VOL. 38, NO. 41
OCTOBER 9 - 15, 2017
Source Lunch
New No. 1 Huntington surpasses KeyBank as regional market leader. Page 3
Matt Underwood, STO’s voice of the Tribe Page 23
CLEVELAND BUSINESS
The List The largest accounting firms in NEO Page 18
AIRPORTS
EDUCATION
New chief focusing on added services
Enrollment dips
By JAY MILLER jmiller@crain.com @JayMiller
Robert Kennedy is beginning to make his mark at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport. The former Atlanta airport executive appeared before Cleveland City Council’s transportation committee last Wednesday, Oct. 4, to lay out a plan for a reorganization of his department and to extend a contract that has been expanding the food and beverage and retail offerings at Hopkins. Kennedy discussed the growth of service through Hopkins, starting with the gateway service to Europe through
Iceland that will begin in 2018. He noted that domestic travel options have expanded as well. Council also was updated on the growth of revenue generated by the airport’s concession operations and plans for programs to support the development of local businesses and jobs at the airport. Kennedy was sworn in as Cleveland’s director of the Department of Port Control, which runs the city’s two airports, by Mayor Frank Jackson last January. That was just after Hopkins was battered by the Federal Aviation Administration for poor snow removal efforts that included a shutdown of several hours after an ice storm in December. SEE CHIEF, PAGE 6
REAL ESTATE
MRI Software sets Solon expansion plan
The University of Akron’s enrollment declined 4.5% this fall. (Contributed photo)
By STAN BULLARD
But region’s four-year public colleges cite reasons to be upbeat By RACHEL ABBEY McCAFFERTY rmccafferty@crain.com @ramccafferty
Northeast Ohio’s public, four-year universities all saw enrollment decline this fall, though some still see reason to celebrate. Take, for example, Youngstown State University, which saw a dramatic enrollment drop of nearly 18% from 2010 to 2015 before starting to turn the tide last year. While enrollment may have fallen this year, associate vice president for enrollment
planning and management Gary Swegan sees signs of improvement. “We feel very, very good about our enrollment,” Swegan said. Why? While total headcount declined from 12,756 last fall to 12,644 this fall, the university’s FTE (fulltime equivalent) actually increased slightly. That figure is calculated by taking all the credit hours being taken and dividing by 15, Swegan said. Seeing that grow in the face of decreased enrollment means Youngstown State has been enrolling more traditional, full-time students — instead of part-time students —
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than in the past, Swegan said. In recent years, Youngstown State has moved away from open enrollment and put a stronger focus on its honors program. He said enrollment also suffered because Youngstown State has been graduating students faster, Swegan said, noting that last year’s graduating class was large. “Our momentum just continues to be moving forward,” he said. The University of Akron, which too has faced prolonged enrollment woes in recent years, is taking a similar stance. SEE COLLEGES, PAGE 22
sbullard@crain.com @CrainRltywriter
As MRI Software gobbles up companies globally to grow in the real estate technology space, it’s also adding staff needed to help operate locally and space within its Solon headquarters. Patrick Ghilani, MRI's CEO, said in a phone interview, “You will see more acquisitions in North America and around the world by MRI. Each time you can assume there will be some growth at our central support team in Cleveland, such as in finance and human resources. Acquired companies have local advantages to
us, but whenever possible we want to do as much as possible in Cleveland.” Meantime, organic growth from new products and cross-selling existing products with those of new companies will add to its growth. As a result, MRI Software is about to embark on a $5.5 million reconfiguration of its headquarters at 28925 Fountain Parkway that will double the 100,000 square-foot office it moved into in 2012. Much of that will come from converting former warehouse space to additional office use and some by installing new work stations and fixtures that will accommodate — at some point — a total of 600 people. Its current staff is 403. SEE MRI, PAGE 19
Health care << Cleveland
Clinic’s global appeal is good for Northeast Ohio, too. Page 11 Acupuncture is more accepted. Page 12 Upcoming summit will put spotlight on precision medicine. Page 14