COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State University President Water "Ted" Carter held his first state of the university on Thursday.
Carter said it is the responsibility of the university to take care of the students, and that’s includes making sure students are safe on campus. Carter said since he took office in January, he has already added to campus security.
“I visited Blankenship Hall where we have a commander center that now has 5,000 high definition cameras that see every aspect of our campus. We are hiring more campus police and that takes time to get them on the job,” said Carter.
Carter said the university has also started working more closely with the Columbus Division of Police, Ohio State Highway Patrol and even the FBI to help with campus safety. Carter said when someone harasses or creates and incites violence, they will be held accountable.
“When someone crosses the line, no matter how minor, we will hold those people responsible,” he said.
In the fall, the Ohio State University Hillel center was vandalized, and then two Jewish students were assaulted. These attacks raised concern with the Jewish community on campus.
This week, three Jewish organizations announced a complaint claiming the university is failing to address discrimination and harassment against Jewish students. On Thursday, Carter was asked about the complaint.
“Disappointed. The day I got here I met with various groups of students to include Jewish students and listen to their concerns. We have done so much to make sure we keep them safe and secure,” said Carter.
Jeremy Davis, the student board president of OSU Hillel said he feels the university did not do enough in the fall to address the antisemitism. He wants the university to have a strong approach to combating it.
“Discipline students that violate the code of conduct. The university defended antisemitism. If you have a definition of antisemitism that gives you legal teeth and put that in practice,” Davis said.
Davis said he hopes there will be more support from the university in the future.