Ohio State University President Resigns Over Inappropriate Relationship

Walter "Ted" Carter Jr., a decorated Navy vice admiral who logged 125 combat missions and set a national record for carrier landings, was supposed to bring stability to one of America's largest public universities. Instead, barely two years into his presidency, Carter became the latest in a long line of Ohio State leaders to leave under a cloud — resigning after admitting to an "inappropriate relationship" with a woman seeking public resources for her personal business.

The announcement, made public on March 9, 2026, stunned the Ohio State community and raised urgent questions about governance, accountability, and a troubling pattern of executive dysfunction at one of the nation's flagship universities [1].

The Unraveling

The sequence of events that ended Carter's presidency moved with startling speed. In recent days, an anonymous source approached the Ohio State Board of Trustees with allegations about an inappropriate relationship between Carter and an individual outside the university [2]. Board members confronted Carter during a rare Saturday executive session that lasted nearly three hours, during which the president confirmed the allegations and offered to resign [3].

"I made a mistake in allowing inappropriate access to Ohio State leadership," Carter said in his resignation statement [1]. The Board of Trustees formally accepted his resignation on Sunday, with Chair John Zeiger issuing a pointed response: "The Board was surprised and disappointed to learn of this matter and takes the situation and its potential impact on the university very seriously" [3].

According to the university, the allegation centered on Carter maintaining "an inappropriate relationship with someone seeking public resources to support her personal business" [2]. The woman involved did not work at Ohio State, but the relationship apparently gave her access to university leadership channels that could benefit her private ventures.

The Podcast Connection

The identity of the individual and the nature of the "public resources" in question quickly came into sharper focus. JobsOhio, the state's private nonprofit economic development corporation, issued a statement confirming that Carter's departure was "possibly connected to a relationship between him and the host of a podcast for veterans, which we sponsored" [4].

That podcast is The Callout, hosted by Krisanthe Vlachos and described as connecting "military and veterans to the future of energy and utilities using AI" [5]. Carter, himself a veteran with nearly four decades of Navy service, appeared on at least nine episodes of the podcast, including a two-part series he co-hosted and a January 7, 2026 episode featuring JobsOhio President J.P. Nauseef [5].

The connection deepened when The Lantern, Ohio State's student newspaper, reported that Vlachos had registered a business entity called VetEarnsUSA LLC on December 20, 2025 — using the address of WOSU Public Media's headquarters at 1800 N. Pearl Street, which is part of Ohio State University [5]. An Ohio State spokesperson confirmed that the VetEarnsUSA LLC business filing "is part of the investigation regarding public resources" [4].

JobsOhio maintained that its sponsorship of The Callout podcast "went through our standard and rigorous legal process, as with any sponsorship given by JobsOhio" [5]. The specific public resources Carter allegedly facilitated access to remain under investigation, and many questions about the exact nature and scope of the relationship remain unanswered.

A Decorated Career Cut Short

Carter's fall is all the more striking given the prestige of the career that preceded it. A 1981 graduate of the United States Naval Academy with a degree in physics and oceanography, Carter spent 38 years in the U.S. Navy, retiring as a vice admiral [6]. He logged more than 6,000 flight hours and flew 125 combat missions across Iraq, Afghanistan, Kuwait, Bosnia, and Kosovo. He earned the Distinguished Flying Cross with combat distinction and the Bronze Star, and set a national record with more than 2,000 carrier-arrested landings without a mishap [6].

His transition to higher education leadership seemed equally accomplished. Carter served as president of the U.S. Naval War College beginning in 2013, then as superintendent of the United States Naval Academy from 2014 to 2019 [6]. In 2020, he was named president of the University of Nebraska System, overseeing four campuses and nearly 70,000 students. When Ohio State came calling in 2023, Carter was seen as a steady hand for a university in need of one.

During his abbreviated tenure as Ohio State's 17th president, Carter oversaw several significant developments. He launched the Education for Citizenship 2035 strategic plan, saw improvements in national rankings, and presided over an institution where research expenditures reached $1.58 billion, ranking 12th nationally [7]. Ohio State's football team won a national championship during his watch. But his leadership was not without controversy — Carter dismantled diversity, equity, and inclusion programs as mandated by the Ohio Legislature under Senate Bill 1, established the Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture and Society as required by the Ohio General Assembly, and oversaw crackdowns on student protests related to the Israel-Hamas conflict [3].

The Financial Reckoning

Carter's compensation package reflected the scale of the institution he led. When hired, his contract ran through December 31, 2028, with a base salary exceeding $1 million, performance bonus eligibility of 30% of his annual salary, $50,000 in annual fringe benefits, a non-refundable $250,000 first-year transition reward, and $45,000 in moving expenses [8].

