![\"photo](\"https:\/\/artscimedia.case.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/147\/2022\/02\/27082537\/Feldmans_web.jpg\")
\u201cWe didn\u2019t retire to knit and eat bonbons,\u201d Ellen Feldman says, speaking of herself and her husband, Matthew. \u201cOur goal is to make more of a difference.\u201d<\/p><\/div>\n
Much like the attractive force of gravity, a college campus has a way of connecting kindred spirits. In the case of Ellen (<\/b>WRC \u201875) and<\/strong> Matthew <\/b>(WRC \u201875) Feldman<\/b>, Case Western Reserve brought two students together as a couple\u2014and since then, their affinity for their alma mater has only deepened.<\/p>\n The connection took some time. Ellen and Matthew arrived on campus in 1971, but it wasn\u2019t until two years later that they found themselves working together as volunteers for first-year orientation\u2014and being paired up on one assignment after another. Within a few months, the two were dating and inseparable. (It didn\u2019t hurt that they lived close to each other in the North Residential Village. \u201cHe lived in Cutler House,\u201d Ellen says, \u201cand I was in Hitchcock House\u2014literally a stone\u2019s throw away.\u201d)<\/p>\n The couple made good use of their last two years on campus, hanging out at Wade Lagoon, sipping coffee at the Olive Tree and sharing time together in the law library\u2014Ellen, an economics and math major, would work through math problems while Matthew, a history major, buried his nose in J.R.R. Tolkien\u2019s Lord of the Rings<\/i>.<\/p>\n Ellen also took the opportunity to volunteer as an usher at Severance Hall.<\/p>\n \u201cI was always interested in music, but that time really developed my love of classical music and going to the symphony,\u201d she says. \u201cPlus, I could bring a guest.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd I was the guest,\u201d Matthew says, laughing.<\/p>\n More than four decades later, their appreciation for their campus experiences continues\u2014as does their loyalty to CWRU.<\/p>\n After making regular gifts to the university over the years, the two decided the time was right for a larger gesture. So, through a $2 million estate gift to Case Western Reserve\u2014and a challenge gift established under President Emerita Barbara R. Snyder<\/b>\u2014the couple created a scholarship for undergraduate students in the College of Arts and Sciences.<\/p>\n The Feldman Family Endowed Scholarship Fund will have the potential to support multiple students annually, with a preference for students from populations that are underrepresented on campus.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want students who otherwise wouldn\u2019t be able to access a quality education at Case Western Reserve to obtain one and have a full and successful life,\u201d Matthew says. \u201cIt\u2019s not more complicated than this.\u201d<\/p>\n Joy K. Ward<\/b>, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, says she is humbled by the generous gift from the couple, who have been supportive and engaged for so many years. Both Ellen and Matthew have served on the college\u2019s Visiting Committee, and Ellen is still a member.<\/p>\n \u201cWe know that to be excellent, we must be diverse,\u201d Ward says. \u201cBy providing opportunities to our students, Ellen and Matt are helping us increase the college\u2019s diversity and achieve our mission.\u201d<\/p>\n For the Feldmans, the gift is also an extension of the work they\u2019ve done in their careers, and more recently in retirement, to advance underserved communities, especially near their home outside Chicago.<\/p>\n Before retiring in 2020, Matthew led the Federal Home Loan Bank of Chicago as CEO for over a decade. During his tenure, he worked to reshape the culture of the wholesale bank\u2014diversifying its board and recruiting top talent that reflected the communities the bank was intended to serve, particularly Black and Latinx populations. The experience opened his eyes to inequities not often seen or addressed by C-suite leaders.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I retired,\u201d he says, \u201cI decided I was going to devote a meaningful piece of my retirement to elevating racial equity.\u201d<\/p>\n Ellen echoes her husband\u2019s desire to extend their community service beyond their careers. A former executive in several industries, including higher education, she says they entered this phase of their lives prepared to leave a mark.<\/p>\n \u201cWe didn\u2019t retire to knit and eat bonbons,\u201d she says. \u201cOur goal is to make more of a difference.\u201d<\/p>\n In addition to their philanthropic endeavors, the couple is active in their synagogue and engaged in the community. Ellen volunteers on the board of The People\u2019s Music School in Chicago\u2014the nation\u2019s oldest tuition-free music school, which serves students and families across a diverse spectrum of racial, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds.