Case Institute of Technology

The Case School of Applied Science, the predecessor of the Case Institute of Technology, was founded in 1880 in the city of Cleveland, Ohio, in part through the donations of local businessman Leonard Case. Most colleges and universities in the nineteenth century were devoted to the concept of a liberal arts education. The Case School of Applied Science was only the fourth American institution of higher learning to focus on a technical education, and the first such school to be located west of the Appalachian Mountains.

In 1948, the Case School of Applied Science was renamed the Case Institute of Technology. In 1967, the school merged with its neighbor, the Western Reserve University, to form Case Western Reserve University. Case Institute of Technology became the first engineering college to offer a program in computer engineering in 1963, and Case Western Reserve University, through its Case School of Engineering, continues to be a strong leader in a number of engineering fields today.

One of the institution's most famous graduates was Herbert H. Dow, the founder of Dow Chemical Company.