Ohio State President Ted Carter Resigns Over Inappropriate Relationship With Business Seeker

The Ohio State University announced Monday it had opened an investigation into President Walter "Ted" Carter Jr. after he disclosed to trustees that he had "an inappropriate relationship with someone seeking public resources to support her personal business" and offered to resign. The Board of Trustees accepted his resignation, effective the preceding Saturday, following a rare weekend meeting convened specifically to address the personnel matter.

Carter submitted his resignation letter on Saturday, writing that he was grateful for his time at Ohio State and that he appreciated the board's understanding. A board member identified only as Zeiger responded in a letter accepting the resignation, saying the move had surprised him. The university's public announcement of both the resignation and the investigation came Monday, March 9, 2026.

OSU spokesperson Ben Johnson declined to provide further detail about the nature of the relationship or the identity of the person involved. The university has not said whether the investigation will be conducted internally or by outside parties, nor has it disclosed a timeline for completing the inquiry or whether any public funds were actually transferred.

Carter, 66, had served as the university's 17th president since January 1, 2024, after the Board of Trustees appointed him on August 22, 2023. He was hired following the resignation of former president Kristina Johnson, who had left after two years in the role. Under Carter's leadership, Ohio State oversaw six campuses, a student body of nearly 67,000, and the nationally recognized Wexner Medical Center.

Before entering higher education, Carter spent decades as a United States Navy vice admiral. He flew 125 combat missions in operations across Bosnia, Kosovo, Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan, landed on 19 different aircraft carriers including all 10 Nimitz-class carriers, and graduated from the Navy Fighter Weapons School, known as Top Gun, in 1985. He commanded Fighter Squadron 14 "Tophatters," served as executive officer of the USS Harry S. Truman, and commanded both the USS Carl Vinson and the Enterprise Carrier Strike Group during the Big E's final combat deployment in 2012.

His transition to academic leadership included serving as the 62nd superintendent of the United States Naval Academy from 2014 to 2019 and as the 54th president of the United States Naval War College from 2013 to 2014. He then led the University of Nebraska system as its eighth president from 2020 to 2023. Carter notably became the first Ohio State president in nearly 70 years without a doctorate or medical degree when he took office.

In 2022, he received the U.S. Naval Academy Distinguished Graduate Award, the highest honor bestowed upon academy graduates and one held by only 110 individuals, including former President Jimmy Carter and the late Senator John McCain.

The central questions surrounding his departure remain unanswered: whether any university resources were directed toward the person he described, the scope and independence of the investigation, and whether the inquiry could carry legal or financial consequences for either party. The university's investigation will now determine whether Carter's conduct crossed institutional policy lines beyond the personal disclosure he voluntarily brought to trustees.