The Frank and Dorothy Hovorka Atrium

Inside the Atrium.

Atrium Interior.

Photographs © 2001 Barney Taxel.
All Rights Reserved.

The Frank Hovorka Atrium, a four-story glass entryway to the Science Center, provides a gathering place and gateway for students and alumni. It serves as a gateway to the legacy of excellence in scientific education and research at Case Western Reserve University. The atrium is named in honor of Frank Hovorka, a pioneer in the interdisciplinary approach to research, an idea that did not come into its own at most colleges and universities until the 1960s.

Hovorka was appointed to the Department of Chemistry faculty in 1925, received the Hurlbut Chair in Chemistry in 1954, and was named professor emeritus in 1968. During his 43 years as faculty member, he served as adviser for 63 doctoral dissertations and 45 master's candidates, an aggregate number thought to be unparalleled in the history of Case Western Reserve University. In 1973, the Board of Trustees authorized the establishment of the Frank Hovorka Chair in Chemistry "to honor a great teacher and to assure great teaching in the future." He was a champion of young women who wanted to enter the fields of science and medicine, long before the idea was universally accepted.

Until the end of his life, he ws a vital, contributing member of the University - an extraordinary record of almost 60 years of activity on this campus, probably the longest term of any faculty member in the University's history.

Photographs © 2001 Barney Taxel.
All Rights Reserved.