Public Health program receives $30 million gift

By DAVID CRAWFORD, Medical Center Communications

A Pennsylvania philanthropist and his wife who donate all of their wealth to charities and other worthy causes have elected to give a multimillion dollar gift to Ohio State's School of Public Health.

Zell Kravinsky and his wife, Emily, of Jenkintown, have created a foundation at Ohio State to fund public health research within the school. They have endowed the foundation to provide more than $30 million in research support over the next several years. The foundation was formed in memory of Adria Kravinsky, Zell's sister, who died of lung cancer in 1984 at age 33.

The gift is one of the largest in Ohio State history.

Fred Sanfilippo, senior vice president for health sciences and dean of the College of Medicine and Public Health, said Ohio State is greatly honored to be a recipient of the Kravinskys' generosity. "The Kravinsky family's support of public health concerns is indeed admirable," Sanfilippo said. "And this gift will enable Ohio State to develop research programs that will close the gap on some of the world's most important health issues."

The gift will help expand the faculty and academic programs in the School of Public Health, especially programs that interface with the university's Comprehensive Cancer Center.

Last year, the Kravinskys established two trusts valued at approximately $6.2 million at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

"Even now, OSU's complex of medical and health care schools and institutions are world-class and capable of leveraging the School of Public Health to the top of its field," Zell Kravinsky said. "Our gift isn't needed for this; OSU's rich intellectual pool and tradition of profuse collaboration are sufficient. But if our gift helps the school rise that much faster and that much further, it's worth it. The global needs in public health are urgent, and nothing less than a quantum leap -- above disease, terror and poverty -- can secure us all in peace and health."

President Karen Holbrook said the university is extremely grateful to the Kravinsky family for one of the most generous gifts in Ohio State history. "This degree of support is truly a magnificent commitment," Holbrook said. "The funds will allow the School of Public Health to continue to build and help millions of people. OSU is indeed fortunate to have a school of public health and its growth is one of our strategic priorities."

Stanley Lemeshow, the newly announced dean of the School of Public Health, said the gift will help the school achieve many of its goals. "This is enormously important to us and will enhance our opportunities to attract dynamic faculty and top tier students and build strong academic programs," he said.

Sanfilippo said the benevolence of the Kravinskys goes well beyond the gifts they have made over the years to countless organizations. "They make the world a better place by the example they set for others. Their kindness has no bounds," Sanfilippo said. Last month, Zell Kravinsky donated one of his kidneys to a person he had never met, only because he knew people like her were in dire need of a transplant.

Zell, a real estate investor, and Emily, a private practice physician specializing in eating disorders, have five young children. The philanthropists live modestly while giving away much of the fortune they accumulate.

Moritz Law outreach program improves children's lives

By RANDY GAMMAGE, onCAMPUS staff

Through the Justice for Children Project, the Moritz College of Law is discovering ways to use the law as a tool to improve the lives of children.

Research, education and legal reform are being conducted within a two-pronged outreach initiative the college began in 1998. The first component creates opportunities for faculty and students to engage in research and writing in areas affecting children and their families. The second involves the direct legal representation of children and their interests in the local court systems through the Justice for Children Practicum, a one-semester course open to eligible third-year law students, said Katherine Hunt Federle, professor of law and director of the Justice for Children Project.

"This is a wonderful opportunity for our students because they have a real chance to get out and put what they've learned in the classroom into practice," Federle said. "It also benefits the judicial system and the Columbus community at large because we're working with an underserved population (indigent clients)."

Students represent clients under faculty supervision in a variety of proceedings implicating the rights of children, including abuse and neglect, delinquency, status offense and termination of parental rights cases, Federle said. A new staff attorney, Angela Lloyd, a graduate of Columbia Law School, has been hired to teach and supervise students in the field. Before joining Moritz Law in July, Lloyd was an adjunct professor at Fordham University School of Law and at Seton Hall University School of Law, where she taught Children and the Law and International Human Rights.

Federle said the fresh, creative thinking and inquisitive nature students bring to the courtroom are a blessing to both the client and the judicial system.

Mike Deemer, a May 2002 graduate of the Moritz College of Law, said the Justice for Children Practicum provided the experience with constitutional and civil rights issues he was seeking when he enrolled at Ohio State.

"It was a great experience," Deemer said. "The clinic really taught me to be an aggressive advocate and to fight for my clients, and that's carried over into my current work."