<\/p>\n For his part, Matthew is treasurer of the Evanston Community Foundation, working with local leaders to address long-standing civic issues. In 2019, Evanston\u2019s city council became the first in the country to pass a resolution on reparations. Matthew sees it as an important step and is lending his financial expertise to the city\u2019s ongoing efforts in this area.<\/p>\n Today, the Feldmans are grateful for the opportunities they\u2019ve had\u2014in part because of their time as students at Case Western Reserve.<\/p>\n \u201cLook at what we got out of it,\u201d Ellen says. \u201cWe got each other.\u201d<\/p>\n Adds Matthew, \u201cHow can we not acknowledge that?\u201d<\/p>\n Anthony Fossaceca is Case Western Reserve\u2019s executive director of development and alumni communications.<\/i><\/p>\n <\/p>\n By Carey Skinner Moss<\/p>\n From left: Edward Wang and his sister, Katharine, celebrated with their parents, Ju-Yun (Julie) Li and Shaomeng Wang, when Katharine graduated from Yale University.<\/p><\/div>\n Just as Shaomeng Wang<\/b> (GRS \u201893, chemistry) was finishing his doctorate at Case Western Reserve University, he met his future wife, Ju-Yun \u201cJulie\u201d Li<\/b> (GRS \u201895, chemistry), as she was working toward the same degree.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s amazing because she\u2019s from Taiwan and I\u2019m from mainland China,\u201d said Wang. \u201cThose regions didn\u2019t have much interaction at the time\u2014but we were able to meet in the U.S.\u201d<\/p>\n Today, they live in Ann Arbor, Michigan, where Li raised their two children full time following years in information technology. Wang is the Warner-Lambert\/Parke-Davis Professor in Medicine and a professor of internal medicine and pharmacology at the University of Michigan Medical School. In addition, he is a professor of medicinal chemistry in the university\u2019s College of Pharmacy and director of the Michigan Center for Therapeutic Innovation.<\/p>\n During the 20 years he\u2019s been at University of Michigan, Wang\u2019s research on small molecule therapeutics has led to the creation of five startup companies and the clinical development of nine new cancer drugs.<\/p>\n With the help of royalties and the sale of some of these companies, the couple has now been able to give back to the place where it all began, making a gift of $250,000 to the CWRU Department of Chemistry.<\/p>\n Their gift is divided among three priorities: faculty and graduate student research prizes; an annual department luncheon or dinner; and Frontiers of Chemistry, a lecture series the couple enjoyed as students.<\/p>\n \u201cFrontiers of Chemistry exposed students and faculty to cutting-edge innovation and world-class research by top scientists,\u201d Wang recalls. \u201cIt had a very positive impact on us, and we want to see it continue.\u201d<\/p>\n The lectures also made a strong impression on one of Wang and Li\u2019s late professors, Gheorghe Mateescu<\/b> (GRS \u201871, chemistry), who collected dozens of the series\u2019 printed programs from his days as a doctoral student.<\/p>\n Gheorghe D. Mateescu posed for a photo in his chemistry lab in May 1979. Courtesy of University Archives.<\/p><\/div>\n A pioneer in the field of nuclear magnetic resonance and magnetic resonance imaging, Mateescu launched his career in his native Romania before immigrating to the United States in 1967. After earning his doctorate from Case Western Reserve, he joined the faculty. Among other prizes, he won CWRU\u2019s John S. Diekhoff Award for Distinguished Graduate Student Teaching..<\/p>\n After he died in January 2021, his widow, Claudia G. Mateescu, gave $150,000 to Case Western Reserve in his honor.<\/p>\n \u201cThe university meant very much to my husband. He was almost 40 when he moved here from Romania; it was very difficult,\u201d says Claudia Mateescu, who met Gheorghe in the U.S. after also immigrating from Romania later in life. \u201cWhen you find a place where you feel useful, you are very proud and you are very, very happy. For him, Case Western Reserve was like a second home.\u201d<\/p>\n The Mateescus previously endowed two student awards in chemistry and one in biomedical engineering. Claudia\u2019s latest gift adds to this legacy, establishing two new endowed funds.<\/p>\n The Gheorghe D. Mateescu PhD \u201971 Memorial Lecture in Chemistry<\/b> will bring renowned speakers of the highest caliber to the Frontiers of Chemistry series.