Julian Rogers – Assistant Vice President, Local Government & Community Relations

The relationship between any significant university and its surrounding community is likely to be, let us say, multi-faceted.

In some cases – Yale being one famous one – “town and gown” tensions are potentially an important part of city politics. That’s not as true in larger cities or where the ratio of the university or college’s resources to the city’s is not quite so high. CWRU is rarely an issue in local politics. But there still are many ways in which the university and city (or county, or neighborhoods) interact. A lot of relationships to nurture.

Speaking solely for myself, most evidently, the university has all sorts of business with local government. Beginning with how the CMPD interacts with University Circle police, and managing traffic around university construction. On the other, there has long been a pattern of expectations that somehow the university will contribute to Cleveland’s revival, as if it were as rich as, well, Yale (I said this is my perspective!). But while expectations may be a bit excessive, large sections of the university DO see helping the community, or at least doing research that might help, as part of their jobs and purposes. We tell potential students that they can do service in a community that needs help, while of course we sometimes worry about ensuring the community will be safe and encouraging for our students. At the most basic level, we are a major employer. But there are also many initiatives such as scholarships for Cleveland students who are accepted for undergraduate study.

But that’s what I know and see. Julian Rogers has much better perspective! He has held the portfolio for local government and community relations in our Office of the President since 2018. For five years before that he was the Director of Community Partnerships for Cleveland State University. He joined CSU in a surprising move, resigning after three years as a member of the inaugural Cuyahoga County Council for District 10, so he could take the position at CSU and earn a full-time salary for his family. He represented our part of Cleveland (Wards 10 and 11), Bratenahl, East Cleveland, Cleveland Heights and University Heights. The county’s loss was CSU’s, and eventually our, gain.

Back in April of 2013 Julian joined our “Friday Lunch” to explain how the new County Government was working. It will be great to welcome him back to explain how CWRU works with local governments and community groups.

In-Person and Virtual Attendance

We will meet this week in our regular location, the Dampeer Room on the second floor of Kelvin Smith Library.

We continue also to offer the meetings on Zoom. We do require pre-registering so as to avoid “zoom-bombing.” The pre-registration link is posted below.

The discussion begins at 12:30 p.m., but the room should be open no later than Noon. We try to have beverages and refreshments set up soon after that. Participants should be able to sign on to Zoom also by Noon. But please remember not much will be happening online until the talk begins at 12:30 pm. Please also be prepared to show identification when entering Kelvin Smith Library.

Zoom participants should speak up when asked for questions or comments, or submit thoughts through Zoom’s chat function. Please keep yourself muted until you are choosing to speak.

Each week we will send out this newsletter with information about the topic. It will also include a link to register (for free) for the discussion. When you register, you will automatically receive from the Zoom system the link to join the meeting. If you do not get the newsletter, you should also be able to get the information each Monday by checking http://fridaylunch.case.edu Then if you choose you can use the contact form on that website to request the registration link.

This week’s Zoom link for registration is:

https://cwru.zoom.us/meeting/register/tJwsf-qtqjMrH9ViKhLlHeCs3ffdte5zwNl7

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Please also e-mail padg@case.edu if you have questions about arrangements or any suggestions. Or call at 216 368-2426 and we’ll try to get back to you.

Best wishes for safety and security for you and yours,

Joe White
Luxenberg Family Professor of Public Policy and Director, Center for Policy Studies

About Our Guest

Julian Rogers serves as the Assistant Vice President of Local Government and Community Relations for Case Western Reserve University. Prior to this, he served as the Director of Community Partnerships with Cleveland State University for five years. Before joining Cleveland State, he was a member of the inaugural Cuyahoga County Council, elected in 2010 and re-elected in 2012. On Council he represented District 10, including Bratenahl, Cleveland wards 10 and 11, Cleveland Heights, East Cleveland, and University Heights.

Before his election to Council, Julian built a career in community service, education, and related politics. He served as Executive Director of Education Voters of Ohio, after serving for seven years as Senior Assistant to the CEO of the Cleveland Municipal School District and Liaison to the Office of the Mayor. He began his career working on political campaigns, from Mary Boyle’s race for U.S. Senate to leadership positions for several Cleveland school levies. He also served as Field Director for the original and successful Cuyahoga Arts and Culture levy.

Julian earned his B.A. in Political Science from Ohio University and his Master’s in Nonprofit Management from CWRU. A graduate of Cleveland Heights High School, he resides there now and is active in many ways in the community.

* Kelvin Smith Library requires all entrants to show identification when entering the building, unless they have a university i.d. that they can magnetically scan. We are sorry if that seems like a hassle, but it has been Library policy for a while in response to security concerns. Please do not complain to the library staff at the entrance, who are just doing their jobs.

Schedule of Friday Lunch Upcoming Topics and Speakers:

February 16: Bidenomics. With Susan Helper, Ph.D., Frank Tracy Carlton Professor of Economics.

February 23: Taiwan and China: Questions and Answers. With Julia C. Strauss, Ph.D., School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London (speaker will participate by Zoom).

March 1: TBA

March 8: The 2024 Elections. With Colin Swearingen, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Political Science, John Carroll University.

March 15: Spring Break

March 22: Thinking About Generative AI. With Satya Sahoo, Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Population and Quantitative Health Science and Director, Biomedical and Health Informatics Ph.D. Program.

March 29: The Impact of Neighborhood and Racial Violence on Black Youth Developmental Outcomes. With Dexter Voisin, Ph.D., Dean of the Jack, Joseph, and Morton Mandel School of Applied Social Sciences.

April 5: WTFentanyl? What We Need to Know About the Current Opioid Crisis. With Ryan Marino, MD, Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine and Psychiatry.

April 12: Conspiracy Theories and Climate Change Skepticism in Europe. With Andreas Sobisch, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Political Science, John Carroll University.

April 19: Why Our Children Struggle in School: Going Beyond the ADHD Metaphor. With Arthur Lavin MD, FAAP. Alternate Room: Kelvin Smith Library LL06

April 26: TBA