The Ohio State University president has resigned after admitting to an “inappropriate relationship with someone seeking public resources to support her personal business,” the school announced Monday.
Walter “Ted” Carter Jr., the now-former president, had led the public university ― one of the largest in the country with more than 67,000 students enrolled ― for just over two years.
“For personal reasons, I have made the difficult decision to resign from my role as president of The Ohio State University,” Carter said in a statement released by OSU. “I disclosed to the board of trustees that I made a mistake in allowing inappropriate access to Ohio State leadership.”
Further details around the inappropriate relationship and who was involved beyond Carter were not immediately clear. A university spokesperson told The Columbus Dispatch that the relationship came to light after an unnamed source alerted the board.
Then-OSU President Walter “Ted” Carter Jr. at Michigan Stadium on November 29.
Luke Hales via Getty Images
In a publicly shared letter accepting Carter’s resignation, OSU Board of Trustees President John Zeiger said the panel “was surprised and disappointed to learn of this matter and takes the situation and its potential impact on the university very seriously.”
The board accepted Carter’s resignation Saturday, the same day it held a meeting that lasted three hours, WOSU Public Media reported.
OSU has not announced a replacement for Carter but said it “will share additional information about the transition in the coming days.”
Prior to his tenure at OSU, Carter served as a vice admiral and flight officer in the U.S. Navy and went on to serve as superintendent of the U.S. Naval Academy from 2014 to 2019. He then served as president of the University of Nebraska before becoming president at OSU in 2024.
Carter’s resignation comes as the university faces pressure to cut ties with OSU donor alumnus Les Wexner, the retail billionaire behind several mall brands, after his ties to the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein emerged. In a walkout last month, hundreds of students demanded the university remove Wexner’s name from three OSU buildings.