<\/p>\n The Gheorghe D. Mateescu PhD \u201971 and Claudia Mateescu Graduate Student Professional Development Fund<\/b> will help promising graduate students in chemistry attend important professional activities, such as the annual American Chemical Society meeting and the Experimental Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Conference<\/p>\n \u201cWe are thrilled that our alumni look back fondly on their time at the university, and we take tremendous pride in their achievements,\u201d says Gregory Tochtrop<\/b>, professor and chair of the Department of Chemistry. \u201cShaomeng\u2019s contributions to cancer research have been extraordinary, and Gheorghe was an influential member of our chemistry faculty.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are deeply grateful to Shaomeng and Julie and to Claudia for supporting Frontiers of Chemistry, which brings world-class scientists and researchers\u2014including Nobel laureates\u2014to campus and strengthens our ties to the broader chemistry community,\u201d Tochtrop continues. \u201cAnd we\u2019re equally grateful for their commitment to expanding opportunities for our remarkable students.\u201d<\/p>\n Carey Skinner Moss is the university\u2019s senior development and alumni communications specialist.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cDevelopments\u201d highlights recent philanthropic support for the College of Arts and Sciences from alumni, friends, corporations and other constituents.<\/em><\/p>\n An anonymous donor created the Opportunity with Distinction Scholarship<\/strong> through a pledged estate commitment of $1 million. The scholarship will be awarded to undergraduates in the college, with a preference for students majoring in math or physics.<\/p>\n Philip Fung<\/strong>, Molly Fung-Dumm<\/strong>, Bryan Dumm<\/strong>, and their friends and family created two funds\u2014the Lorna Fung Memorial Graduate Fellowship in Speech Language Pathology<\/strong> and the Fung Family Memorial Fund for Speech Language Pathology Initiatives<\/strong>\u2014in support of SpeakEasy, a community-oriented initiative conducted by the Communication Sciences Program in the Department of Psychological Sciences. SpeakEasy addresses the needs of adults with acquired neurogenic communication disorders by offering education, support and treatment at no charge.<\/p>\n The Jesse Dee and Marjorie Franks Endowment Fund<\/strong>, established by Stephen<\/strong> and Kaye Franks,<\/strong> will provide support for geological sciences in the Department of Earth, Environmental and Planetary Sciences.<\/p>\n Simucase<\/strong> and Continued<\/strong> made a gift of $25,000 in support of IMPACT, a yearlong mentoring program for communication sciences students from backgrounds underrepresented in the professions of speech language pathology and audiology.<\/p>\n In memory of her husband, Margaret Robinson<\/strong> established the D. Keith and Margaret B. Robinson Postdoctoral Fellowship<\/strong>. Recipients will devote a year of research to the Data Science in Art project led by Elizabeth Bolman<\/strong>, the Elsie B. Smith Professor in the Liberal Arts and chair of the Department of Art History and Art, and Kenneth Singer,<\/strong> the Ambrose Swasey Professor of Physics.<\/p>\n For more information on these funds or to make your own gift, contact collegesupport@cwru.edu<\/a><\/strong> or 216.368.4415<\/strong>.<\/p>\n With Dean Joy K. Ward looking on, Jeremy Rodrigues accepted his degrees at Commencement in May 2021.<\/p><\/div>\n Jeremy Rodrigues <\/b>(CWR \u201921; GRS \u201921, military ethics) is the first graduate of Case Western Reserve University to be named a Schwarzman Scholar.<\/p>\n This highly competitive honor was conferred this year on 151 awardees from 33 countries and 106 universities. The scholars will do graduate work and participate in a leadership program at Schwarzman College, on the campus of Tsinghua University in Beijing.<\/p>\n While earning a Master of Global Affairs degree, Rodrigues will interact with foreign ministers, political leaders and entrepreneurs. He will also fulfill his dream of studying abroad\u2014something he didn\u2019t find time to do as an undergraduate.<\/p>\n During his four years at CWRU, Rodrigues juggled majors in economics, political science and philosophy, minors in mathematics and ethics, and ROTC commitments\u2014not to mention the master\u2019s degree in military ethics he completed his senior year.<\/p>\n \u201cI chose everything,\u201d Rodrigues says with a laugh. The Pittsburgh native decided to attend Case Western Reserve because it was the only university he knew of that would let him pursue three different majors at once.<\/p>\n \u201cI wasn\u2019t studying three diametrically opposed things\u2014the subjects complement each other,\u201d Rodrigues explains. \u201cWhat you learn about economics applies to politics, and much of philosophy borders political science.