their high school class. The mid-50% for SAT scores (25% - 75%) were between 1360 and 1480. The mid-50% for ACT scores was 30 to 34 (superscored).[63]

Frank Gehry designed Peter B. Lewis Building housing the Weatherhead School of Management.

The university in its present form consists of eight schools:[64]

• College of Arts and Sciences (1826)
• School of Dental Medicine (1892)
• Case School of Engineering (1880)
• School of Law (1892)
• Weatherhead School of Management (1952)
• School of Medicine
  • 'University Program' (1843)
  • Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine ('College Program') (2002)
• Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing (1898)
• Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences (1915)

CWRU also supports over a hundred 'Centers' in various fields.[65]

The controversial "Case" logo.

In 2003, the university unveiled a new logo and branding campaign that emphasized the "Case" portion of its name. In 2006, interim university president Gregory Eastwood convened a task group to study reactions to the campaign. The panel's report indicated that it had gone so poorly that, "There appear to be serious concerns now about the university's ability to recruit and maintain high-quality faculty, fund-raising and leadership." Also, the logo was derided among the university's community and alumni and throughout northeastern Ohio; critics said it looked like "...a fat man with a surfboard."[66]

In 2007, the university's board of trustees approved a shift back to giving equal weight to "Case" and "Western Reserve." A new logo was chosen and implementation began July 1.[67] In an open letter to the university community, interim president Eastwood admitted that "the university had misplaced its own history and traditions."[68]

As of December 2019, the university had 5,383 undergraduate students and 6,491 graduate and professional students.[69] The undergraduate student body hails from all 50 states and 94 countries.[70]

The Yeager Center for Electrochemical Sciences (YCES), formerly the Case Center for Electrochemical Sciences, has provided annual workshops on electrochemical measurements since the late 1970s. Related laboratories at Case include the Electrochemical Engineering and Energy Laboratory (EEEL), the Electrochemical Materials Fabrication Laboratory (EMFL), the Case Electrochemical Capacitor Fabrication Facility and the ENERGY LAB. The Editor for the Journal of the Electrochemical Society is a Case professor, and the university is home to six Fellows of the Electrochemical Society. Some notable achievements involve the work on boron-doped diamond electrodes, in-situ electrochemical spectroscopy, polybenzibidazole (PBI) membranes for fuel cells and flow batteries and electrochemical sensors. In July 2018, the University was awarded $10.75 million by the U.S. Department of Energy to establish the Energy Frontier Research Center, which will explore "Breakthrough Electrolytes for Energy Storage." [86]

Larry Sears and Sally Zlotnick Sears think[box] is a public-access design and innovation center at Case Western Reserve University that allows students and other users to access prototyping equipment and other invention resources. The makerspace is located in the Richey Mixon building, a seven-story, 50,000 sq. ft. facility behind the campus athletic center. Over $35 million has been invested in space including in large part from a funding of $10 million from alumni Larry Sears and his wife Sally Zlotnick Sears.[87][88] Larry Sears is an adjunct faculty member in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at CWRU and the founder of Hexagram, Inc. (Now ACLARA Wireless Technologies).[89] Many projects and startup companies have come out of the makerspace.[90]

WRUW-FM (91.1 FM) is the campus radio station of Case Western Reserve University. Its motto "More Music, Fewer Hits" can be seen adorning the rear bumpers of many vehicles in the area. WRUW broadcasts at a power of 15,000 watts and covers most of Northeast Ohio 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

WRUW is staffed by Case Western Reserve students and community volunteers. The station's format can be classified as non-commercial "variety."

The 1200-seat Maltz Performing Arts Center showcases Case Western Reserve's music department and 19 ensembles.

Case Western Reserve is also home to 19 performing ensembles, including a cappella groups such as Dhamakapella, the Case Men's Glee Club,[91] Case Women's Glee Club,[92] Case in Point, Speakeasy, Bigger Than A Breadbox, and Solstice. Other ensembles include the Case/University Circle Symphony Orchestra, Camerata Chamber Orchestra, Case/CIM Baroque Orchestra, Concert Choir, Early Music Singers, Jazz Ensemble 1 and 2, Marching Spartans, Percussion Ensemble, Symphonic Winds, University Singers, Collegium Musicum, New Music Ensemble, Wind Ensemble, and Chamber Music.[93]

Case Western Reserve's main music venue is the Maltz Performing Arts Center. Case Western reserve also has two main rehearsal spaces for performing arts music majors and school ensembles. Haydn Hall contains practice rooms with Steinway pianos, along with the department offices. Denison Hall serves as a rehearsal, practice, and teaching space for the music students and school ensembles, and is attached to Wade Commons. The Cleveland Youth Wind Symphony also rehearses in Denison Hall. Music majors may take lessons and courses at the Cleveland Institute of Music.

For performances, all students, ensembles, and cappella groups use Harkness Chapel. The bands and orchestra also perform at Severance Hall (the on-campus home of the Cleveland Orchestra) and CIM's Kulas Hall.

