Reaction is mixed among Ohio State's faculty about last week's appointment of Ravi Bellamkonda as the university's 18th president.
Some faculty are thrilled about the promotion of the former Ohio State provost and executive vice president. Others faculty still have concerns about the way the Board of Trustees handled the situation.
Eric Schoon is an associate sociology professor and chair-elect of the university's Faculty Council. On Tuesday, Schoon said that he appreciates Bellamkonda's commitment to emphasizing Ohio State as an academic powerhouse. But he said some faculty members still have concerns about the transition.
"Among the faculty that I have spoken to there are a range of reactions to this appointment, from really genuine excitement about President Bellamkonda's appointment to some deep frustration over the way that this decision was made and the lack of faculty input," Schoon said.
The trustees named Bellamkonda as president last Thursday, just five days after former President Ted Carter submitted his resignation after admitting to an improper relationship with a woman seeking public resources to support her private business.
The private nonprofit JobsOhio last week suggested the business was tied to podcaster Krisanthe Vlachos, who recorded "The Callout" podcast with Carter as a guest numerous times.
Vlachos had a one-year contract with WOSU Public Media to produce the podcast at WOSU's studio. The contract was set to run from July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026, and called for Vlachos to pay $93,716, or $1,874.32 per podcast episode. A total of 50 episodes were to be produced. The contract also provided a desk and cubicle for Vlachos' use at WOSU.
The circumstances surrounding Carter's departure are one of several controversies Bellamkonda is stepping into as he begins his tenure as Ohio State's president.
The university has received more than 400 requests to remove billionaire Leslie Wexner's name from multiple Ohio State buildings because of his ties to the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
Wexner also has been ordered to testify in a lawsuit against Ohio State University over sexual abuse by former team doctor Richard Strauss, who abused at least 177 male students and student-athletes while employed by the university from 1978 to 1998.
Schoon called it a "broader challenging month of OSU in the news" that Bellamkonda is going to have to face.
"There are a lot of challenges that President Bellamkonda is coming into, given the circumstances of his appointment and the circumstances of Ted Carter's resignation. I mean, to my knowledge, everything that has happened in terms of this leadership transition is unprecedented," Schoon said.
"Because it is the president's job to try to build that trust, to maintain the faith in the institution, faith from the faculty, faith from students, faith from staff, that is something that will fall to the president," Schoon said. "It's not going to be a small task. It's not going to be an easy task. Building trust never is, especially under difficult circumstances."
In a statement last week, the American Association of University Professors criticized Ohio State for naming Bellamkonda without consulting students, faculty and staff.
Schoon said faculty has had 14 months to get to know Bellamkonda as provost. He also said Bellamkonda seems entirely qualified to be president of the university.
"But on a personal note, yes, I do think that there should have been more transparency in this process," Schoon said. "It does create some challenges, the fact that it happened behind closed doors."
But Schoon said he is excited to be working with Bellamkonda. "He is an excellent scholar. He is an excellent academic," Schoon said. "I think he has incredible potential to be a truly great leader for our university."