\u201d<\/p>\n Now a second lieutenant in the Air Force Reserve, Rodrigues has deferred acceptance to Yale Law School until 2023 while he completes the Schwarzman Scholars program. He has set his sights on a career in public service; over the coming years, he hopes to gain experience at the intersection of global economic development, national security and public policy.<\/p>\n \u2014Carey Skinner Moss<\/em><\/p>\n Marilyn Sanders Mobley <\/b>(GRS \u201987, English), Case Western Reserve\u2019s former vice president for inclusion, diversity and equal opportunity and emerita professor of English, was appointed to the National Advisory Council of Highmark Health\/AHN Equitable Health Institute.<\/p>\n Kumar Srinivasan<\/b> (GRS \u201992, chemistry) was named executive vice president and chief business officer of Turning Point Therapeutics, a San Diego-based firm that develops targeted cancer treatments.<\/p>\n Anupama Hoey<\/b> (GRS \u201998, biology) was named chief business officer of Fountain Therapeutics, a biopharmaceutical company based in San Francisco. She holds a Master of Science degree in molecular biology.<\/p>\n Erin Clair<\/b> (CWR \u201999), associate professor of English at Arkansas Tech University, received the Association for General and Liberal Studies\u2019 2021 Jerry G. Gaff Faculty Award in the Emerging Campus Leader category.<\/p>\n Christopher Bedford<\/b> (GRS \u201903, art history) was named director of the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art.<\/p>\n Megan Lykins Reich<\/b> (GRS \u201905, art history) was named the Kohl Executive Director of the Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland, located in University Circle. She holds a Master of Arts degree in art history and museum studies.<\/p>\n Emma Adebayo<\/b>\u00a0(CWR \u201909) was appointed executive director of admissions at Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois.<\/p>\n David McCormick<\/b> (GRS \u201911, music) was named executive director of Early Music America, a nonprofit that supports the performance and study of medieval, Renaissance and Baroque music.\u00a0McCormick holds a master\u2019s degree in historical performance practice.<\/p>\n Tobili Hatcher <\/b>(CWR \u201920) joined the Alumni Association of Case Western Reserve University as assistant director of alumni engagement. She plans to complete a Master of Business Administration degree at Cleveland State University this spring.<\/p>\n School and Degree Abbreviations<\/b><\/p>\n CWR\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/b>Undergraduates, 1989 and after The notes in this section are compiled from news releases, other publications and messages from alumni like you. We want to hear about milestones in your life. Please send your updates, with your graduation year, to artsci@cwru.edu<\/a><\/i><\/b>.<\/i><\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Place Where It All Began<\/h3>\n
Alumni and family support CWRU\u2019s Department of Chemistry<\/h4>\n
![\"Donors](\"https:\/\/artscimedia.case.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/147\/2022\/02\/27083011\/Wang_family_web.jpg\")
![\"Gheorghe](\"https:\/\/artscimedia.case.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/147\/2022\/02\/27083238\/Mateescu_web.jpg\")
Developments<\/h3>\n
A dream fulfilled<\/h3>\n
![\"Jeremy](\"https:\/\/artscimedia.case.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/147\/2022\/02\/27083643\/rodrigues_web.jpg\")
Alumni Notes<\/h3>\n
\nGRS\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/b>School of Graduate Studies<\/p>\n\n
SEND US YOUR NEWS<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\nMuch like the attractive force of gravity, a college campus has a way of connecting kindred spirits. In the case of Ellen (<\/b>WRC \u201875) and<\/strong> Matthew <\/b>(WRC \u201875) Feldman<\/b>, Case Western Reserve brought two students together as a couple\u2014and since then, their affinity for their alma mater has only deepened. …Read more.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":97,"featured_media":3678,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[61],"tags":[],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/artscimedia.case.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/147\/2022\/02\/01110442\/Feldmans_thumbnail.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3553"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/97"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3553"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3553\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3793,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3553\/revisions\/3793"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3678"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3553"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3553"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/artsci.case.edu\/magazine\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3553"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}