Case Western Reserve had the first ABET-accredited program in computer engineering.[94]

In 1968, the university formed a private company, Chi Corporation, to provide computer time to both it and other customers. Initially this was on a Univac 1108 (replacing the preceding UNIVAC 1107), 36 bit, one's complement machine.[95] The company was sold in 1977 to Robert G. Benson in Beachwood, Ohio becoming Ecocenters Corporation.

ARPANET network map from 1973 listing Case as an Interface Message Processor (IMP) node.

Project Logos, under ARPA contract, was begun within the department on a DEC System-10 (later converted to TENEX (BBN) in conjunction with connection to the ARPANET) to develop a computer-aided computer design system. This system consisted in a distributed, networked, graphics environment, a control and data flow designer and logic (both hardware and software) analyzer. An Imlac PDS-1 with lightpen interrupt was the main design workstation in 1973, communicating with the PDP-10 over a display communications protocol written by Don Huff as a Master Thesis and implemented on the Imlac by Ted Brenneman. Graphics and animation became another departmental focus with the acquisition of an Evans & Sutherland LDS-1 (Line Drawing System-1), which was hosted by the DEC System-10, and later with the acquisition of the stand-alone LDS-2.

Case Western Reserve was one of the earliest universities connected to the ARPANET, predecessor to the Internet. ARPANET went online in 1969; Case Western Reserve was connected in January, 1971.[96] Case Western Reserve graduate Ken Biba published the Biba Integrity Model in 1977 and served on the ARPA Working Group that developed the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) used on the Internet.

Case Western Reserve pioneered the early Free-net computer systems, creating the first Free-net, The Cleveland Free-Net, as well as writing the software that drove a majority of those systems, known as FreePort. The Cleveland Free-Net was shut down in late 1999, as it had become obsolete.

It was the first university to have an all-fiber-optic network, in 1989.[97]

At the inaugural meeting in October, 1996, Case Western Reserve was one of the 34 charter university members of Internet2.[98]

The university was ranked No. 1 in Yahoo Internet Life's 1999 Most Wired College list.[99] There was a perception that this award was obtained through partially false or inaccurate information submitted for the survey,[100] and the university did not appear at all on the 2000 Most Wired College list (which included 100 institutions). The numbers reported were much lower than those submitted by Ray Neff in 1999.[101][102] The university had previously placed No. 13 in the 1997 poll.[103]

In August 2003, Case Western Reserve joined the Internet Streaming Media Alliance, then one of only two university members.[104]

In September 2003, Case Western Reserve opened 1,230 public wireless access points on the Case Western Reserve campus and University Circle.[105]

Case Western Reserve was one of the founding members of OneCleveland, formed in October 2003.[106] OneCleveland is an "ultra broadband" (gigabit speed) fiber optic network. This network is for the use of organizations in education, research, government, healthcare, arts, culture, and the nonprofit sector in Greater Cleveland.

Case Western Reserve's Virtual Worlds gaming computer lab opened in 2005. The lab has a large network of Alienware PCs equipped with game development software such as the Torque Game Engine and Maya 3D modeling software. Additionally, it contains a number of specialized advanced computing rooms including a medical simulation room, a MIDI instrument music room, a 3D projection "immersion room," a virtual reality research room, and console room, which features video game systems such as Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and Wii.[107] This laboratory can be used by any student in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Science department, and is heavily used for the Game Development (EECS 290) course.

Case Western's Internet Technology Service also runs a High Performance Computing Cluster (HPCC) utilizing 2684 processors over 200 computer nodes interconnected with gigabit fiberoptic ethernet. The HPCC is available for research utilizing a wide array of commercial and custom scientific software packages and computer languages including: Matlab, Mathematica, Ansys CFX Fluent and ICEM, Schrödinger, LAMMPS, Gaussian, NEURON, MCell, Python, Qhull, Sundials, Charmm/qchem, Rosetta, Gromacs, NAMD, C, C++, Fortran.

Residence halls are divided into two areas: one featuring suite-style rooms for second-year students in the South Residential Village, the other featuring double, single and suite style rooms for first-year students and upperclassmen in the North Residential Village. Both have gigabit ethernet network access and the wired network is one of the fastest that exists. A wireless campus network is also available in all buildings on campus and ranked as one of the fastest by Intel in 2005. Suite style housing, known as the Village at 115th, was opened in fall 2005 for upperclassmen and features one- to nine-person, "apartment-style" residence halls that come with air conditioning, a full kitchen area, and full-sized beds.

Residence Life at Case Western Reserve has a recent history of being liberal in its policies, including allowing co-ed suites (an option offered to non-freshman students, when requested and agreed upon by all occupants of a suite) and several co-ed floors for freshmen, as well as a three-day guest policy. Pets are allowed except for dogs, cats, ferrets, and a few other small mammals, but requests are granted discussion.

First-year students are grouped into one of four residential colleges that are overseen by first-year coordinators. The Mistletoe, Juniper, and Magnolia residential colleges were established when the "First Year Experience" system was introduced, and Cedar was created in the fall of 2005 to accommodate a large influx of new students. In the fall of 2007, Magnolia was integrated into Mistletoe, however, it was later re-separated in the fall of 2012. The areas of focus for each college are – Cedar: visual and performing arts; Mistletoe: service leadership; Juniper: multiculturalism and Magnolia: sustainability.[108] Magnolia now includes Clarke Tower, which also houses second year students as well as first year students.

