Walter “Ted” Carter Jr., 17th president of The Ohio State University, delivered his first State of the University address at the Ohio Union Thursday afternoon. The address comes as Carter celebrates 100 days in office, and it offered an opportunity to reflect on the university’s history and its direction for the future.

Carter discussed the founding history of the university with the passage of the Morrill Act in 1862 and the Canon Act of 1870. He discussed university traditions ranging from Script Ohio to the chimes of Orton Hall to the alma mater “Carmen Ohio.”

“You know when I came [to Ohio State], I talked about what excited me to come here to be part of this great university, how excellent we were in programs like academics, research, medical care, medical research, the arts, athletics. None of that has been a disappointment,” he said.

The president highlighted some of the recent success stories at the university, noting that Ohio State scholars achieved almost $1.45 billion in research expenditures in 2023, ranking just ahead of Harvard at No. 11 nationally.

He discussed the excellence of the Wexner Medical Center and the Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute as among the best cancer hospitals in the U.S.

Ohio State has students, alumni, employees, patients and facilities in each of the state’s 88 counties, and has connections across the country and active partnerships around the globe, he said. Carter pointed to research relationships with Honda, Intel and Amgen.

Carter has spoken about the importance of access and affordability for college-seeking students. He said Ohio State is meeting that standard and will work to improve.

“Affordability has got to be one of the centerpieces of what we do. … It’s important to know that we are still one of the most affordable, best-value educations you can find, not only in the state of Ohio, but anywhere in the country,” he said. “We are the second most affordable of anybody that has a selective admission process.”

Ohio State is also more affordable than 10 of 17 other schools in the Big Ten.

He shared that only 42% of Ohio State undergraduate students graduate with debt, compared to 61% nationally. And of those graduating with debt, Ohio State students have recently been borrowing less, a little under $25,000 across their undergraduate experience – or about $4,000 less than the national average.

Carter also addressed the culture of the university and the importance of civil discourse. He said when he was appointed as president that safety would be one of his top priorities.

“I can’t tell students or faculty how to feel, but all I can do is make sure that we are going to continue to do everything we can to keep our campus secure and safe. That includes elements of free speech,” he said, adding that he swore an oath as a naval officer to defend the Constitution. “I am passionate about freedom of speech. But that doesn’t mean freedom of speech is your right to create violence, incite violence, or harass others.”

The president said he continues to listen and learn from the campus community, and announced that he plans to do that more broadly with a survey of university faculty and staff. The survey, to be launched later this month, will ask employees to weigh in on their experience and engagement at Ohio State. The survey will be matched up with a similar annual survey conducted by the Wexner Medical Center and shared with the university community.

He said he would develop a university strategy with faculty, staff and university stakeholders for the future of Ohio State, noting that the university has been and continues to be excellent across its history.

“We can just be happy to maintain what we have. But I don’t believe the founders who created us 154 years ago ever envisioned that we would ever rest on our laurels,” Carter said. “So we will not rest on our laurels. And then the second part of the vision is we have to create and maintain a culture of excellence, a culture of excellence in everything we do.”

Carter ended his address quoting the powerful lyrics from “Carmen Ohio.” He focused on the third verse and how the nautical lines reminded him of his career in the U.S. Navy: If on seas of care we roll,
Neath blackened sky or barren shoal, Thoughts of thee bid darkness go, Dear Alma Mater...OHIO.

“I could not be more proud to be your 17th president,” he said. “Together, we will navigate the seas of care.”