Ohio State University, long a source of regional pride and economic engine for Columbus, is fracturing under the weight of compounding crises that threaten to reshape one of America's most storied public institutions.
The damage began decades ago. Dr. Richard Strauss, a prominent member of the athletic department's medical staff, systematically abused student athletes for years before taking his own life in 2005. Rocky Ratliff, a wrestler and political science student who transferred to Ohio State in the mid-1990s, recalls being subjected to invasive exams under the guise of medical treatment. "I got inappropriate exams multiple times," he said, describing how visits for routine injuries like ankle sprains turned into lengthy genital examinations. The university has now settled with hundreds of abuse victims for $61 million and counting, with more litigation expected this year as 30 former football players recently joined a federal lawsuit against the institution.
But sexual abuse alone did not topple Ohio State's leadership. In March, President Walter "Ted" Carter Jr. resigned after investigators revealed he had steered $60,000 in public funds to help Krisanthe Vlachos, a podcaster with whom he was having an inappropriate relationship, launch her business. Vlachos also pursued funding from billionaire donor Les Wexner, whose name adorns numerous campus buildings. Carter fabricated at least one business trip, claiming a visit to Florida when he was actually traveling with Vlachos. The university has cycled through four presidents in six years.
The scandals have engulfed other figures as well. In February, a professor of ethics assaulted a videographer attempting to question a former university president about Wexner's influence. And a former Ohio State official testified under oath this month that Republican congressman Jim Jordan, who coached the wrestling program during years when abuse was occurring, may have been aware of it. Jordan, now a prominent Trump ally, has consistently denied the allegation, with his spokesperson reiterating: "Chairman Jordan never saw or heard of any abuse, and if he had, he would have dealt with it."
The crises arrive as Ohio State confronts broader economic headwinds battering regional universities nationwide. International student enrollment, a critical revenue source, has dropped sharply under the Trump administration's immigration restrictions. Ohio has experienced one of the steepest declines in the nation. Simultaneously, Ohio's birthrate has fallen nearly 16 percent since 2006, threatening college enrollments as fewer students reach traditional college age starting this year.
Yet Ohio State's leadership has emphasized the institution's resilience. A university spokesperson noted that Time Magazine recently ranked Ohio State the fifth best public university in America, and its research enterprise is now the 12th largest in the country, larger than Harvard and Yale. The university contributes approximately $19 billion annually to Ohio's economy and supports 117,000 jobs. The spokesperson also defended the Wexner family, calling them "great supporters" who have donated or pledged about $200 million over decades.
That defense has not quieted calls for change. Hundreds of requests have been submitted asking the university to remove Wexner's name from campus buildings and facilities, a demand that intensified after reports linking Wexner to Jeffrey Epstein, whom he hired as his financier in the 1980s.
The institution also faces pressure from state lawmakers. Last year, reports emerged that the Ohio legislature's ban on diversity, equity, and inclusion programs forced the university to eliminate eight programs and consolidate 20 others. Ohio State denied the changes resulted directly from the law, claiming they predated it. Concerns persist that taxpayer dollars are increasingly funding courses with a conservative ideological bent.
Joel Wainwright, a geographer at Ohio State who has taught there for more than 20 years, captured the institution's paradox. "The university is thriving if you look at the amount of research money," he observed, noting that annual research spending exceeded $1 billion. "On the other hand, there is no denying that the university is being throttled right now with multiple controversies and problems all coming together at the same time."
As chair of the Committee on Academic Freedom and Responsibility, Wainwright has witnessed what he calls "the most significant attack on academic freedom in the university in at least a century." Faculty morale has suffered accordingly. A documentary broadcast on HBO in 2025 further amplified the Strauss abuse scandal to a national audience, cementing Ohio State's transformation from regional flagship to cautionary tale.
Author James Rodriguez: "Ohio State's unraveling isn't just about mismanagement or isolated scandals, it's a stress test of whether even America's biggest state universities can survive when money dries up, leadership collapses, and the culture wars close in all at once."
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