John J. Grabowski received his BA, MA, and Ph.D. degrees from Case Western Reserve University. His academic interests are in the fields of immigration and migration, public history, and museum studies. He holds a joint position as the Krieger-Mueller Associate Professor of Applied History at Case Western Reserve and Senior Historian and Vice President for Research and Publications at the Western Reserve Historical Society. He is the editor of the on-line edition of the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History and the Dictionary of Cleveland Biography.  During the 1996-1997 and 2004-2005 academic years he served as a senior Fulbright Lecturer at Bilkent University in Ankara, Turkey.

His publications include The Encyclopedia of Cleveland History, The Dictionary of Cleveland Biography, and Cleveland: A Tradition of Reform, which he co-edited with the late Dr. David D. Van Tassel. He is also the author of Sports in Cleveland: An Illustrated History and Cleveland A to Z: Historical Essentials for Newcomers and Residents in Northeastern Ohio, and co-author of Polish Americans and Their Communities in Cleveland. Along with Professor David Hammack, he is a co-editor of Identity, Conflict & Cooperation: Central Europeans in Cleveland, 1850-1930. He has written numerous articles relating to immigration history and to archival issues. He has recently completed a history of Bilkent University published in Bilkent: Thirty Years in Historical Perspective.

Chris Ronayne was named President of University Circle Inc (UCI) in 2005. UCI is the non-profit community service corporation responsible for the development, service, and advocacy of University Circle as a world-class center of innovation in health care, education, and arts & culture and premier urban district. Since becoming UCI’s seventh president, Chris has developed a dynamic and aggressive agenda to leverage the institutional assets of the Circle’s anchor “Eds, Meds, and Arts” organizations and transform the neighborhood into a vibrant mixed-use district.

Chris and his staff partner with more than 40 member institutions to oversee the growth and direction of Ohio’s fastest growing employment district, with UCI providing community planning, development, education, marketing, police, and other shared services.

Before joining UCI, he served the City of Cleveland as the City’s Planning Director, Chief Development Officer, and Chief of Staff. He was the chief architect of the City’s Waterfront District Plan, an ambitious effort to reconnect the people of Cleveland to Lake Erie.

In addition to his role with UCI, Chris serves on the Port of Cleveland Board of Trustees, is Chairman of the Holden Parks Trust, and is a member of CEOs for Cities, the American Planning Association, and numerous local boards and foundations. He is a frequent speaker and lecturer at urban development seminars and forums across the United States and internationally. He holds a Masters degree in Urban Planning, Design, and Development from Cleveland State University and a Bachelors degree in Business from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio.

Chris is married to Natalie Ronayne, Chief Development Officer at the Cleveland Metroparks. They live in the City of Cleveland with their two children.

Catherine Pace
Catherine Pace is the Project Manager for Cumberland Development, LLC, currently working on developing the Downtown Cleveland Lakefront which includes the renovation of a 55,000 square foot warehouse in to creative workspace, a new corporate office building, residential and mixed-use buildings, a public park, and plans for a school.

Ms. Pace is an experienced Analyst in Real Estate Development. Trained in project management and leasing for real estate development, skilled in marketing and analytics. Also experienced in risk management for construction services. Ms. Pace spent the first years in her career in New York working for Alliant Insurance Services as a Risk Analyst, working on projects for The Related Companies, TF Cornerstone, and TG Nickel.