Ohio State President Walter “Ted” Carter resigned over an inappropriate relationship. Credit: Sandra Fu | Managing Photo Editor
After a little over two years on the job, Ohio State President Walter “Ted” Carter Jr. has resigned, citing an inappropriate relationship.
The Board of Trustees accepted Carter’s resignation after he disclosed having an inappropriate relationship with someone seeking public resources. Information about that relationship was not disclosed, but some details regarding how the relationship was discovered were shared at a 1:15 p.m. press conference at University Square South with university spokespeople.
“For personal reasons, I have made the difficult decision to resign from my role as president of The Ohio State University,” Carter said in the email. “I disclosed to the board of trustees that I made a mistake in allowing inappropriate access to Ohio State leadership.”
John Zeiger, chair of the board, accepted Carter’s resignation in a letter.
“The Board was surprised and disappointed to learn of this matter and takes the situation and its potential impact on the university very seriously,” Zeiger wrote.
Carter said Ohio State will continue to succeed and apologized to the Ohio State community.
“I believe we have made much progress during my time at Ohio State, and I’m sorry I’m not able to remain your president longer,” Carter said. “The students, faculty and staff at this university are among the very best in the world, and the Education for Citizenship 2035 strategic plan has Ohio State poised to succeed for years to come.”
Ravi Bellamkonda, executive vice president and provost, and John Warner, CEO of Wexner Medical Center and executive vice president, sent a 4:24 p.m. email on Monday to the Ohio State community supporting the board’s decision.
“Following this morning’s message, we write to you as the leaders of Ohio State’s academic and health care enterprises,” the email said. “We echo the view of the Board of Trustees that we have tremendous strength, and our momentum is and will continue to be strong.”
Carter’s resignation comes after the trustees met in a closed session Saturday morning for an hours-long special meeting. In its agenda, the board discussed “personnel matters regarding the appointment, employment and compensation of public officials.”
At the 1:15 p.m. meeting with the press, university Spokesperson Ben Johnson said he did not know if the relationship was sexual. He said the person was not affiliated with the university.?
“I know the board determined it was an inappropriate relationship,” Johnson said.
Johnson said that someone outside the university had recently approached the Board of Trustees with concerns involving the relationship. The board raised these concerns to Carter, who then disclosed the details of the relationship and offered his resignation.?
It was not immediately clear this morning who might serve as Ohio State’s leader in Carter’s place, but Johnson said the university is working on updates that could come later this week.
Carter was named president in August 2023 after a six-month search following the resignation of former President Kristina Johnson, who held the position for two-and-a-half years out of a five-year contract.
Last year, the board unanimously voted to increase Carter’s salary by almost $40,000, bringing his annual base salary to nearly $1.3 million.
Carter’s contract does not outline any penalties for resigning, but it says he needs to give six months notice. Johnson said he does not know if there will be penalties with the short notice but said “He has resigned. There’s no financial agreement beyond his contract. He has resigned.”
Johnson said Carter asked the board of trustees for 90 days to move out of the presidential residence and the board approved that request.?
Johnson also said the situation is under a university investigation at this time and it will continue to investigate potential concerns regarding public resources.?
Ohio State also removed Carter’s presidential bio. The page currently says “your account does not have sufficient permissions to access this page.”
As president, Carter oversaw the planning of expanded scholarship opportunities, increased funding for faculty and college investments, per prior Lantern reporting.
Carter also faced pushback and criticism for decisions following the passing of Senate Bill 1 last March, including related diversity, equity and inclusion rollbacks, the shutdown of Ohio State’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion and the elimination of several faculty and staff positions as a result, according to prior Lantern reporting.
Carter’s tenure as president has seen the arrests of student protestors on campus, as well as a ban on chalking sidewalks, which has led to increased criticism from students and faculty.
In a statement, the Ohio State chapter of the American Association of University Professors condemned Carter’s actions and called for increased transparency in the search for his replacement.
“The students, faculty, and staff of Ohio State deserve so much better than the failed leadership that has been inflicted on this institution over the years. The repression of free speech, the dismantling of diversity, the lack of accountability to survivors – the list goes on and on,” AAUP said. “We demand a more transparent presidential search that involves the input of faculty, staff, and other university stakeholders.”
Carter has also managed Ohio State’s reputation amid ongoing litigation over the handling of the Dr. Richard Strauss sexual abuse case, and increased calls for the removal of Les Wexner’s name from campus buildings due to his potential knowledge of Strauss’ actions as well as a well-documented connection to convicted sex offender Jeffery Epstein.
In response to both cases, Carter has said he is not concerned about Ohio State’s reputation being damaged and said that the university must follow a set process before removing names,? saying in a University Senate meeting “this is not a Ted Carter decision.”
A spokesperson for Mr. Wexner declined to comment on Carter’s resignation.
This is a breaking story, the article will be updated once The Lantern learns more information.
The article was updated at 4:57 p.m. on March 9 to add that Ohio State removed Carter’s presidential bio.
The article was updated at 4:50 p.m. on March 9 to add the email sent by Ravi Bellamkonda and John Warner.
The article was updated at 2:26 p.m. on March 9 to add comments from the University press conference Monday.
The article was updated at 11:43 a.m. on March 9 to provide more context about Carter’s work at Ohio State.
The article was updated at 11:25 a.m. on March 9 to add John Zeiger accepting Carter’s resignation.
The article was updated at 11:12 a.m. on March 9 to add when Carter was named president and the work he oversaw during his two years at Ohio State.
The article was updated at 10:46 a.m. on March 9 to add Carter’s raise and total salary.
