Rachel Irwin (CWR '04) moved to England after graduating from CWRU with a BA in German studies and anthropology. She went on to earn two master's degrees—one in medical anthropology from Oxford and the other in international health policy from the London School of Economics.

Today, Irwin lives in Stockholm, where she does global health and security research for the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI). » Read more » Share your story

Environmentalist David Suzuki to receive the 2012 Inamori Ethics Prize

His tireless efforts to educate the public about the complexities of nature, to preserve the environment and to speak out against racism have earned David Suzuki of Vancouver, Canada, the 2012 Inamori Ethics Prize. The announcement came March 8 from the Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence. Suzuki will receive the award during ceremonies on Thursday, Sept. 6.

Suzuki, a professor emeritus at the University of British Columbia, has regaled audiences worldwide as the popular host of the CBC’s long-running series, The Nature of Things with David Suzuki. He is also the author of 52 books, including 19 children’s books. His 2010 documentary, Force of Nature, won the People’s Choice Award at the Toronto Film Festival. Learn more about this year's honoree.

U.S. News & World Report Releases Graduate School Rankings for 2013

U.S. News & World Report’s latest edition of graduate and professional school rankings brought bright news for several Case Western Reserve University programs, as well as meaningful insights regarding ways other offerings can advance.

The master’s degree program in social work at the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences ranked 9th out of 215 accredited offerings. Also near the top of this year’s national standings are the university’s specialty programs in health law—8th—and international law—11th. Read more about the rankings.

Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing

Nursing a Healthy Heart in Cleveland Public Schools

Schoolchildren from the Cleveland Metropolitan School District are receiving a healthy dose of learning thanks to students in FPB's BSN program. Student nurses have been using music to teach youngsters about their pulse, measuring blood pressures to combat childhood obesity and hypertension and more.

Funding by the Prentiss Foundation is helping BSN students reach more than 3,000 kids in 70 schools throughout Cleveland. It's all part of the approximately 20,000 service hours the BSN program provides to local schools each year. Read more.

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Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences

Our Own "Buffalo Soldier" Tells His Story

Joe Pyles (SAS ’52) began his social work career with the Cuyahoga County Department of Children and Families and later worked at the Catholic Counseling Center of Cleveland, Metro General Hospital and as a field education advisor and adjunct faculty member at the Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences. In 2004, the Mandel School honored Pyles with the Distinguished Alumni Award.

But long before all of this, Joe Pyles was a Buffalo Soldier of the 92nd Division in WWII. He was assigned as a staff member to the provost marshall’s office. Unlike his white Army counterparts, Joe, as a person of color, was not allowed to carry a loaded gun, boarded the bus in the rear and was served out of the back door of local cafes. He said that as bad as the prejudice could be, there was still a job to do and a country to defend. Recently he told his story to the Cleveland Plain Dealer.

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School of Dental Medicine

Lose the Fat, Improve the Gums

School of Dental Medicine researchers found the human body is better at fighting gum disease when fat cells—which trigger inflammation—disappear.

Losing weight also makes insulin less resistant and improves the diabetic status. This in turn helps in the response to periodontal treatment. Read more.

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School of Law

School of Law's Society of Benchers Celebrates 50th Anniversary

This year marked the 50th anniversary of the School of Law's annual Society of Benchers event. The successful event was held on February 10, 2012 and David Van Zandt, president of The New School, gave the keynote address.

The School of Law congratulates these recipients on this esteemed recognition: Katherine Brandt (LAW ’89), Coleman Burke (LAW ’70), David Dvorak (LAW ’91), Jerome Grisko, Jr. (LAW ’87), Martin J. Gruenberg (LAW ’79), Eugene Kratus, Capricia Marshall (LAW ’90), Stephen Petras, Jr. (LAW ’79), Professor Michael Scharf and James Wooley (LAW ’82).

» More School of Law news | Event listings | Stay connected

School of Medicine

Circadian Rhythms Linked to Sudden Cardiac Death, Study Finds

A fundamental discovery reported in the March 1 issue of the journal Nature, uncovers the first molecular evidence linking the body’s natural circadian rhythms to sudden cardiac death (SCD). Ventricular arrhythmias, or abnormal heart rhythms, are the most common cause of sudden cardiac death: the primary cause of death from heart disease. Read more.

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Weatherhead School of Management

Power to the People: Alum Works to Change Nigeria's Energy Economy

With more than 170 million citizens, Nigeria is Africa's most populous country. The nation faces challenges as it grows its economy, including 30 percent unemployment and an unreliable power grid. Currently, Nigeria generates less than one tenth of the power it needs.

As Chief Operating Officer of sustainable power company MIDATCO, Funso Lafe (MGT '11), is working to change that. Lafe's company aims to create jobs generating electricity across Nigeria—literally empowering the currently unemployed.
Watch a video about his work.

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Management news

Case School of Engineering

Saving Power, Saving Money

In today’s computer processors, much of the power put into running the processor is being wasted.

A research team at Case Western Reserve University came up with a novel idea called fine-grained power gating, which saves power and money in a couple of ways: less energy would be used, therefore less heat would be produced. Read more. 

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College of Arts and Sciences

National Humanities Medal Awarded to Program Founded in Department of History

President Obama awarded a National Humanities Medal to the National History Day program, which was founded at Case Western Reserve by history Professor David Van Tassel in 1974.

Initially a one-day event for 129 Cleveland-area students, National History Day has become a year-long program involving more than 600,000 students, who conduct original research and produce websites, papers, performances and documentaries. Now led by Cathy Gorn (GRS '84, '92), the program is the first K-12 education initiative to receive the award. Read more.

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