COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Ohio State University Board of Trustees announced on Friday the process for seeking the school’s next president.
The school will be replacing Kristina Johnson who announced in November she would be stepping down at the end of the academic year in May. Johnson came to Columbus in August 2020.
“The strength and momentum of Ohio State and its collective leadership team, which will help guide the university during this transition, make us highly confident that we will be able to attract a truly outstanding next president,” Hiroyuki Fujita, chair of the Board of Trustees, said.
Fujita will serve as chair of the overall Presidential Search Committee, which include two subcommittees: the Presidential Selection Subcommittee, composed of trustees, and the University Advisory Subcommittee, made up of faculty, staff and students.
Both subcommittees will work to identify a candidate that the Presidential Search Committee will recommend to the board.
Trustees on the Presidential Selection Subcommittee with Fujita include: Jeff M.S. Kaplan, Elizabeth Kessler, Tom B. Mitevski, Lewis Von Thaer, Reginald A. Wilkinson and John Zeiger.
The University Advisory Subcommittee is co-chaired by Jan Box-Steffensmeier, Distinguished University Professor in the Department of Political Science and the Vernal G. Riffe Professor in Government and Politics, and Phillip Popovich, Ray W. Poppleton Research Designated Chair in the Department of Neuroscience in the College of Medicine.
Additional members of the University Advisory Subcommittee are:
- Martha Belury, Carol S. Kennedy Professor in Human Nutrition, College of Education and Human Ecology
- Carol R. Bradford, dean, College of Medicine; vice president for health sciences, Wexner Medical Center
- Molly Ranz Calhoun, president and CEO, The Ohio State University Alumni Association
- Jorge E. Clavo Abbass, president, Council of Graduate Students
- Michael C. Eicher, senior vice president for advancement; president, The Ohio State University Foundation
- Isil Erel, David A. Rismiller Chair in Finance, Fisher College of Business
- Russell Hassan, Ambassador Milton A. and Roslyn Z. Wolf Chair in Public and International Affairs, John Glenn College of Public Affairs
- Ayanna Howard, dean, College of Engineering
- Michael Ibrahim, director, School of Music
- Cathann A. Kress, vice president for agricultural administration and dean, College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences
- Scott Levi, professor and chair, Department of History, College of Arts and Sciences
- Anthony Long, president, Inter-Professional Council
- Andrew Pierce, president, Undergraduate Student Government
- Paul Rose, associate dean for strategic initiatives, Moritz College of Law
- Taylor A. Schwein, graduate student trustee
- Gene Smith, senior vice president and Wolfe Foundation Endowed Athletic Director, Department of Athletics
- Laurel Van Dromme, chair, University Staff Advisory Committee
“Our dedication to advancing Ohio State’s standing as one of the nation’s premier public universities remains unchanged — as does our commitment to being a leader in affordability and student support, faculty retention and hiring, innovative research and excellence in patient care,” Fujita said.