In August 2025, just months before the allegations surfaced, trustees approved a 4.5% merit raise totaling $51,233, bringing Carter's base salary to $1,189,733, along with a bonus approaching $398,475 — roughly 35% of his base pay. His total annual compensation package was valued at approximately $1.5 million [2].

University spokesperson Ben Johnson was unequivocal about the financial terms of Carter's departure: "There's no additional compensation. He resigned" [8]. The one concession: Carter was granted 90 days to vacate the presidential residence, exceeding the 30-day contractual requirement [8].

Source: GDELT Project

Data as of Mar 10, 2026CSV

A Pattern of Presidential Instability

Carter's resignation is not an isolated episode at Ohio State. It is the latest chapter in a decades-long saga of executive instability that has become a defining feature of the university's governance. No Ohio State president has exited as planned since Harold Leroy Enarson completed his term and retired in 1981 [9].

The recent record is particularly alarming. Ohio State has now had three presidents since 2020, plus one interim leader, and will now embark on yet another presidential search [9].

Carter's predecessor, Kristina Johnson, served as the 16th president from 2020 to 2023 before resigning midway through her contract. Under her leadership, research spending increased 42%, faculty attrition was reversed, and significant fundraising goals were met [10]. But Johnson's departure, which shocked the university community, reportedly stemmed from an untenable working relationship with billionaire donor Les Wexner and certain trustees loyal to his interests [10].

Before Johnson, Michael Drake served from 2014 to 2020. While he announced his retirement in November 2019, he subsequently became president of the University of California system just two months after leaving Ohio State — hardly a conventional retirement [9]. And E. Gordon Gee, who served two separate terms at Ohio State, left his first stint to become president of Brown University, then departed Brown for Vanderbilt before eventually returning to Columbus [9].

This revolving door at the top raises serious questions about Ohio State's board governance, presidential search processes, and institutional culture. The American Association of University Professors has called for a "transparent presidential search" process that meaningfully involves faculty and staff input [3].

The Wexner Shadow

Carter's resignation comes at a particularly fraught moment for Ohio State, as the university grapples with intense pressure related to billionaire donor Leslie Wexner's ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Following the release of Epstein files by the U.S. Department of Justice, in which Wexner's name appears more than 4,000 times, Ohio State has received nearly 300 requests to remove Wexner's name from campus buildings, including the Wexner Medical Center and the Wexner Center for the Arts [11].

Just weeks before his resignation, Carter had addressed the Wexner situation publicly, saying he had "no reason to not believe Wexner" regarding his claims of ignorance about Epstein's crimes, and urging the community to "let the facts play out" [11]. The intersection of the Wexner controversy with yet another presidential departure compounds the sense of institutional crisis.

What Comes Next

As of March 10, Ohio State has not yet named an interim president. Board Chair Zeiger indicated that trustees would share a transition plan later in the week [1]. The university — with 67,255 students, a $10.4 billion budget, a $7.1 billion endowment, and its position as one of the largest institutions of higher education in the United States — cannot afford prolonged leadership uncertainty [7].

Source: Ohio State University / NBC4 WCMH-TV

Data as of Mar 10, 2026CSV

Faculty, students, and staff have already begun calling for reforms. Critics of Carter's leadership had pointed to what they described as a top-down management style, repression of free speech, and lack of accountability [3]. Student reaction to the resignation has been mixed — some expressed shock, while others viewed it as an opportunity for meaningful change in how the university selects and governs its leaders [3].

The fundamental questions facing Ohio State extend well beyond any single president's misconduct. Why has the university been unable to retain a president through a full term for more than four decades? What role do powerful donors and political figures play in shaping — and destabilizing — university governance? And can a $10.4 billion institution with world-class faculty and students build the kind of stable, transparent leadership it needs to fulfill its mission?

For now, Ohio State finds itself in a grimly familiar position: searching, once again, for someone to lead it forward.

Key Takeaways

• The allegation: Carter admitted to an "inappropriate relationship" with a woman seeking public resources for a personal business, linked to a veteran-focused podcast sponsored by JobsOhio.
• The financial terms: Carter walked away with no additional compensation from a $1.5 million-per-year position, with 90 days to vacate the presidential residence.
• The pattern: No Ohio State president has completed their term as planned since 1981. The university has had three presidents since 2020.
• The investigation: An active university investigation continues into the use of public resources, including the VetEarnsUSA LLC business filing registered at an Ohio State address.
• The broader context: The resignation occurs as Ohio State simultaneously confronts the fallout from Les Wexner's ties to Jeffrey Epstein and navigates significant political pressures around DEI and campus free speech.