COLUMBUS, Ohio -A $25 million gift from the Weatherhead Foundation will establish a leadership initiative at Case Western Reserve University to develop ethical and emotionally intelligent leaders, the school announced Thursday.
The Celia Scott Weatherhead Leadership Institute, set to launch in fall 2026, will be housed within the Weatherhead School of Management but serve students across the university. The interdisciplinary institute will focus on experiential and service-based leadership training for undergraduate, graduate and executive education students, Case said in a statement.
The institute’s undergraduate program will span four years and include community and corporate projects, along with mentorship from alumni, faculty and peers.
Graduate-level coursework will emphasize interdisciplinary collaboration, including intersections among technology, business and the humanities. Non-degree programs, such as Weatherhead Executive Education, will also benefit from the institute’s expanded leadership ecosystem.
Celia Weatherhead, who is president of the foundation and an emerita trustee of Case, said the institute aims to amplify the university’s existing strengths in leadership development.
“Seeing the solutions-oriented, high-impact leaders that Case Western Reserve and the Weatherhead School have produced over the years made me realize there is a remarkable opportunity to not just continue this powerful work, but to amplify it exponentially,” she said.
Case President Eric Kaler praised Weatherhead for her continued support.
“As president of the Weatherhead Foundation, Celia has proven she is a strategic, impactful leader—changing the lives of so many through thoughtful support to organizations that can make a difference,” Kaler said.
Scott Cowen, a university trustee and former interim president of Case Western Reserve, will serve as the institute’s inaugural chair. Cowen previously led the Weatherhead School as dean from 1984 to 1998 and later became president of Tulane University, Celia Weatherhead’s alma mater.