He is working for Ohio State Legal Services through a two-year fellowship awarded through Equal Justice Works, a national organization that provides fellowships for recent graduates that work in public interest law.

Vanessa Miller-Coterel, also a 2002 law graduate, said the Justice for Children Practicum was one of the hardest courses she encountered at Ohio State. Yet, it helped prepare her for her current role as an attorney with the Ohio Legal Rights Services in downtown Columbus, where she represents children with disabilities and special education issues.

"It helped prepare me to give quality representation to children and opened my eyes to many of the problems existing in the juvenile justice system," Miller-Coterel said. "More than 80 percent of youth in the juvenile justice system have disabilities that are not being addressed, and often their problem behavior is a result of frustration on the part of the kids because their needs are not being addressed."

Federle said Justice for Children screens cases carefully before accepting them.

"The bottom line for us is that we take a case when it is either going to provide the student with a terrific experience pedagogically, or will present a challenge as far as law reform," Federle said.

She said the Justice for Children Project, primarily through law students enrolled in the Practicum, has filed a number of constitutional challenges on behalf of children involving curfew ordinances, and violations of their rights to free speech or protection from unreasonable searches and seizures.

An academic enrichment grant from the university -- which provided funding for a full-time faculty member and director -- helped create the Justice for Children Practicum in 1997. The program began full-time operation in January 1998 when Federle joined the Ohio State faculty from Tulane Law School.

She is a past chair of the American Bar Association Family Law Section's Committee on Juvenile Law and the Needs of Children. While serving as chair, she helped draft the ABA's Standards for the Representation of Children in Abuse and Neglect Cases. She also serves as the faculty adviser to two law student organizations, Advocates for Children and the American Constitution Society.

Federle said there is considerable movement within the legal profession to require that courts and bar associations certify lawyers to represent children. In response to that, the university approved a new certificate in April 2003 that allows Moritz Law students to specialize in children's studies.

To obtain the certificate, students must complete 20 hours of specialized course work in addition to completing the requirements for the J.D. degree. The required course work includes the Justice for Children Practicum (4 credit hours). Students successfully completing the certificate will receive a notation on their law school transcripts and special recognition at graduation.

The Moritz College of Law is the only top-50 law school in the country to offer a specialized certificate in children's studies, Federle said.

Battelle CEO to deliver summer commencement address

By AMY MURRAY, Media Relations

Carl F. Kohrt, president and CEO of Battelle, will be the speaker for summer quarter commencement on Aug. 29. Approximately 1,800 students will receive degrees at the ceremony, which begins at 9:30 a.m. at the Jerome Schottenstein Center.

A distinguished businessman and scientist, Kohrt leads one of the premier technology development and commercialization companies in the world. Headquartered in Columbus, Battelle's science and technology reach includes overseeing 16,000 staff members and $2.7 billion in annual research and development at more than 100 locations. It counts as its successes the development of the Xerox machine, pioneering work on the compact disc, and medical technology breakthroughs.

Carl Kohrt

"Our summer graduates are extremely fortunate to have someone with Carl's insights to deliver the address," said President Karen Holbrook. "Ohio State couldn't have a better partner than Battelle in terms of offering research opportunities to both undergraduate and graduate students."

As a major partner with the university, Battelle collaborates with Ohio State in a number of important ways. Teams from the two research organizations are working on several fronts to develop breakthrough technologies in the life sciences.

The relationship between Ohio State and Battelle also includes support for students and faculty. A 1975 grant from Battelle to Ohio State established the Battelle Endowment for Technology and Human Affairs (BETHA) program, which provides funding to support faculty projects designed to continue the examination and understanding of the impact of science and technology on individuals and society. In addition, Battelle awards merit-based scholarships to outstanding high school seniors in central Ohio who attend Ohio State and seven other area colleges and universities.

Kohrt earned a bachelor of science in chemistry from Furman University, a Ph.D. in physical chemistry from the University of Chicago, and a master's degree in management science from MIT. He served as a National Science Foundation Graduate and Post-doctoral Fellow at the James Franck Institute, an honorary Woodrow Wilson Fellow, and a Sloan Fellow. Kohrt joined Battelle in October 2001, after a distinguished 29-year career at Kodak.

Kohrt volunteers his time and expertise to the university. He is a member of the Fisher College of Business Advisory Board, and has acted as a judge in the annual MBA competition. He also is a member of the OSU Medical Center Strategic Planning Group and the 17-member committee searching for a new university vice president for research.