It’s hard to believe that this time last year our school was transitioning to a remote working and learning environment. Over the course of the past year, we have faced—and surmounted—more challenges than we ever could have imagined. I can’t say often or loudly enough how proud I am of the students, faculty, staff and alumni of our Case School of Engineering community for the strength, support and encouragement you have shown during a difficult time. Thank you.

As the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel grows brighter with increased access to vaccinations, Case Western Reserve continues to take steps toward a return to normalcy. Earlier this month, Interim President Scott Cowen shared CWRU's plans for the fall 2021 semester, which includes resuming full occupancy of our residence halls, for the vast majority of classes to be in-person and for extracurricular activities and campus events to be held in their fall 2019 formats. While this plan is contingent on continued declines in COVID-19 cases, maintaining social distancing and other safety measures as recommended by the CDC and the State of Ohio, we are all optimistic that we will soon be back together. 

One silver lining of the last year has been the ability to share our traditionally on-campus events with a broader audience via streaming platforms. Last month, Case Western Reserve University held a virtual event, Think Showcase: “The Next Generation of Health Care.” Hosted by Interim President Scott Cowen and Provost Ben Vinson, III, the three-day event featured presentations and panel discussions from accomplished faculty, subject matter experts and innovators across the university—including some of our own faculty from Case School of Engineering. 

I speak often about the role of research as a cornerstone of our mission, and the featured presentations are a shining example of the immense research talent we have not only in the Case School of Engineering but across our campus. If you weren’t able to attend the event, I’m pleased to share that the recordings are all now available online:​​​​​​

• University Update with Interim President Scott Cowen, followed by “My Family Has Cancer—Now What?”
• “Artificial Intelligence: A Game Changer for Cancer Diagnosis and Treatment,” featuring Interim President Scott Cowen and Anant Madabhushi, CCIPD director and Donnell Institute Professor of Biomedical Engineering
• “COVID Pandemic: Social and Legal Implications” featuring Provost Ben Vinson, III.
• “Human Fusions: How Humanity and Technology Interface to Change Lives,” featuring Interim President Scott Cowen; Dustin Tyler, director, Human Fusions Initiative, Kent H. Smith Professor II of Engineering; and Emily Graczyk, research assistant professor, biomedical engineering.
• “How the Global Pandemic Changed the Future of Health Care,” featuring a panel of speakers from across the university, including Interim President Scott Cowen; Umut Gurkan, Warren E. Rupp Associate Professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering; and Fanny Ye, Theodore L. and Dana J. Associate Professor in Computer Science and Engineering.

In case you missed it, you can view the full video of our E-Week 2021 event, The Engineering Game, online. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

As always, thank you for your continued support of the Case School of Engineering. Please feel free to reach out to me at any time with questions or feedback at CSEUpdates@case.edu.

Venkataramanan “Ragu” Balakrishnan
Charles H. Phipps Dean, Case School of Engineering