A message from President Carter | Ohio State

Greetings to all pupils, professors and employees:

After hearing from our community for the past few days, I would like to clarify what really happened on April 25th at the South Oval.

I appreciate and support the freedom to express oneself without restriction. Since my arrival at Ohio State, I have emphasized this notion. I served in the military for 38 years to safeguard and promote these rights. On April 25, there was an incident on our campus, which did not aim to limit the liberty of speech. Rather, it deliberately disregarded the regulations put in place to ensure that our university remains a conducive environment for teaching, research, service, and healthcare, undisturbed.

As a university open to the public, it's not uncommon for our campus to witness protests, disagreements and demonstrations. That’s why we have dedicated staff and safety professionals on-site, to ensure student safety and uphold their right to participate in these activities. However, I have noticed with concern the recent unsafe practices happening in other campuses across the country, where encampments sometimes led to cancellation of in-person learning and graduation ceremonies. Thankfully, we will not allow such a situation to happen at Ohio State University.

We have repeatedly emphasized through various messages that Ohio State University follows both the law and its own policies, as we demonstrated on April 25th. The most recent reminder of this was given in a message to the entire campus on April 22nd. Dr. Shivers reiterated this message to all students on April 23rd, specifically regarding the regulations that apply during Finals Week.

The university's space regulations have been in place for a while and don't favor any particular content. They apply to everyone equally. On Thursday, the university acted against those who had set up an encampment on the South Oval, as they were breaking these rules. The university notified them of this several times, starting from 4:30 am when they first attempted to set up camp. Students were asking the demonstration staff about the space rules during and after the attempt to encamp. The staff confirmed that the students had been informed of these rules.

Despite being given clear warnings and explanations about the regulations, student groups and external organizations advertised both the morning and 5 p.m. events as "encampments". The university constantly reminded them that this was against the rules and would not be allowed. At around 5:30 p.m., a group of over 300 people, many of whom were not affiliated with Ohio State, went to the South Oval and created an encampment. Over the next five hours, they continued to add to and establish their encampment, despite numerous warnings that this was not allowed. Ohio State University Police Division took the lead on this issue and, after many warnings, the university decided to start arresting people. Law enforcement began the process of arresting and charging people with criminal trespassing around 10 p.m. because they knowingly violated the university policies and the orders of the police.

You can't set up camps on campus, no matter why you want to. This kind of thing needs a lot of security and attention that could be given to other things. Plus, it puts a lot of pressure on nearby buildings, like the Ohio Union, where people need to use the bathroom and stay clean. During Finals Week, the Ohio Union is not just a place to study, it's also where people take exams, especially those who need extra help. The people who set up the camp might have wanted to make a statement or do something all the time, but it caused problems for people who live nearby, like those in Baker Hall.

I understand that even if more information is provided about the situation and when things happened, there will still be people who don't agree with what was done. I’m okay with that and am open to hearing people's worries. In summary, I care a lot about doing my job well and am responsible for the results. Arrests are a serious thing, and neither I nor anyone on my team takes them lightly. From the very beginning, I've been clear that nothing is more important than keeping people safe.

You can find more information about the events that happened on April 25 on the university's Key Issues webpage, and I suggest you take a look. However, I want to make it clear that what happened on Thursday was not about silencing anyone's speech. We are not trying to prevent people from exercising their right to gather and protest. What we are doing is enforcing our rules about how our spaces can be used, and taking steps to ensure the safety of our community as a whole.

I would also like to appreciate and express gratitude towards the numerous individuals in our community who have shown their unwavering dedication to educating, absorbing knowledge, actively listening, lending support, and peacefully practicing their right to free expression on our premises during the preceding months. I am certain that this is the true potential of our Buckeye community, which can be achieved even when it is challenging and demanding.