Two Case Western Reserve University alumnae, Viola Startzman Robertson and Jennie S. Hwang, were among the 12 women inducted into the Ohio Women's Hall of Fame in a ceremony hosted by Ohio First Lady Hope Taft.

The Hall of Fame was established in 1978 to recognize the state's outstanding women leaders and trailblazers. Both Startzman (the name she used professionally) and Hwang were inducted in the math, science and health services category.

Startzman earned her master's degree in chemistry in 1941 and her medical degree in 1945 at what is now known as CWRU. Hwang became the first woman to earn a doctorate in materials science and engineering at CWRU in 1976. She currently serves on the University's Board of Tustees.

Viola Startzman Robertson

Startzman grew up knowing she wanted to be a doctor. After training as a clinical technician, she worked six years as a bacteriologist for the City of Cleveland.

She applied to medical school when she was 28; at the time, many thought her age and gender made it inappropriate to embark on such training. After graduating from medical school in 1945, she launched her practice in Cleveland and Wooster despite opposition based on her gender. She was the first pediatrician in Wooster.

In 1952, a medical colleague invited Startzman to join him as co-director in developing a pediatrics department at the Cleveland Clinic. She became the first female physician on the clinical staff of that institution. She also worked in several "well baby clinics" in Cleveland.

In 1956, Startzman returned to her undergraduate alma mater, The College of Wooster, where she served for 23 years as the physician at the Student Health Center. There, she developed programs emulated across the country and counseled students and faculty.

In retirement, Startzman continues to serve her community. She chaired a committee to investigate the possibility of establishing a free clinic in Wooster. The Healthcare 2000 Community Clinic Inc., opened in 1995 and in 2000 was renamed the Viola Startzman Free Clinic in honor of her continued dedication and commitment to providing free care to low-income and uninsured residents. She serves on the clinic's board and continues to monitor the facility's progress through frequent visits.

She also helped create a church-based child care center and supports a medical clinic in Egypt. The Wooster Daily Record newspaper named her a Citizen of the Year in December 2001, calling her "The Mother Theresa of Wayne County."

She and her late husband, James Robertson raised four sons together.

Jennie Hwang

Hwang, president of the H-Technologies Group Inc., established businesses within corporations from 1977 to 1989 and founded three entrepreneurial businesses from 1990 to 2002. She is regarded as a top authority of surface mount technology, the backbone of electronics miniaturization, which makes cell phones work and Internet access faster.

She is the first and only woman from Ohio to be elected to the National Academy of Engineering, the only person from Ohio inducted to the Women in Technology International Hall of Fame and the first and only woman to hold the national presidency of the Surface Mount Technology Association. She has been honored with distinguished alumni awards from her alma maters and was named one of research and development's "stars to watch" by Industry Week magazine.

Hwang has been the keynote speaker for major national and international events around the world and has authored more than 200 publications and five internationally used textbooks. She is a columnist for SMT, a globally circulated trade magazine.

As a mentor, Hwang helps young women shape their science and engineering careers. She established a special YWCA award to recognize outstanding women students studying in the fields of science, engineering and technology.

Hwang is married to Leo and is the mother of two children, Raymond and Rosalind.

Cathy Lewis also inducted

Also inducted into the Women's Hall of Fame was Catharine Monroe Lewis, wife of CWRU Board of Trustees member John F. Lewis. Inducted in the Religion and Community Service category, she was recognized for her decision to become a paramedic as a 40-year-old mother of four and for her service on the boards of Rainbow Babies & Children's Hospital, University Hospitals Health System and The Cleveland Foundation. She became the first woman to chair the latter organization, and she also chairs Cleveland's AIDS Funding Collaborative.

Lewis also was honored for the founding, with a partner, of Resource Careers Inc., the first formalized spouse employment assistance program. Originally intended to help women find career opportunities in cities where they had moved due to their husbands' job transfers, the firm now has affiliates in more than 100 locations around the world and also helps men who have relocated due to their wives' careers.

Among her previous honors are the YWCA Woman of Achievement Award (1992), the Women's Community Foundation Creative Philanthropy Award (1998) and the Franklin Delano Roosevelt Lifetime Achievement Award presented by the March of Dimes (1999).

The Ohio Women's Hall of Fame can be found online at http://www.state.oh.us/odjfs/women/halloffame/.