The residential colleges plan events together and are run by college councils that take student input and use it to plan social and community service-oriented activities.

3rd year students who are allowed to live off campus through graduate students have several university owned, university controlled, and independent apartment options.

Nearly one-half of the campus undergraduates are in a fraternity or sorority. There are ten sororities and sixteen fraternities currently on campus. Greek organizations are governed by an Interfraternity Council and Panhellenic Council. During the 2010–2011 school year, fraternities and sororities at Case collectively raised over $45,375 for philanthropy.[109] In September 2010, the Delta Chi fraternity joined the Greek community, achieving chapter status in October 2012. In September 2012, Pi Beta Phi sorority began a colonization effort. In the Spring of 2013, Delta Sigma Phi fraternity began colonization efforts as well. In the Spring of 2014, a colony of Pi Kappa Phi was opened. In the 2014–2015 academic year a chapter of the sorority Sigma Sigma Sigma joined the campus along with the return of the fraternity Sigma Alpha Epsilon. Most recently, a colony of Alpha Gamma Delta was established in Spring 2018. Zeta Psi was suspended by its alumni board due to a slew of sexual assault allegations detailed on the Instagram page CWRU Survivors.[110] Case's Interfraternity Council then voted to withdraw recognition of the chapter.

The fraternities are:

The sororities are:

The Office of Emergency Management prepares for various levels of emergencies on campus, such as chemical spills, severe weather, infectious diseases, and security threats. RAVE, a multi-platform emergency alerting system, is operated by Emergency Management for issuing emergency alerts and instructions for events on campus. The Office of Emergency Management also performs risk assessment to identify possible safety issues and aims to mitigate these issues. Additionally, CERT is managed through Emergency Management, enabling faculty and staff members to engage in emergency preparedness. The Office of Emergency Management works closely with other campus departments, such as Police and Security Services, University Health Services, and Environmental Health and Safety, as well as community resources including city, state, and federal emergency management agencies.[111]

Case operates a police force of sworn officers as well as a security officers. Starting as security only, the university expanded the role of protective services to include sworn officers who have arrest power and carry firearms. Some officers have additional training, such as SWAT training. On top of routine duties such as fingerprinting, traffic control, and bicycle registration, police and security also conduct investigations, undercover operations, and community outreach. Police and Security operate a fleet of vehicles, including police cruisers, scooters, and Smart cars. Police and Security are dispatched by a 24/7 campus dispatch center, responsible for emergency call handling, alarm monitoring, and video surveillance. Additionally, the dispatch center can send RAVE notifications and manages CWRU Shield, a mobile application allowing video, image, and text tips, safety checks, and viewing emergency procedures.[112] CWRU Police also works closely with RTA transit police, University Circle Police, Cleveland Police, East Cleveland Police, Cleveland Heights Police, University Hospitals Police Department, and other surrounding emergency services. Police and Security, with conjunction with the Emergency Management Office, conduct tabletop drills and full-scale exercises involving surrounding emergency services.[113]

Starting in 1910, the Hudson Relay is an annual relay race event remembering and honoring the university relocation from Hudson, Ohio to Cleveland. Conceived by then-student, Monroe Curtis,[114] the relay race was run from the old college in Hudson, Ohio to the new university in University Circle. Since the mid-1980s, the race has been run entirely in the University Circle area. The race is a distance of 26 miles (42 km). It is held weekend before spring semester finals. Competing running teams are divided by graduating class. If a class wins the relay all four years, tradition dictates a reward of a champagne and steak dinner with the president of the university be awarded. Only six classes have won all four years—1982, 1990, 1994, 2006, 2011, and 2017.[115][116] The winning classes of each year is carved on an original boulder located behind Adelbert Hall.

Springfest is a day-long concert and student group festival that occurs later in the same day as Hudson Relays. The Springfest Planning Committee brings in several bands and a beer garden, student groups set up booths to entertain the student body, and various inflatable carnival-style attractions are brought in to add to the festive atmosphere. Occasionally, due to adverse weather conditions, the festival must be moved indoors, usually to Thwing Center or Adelbert Gym.

Halloween at the Farm is a tradition established in the fall of 2002. Halloween at the Farm takes place at the Squire Valleevue Farm in Hunting Valley, Ohio. Students, their families, and faculty are invited to enjoy games, a bonfire, an open-air concert and hay rides. Organized by the members of the Class Officer Collective, HATF is one of the biggest events of the year. In the fall of 2009 the event was moved to the main campus and renamed "Halloween at Home".

Since 1976, the Film Society[117] of Case Western Reserve University has held a science fiction marathon. The film festival, the oldest of its type, boasts more than 34 hours of non-stop movies, cartoons, trailers, and shorts spanning many decades and subgenres, using both film and digital projection. The Film Society, which is student-run and open to the public, also shows movies on Friday and Saturday evenings throughout the school year.