- 1874 Edward Orton, first pres. of Ohio A&M College
- 1881 Walter Quincy Scott, following Orton's retirement
- 1883 William Henry Scott, when 2nd pres. not reappointed
- 1895 James H Canfield, former U Nebraska chancellor.
- 1899 William Oxley Thompson.
- 1926 George Washington Rightmire.
- 1940 Howard Landis Bevis.
- 1956 Novis G Fawcett, former superintendent of Cols Public Schools
- 1972 Harold Enarson, former pres. Cleveland Stat U
- 1981 Edward H Jennings, former pres. U Wyoming
- 1990 E Gordon Gee, former pres. U of Colorado
- 1998 William E Kirwan, former pres. U of Maryland
- 2002 ...
- 2007 E Gordon Gee, formerly at Vanderbilt
and Brown, prior to OSU.
Summary History
1862 Lincoln signs Morrill Act providing for land-grant colleges
1870 Cannon Act (Ohio leg.) provides for creation of Ohio A&M College
1870 Board of Trustees first meeting; buys first land (Neil Farm)
1871 Board of Trustees approves first curriculum
1873 Board of Trustees broadens curriculum outside A&M
1873 Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College first class (25)
1874 Edward Orton, first pres. of Ohio A&M College
1876 Open admission of all HS graduates resolved by faculty
desperate for students; see 1987.
1878 name changes to The Ohio State University
1878 first class of 6 graduates on June 19; 1879 first woman BS
1881 Walter Quincy Scott, 2nd pres. following Orton's retirement
1882 Ohio assembly votes to form agricultural experiment station.
1883 William Henry Scott, 3rd pres. when 2nd pres. not reappointed
1886 first woman MA at OSU.
1890 first Doctor of Science at OSU.
1891 Ohio assembly passes first annual levy for OSU.
1891 School of Law est'd by Trustees.
1895 James H Canfield, 4th pres.; former U Nebraska chancellor.
1896 Six colleges formed: Agriculture, Arts, Philosophy and
Sciences (1927 -> C of Liberal Arts), Engineering,
Law, Pharmacy, Veterinary Medicine.
1896 Department of Domestic Economy begins -> 1929 School
of Home Economics.
1896 first foreign student receives BA at OSU
1902 Graduate School of Agriculture begins.
1905 Physics building completed; 1925 renamed for Mendenhall (first
prof of physics); 1949 physics moves to new Smith Lab.
1907 College of Education formed.
1911(?) Graduate School starts.
1913 main library opens
1914 Starling-Ohio medical college joins OSU as its
college of medicine
1914 School of Dentistry starts.
1914 U Homeopathic Hospital Training School for Nurses;
1928 School of Nursing.
1916 Trustees approve plan for College of Business Administration;
later known as College of Commerce and Journalism
1917 Department of Agricultural Education est'd.
1922 quarter plan starts; voted by faculty in 1918.
1927 School of Journalism cut out leaving College of Commerce (?)
1927 School of Journalism cut out leaving College of Commerce (?)
1928 School of Nursing name change (see 1914).
1929 School of Home Economics formed from Department of
Domestic Economy.
1931 School of Social Work starts.
1936 OSURF (OSU Research Foundation) est'd to overcome
limitation of U regulation with respect to external funding.
1937 School of Optometry starts.
1942 Indefinite term for department chairs -> four year terms.
1944 School of Fine & Applied Arts; 1962 School of Art.
1948 School of Music.
1948 U business manager becomes vice president.
1950 School of Architecture and Landscape Design; 1960 joins
College of Engineering as School of Architecture.
1956 Novis G Fawcett, 8th pres.; former superintendent of Cols Public Schools
1957 first regional campus at Marion and Newark; 1958 Mansfield;
1960 Lima
1965 CAA (Council on Academic Affairs) est'd from Council for
Instructions.
1966 Board of Regents (9 members) established by Ohio assembly.
1966 Provost title added to vice president for Academic Affairs.
1966 Trustees create separate College of Biological Sciences.
1966 School of Allied Medical Professions.
1966 University College is established
1967 Lincoln and Morrill towers open to universal derision
1968 College of Arts & Sciences splits into Colleges of The Arts,
Biological Sciences, Humanities, Mathematical &
Physical Sciences, Social & Behaviorial Sciences
(including School of Journalism).
1967 Lincoln and Morrill towers open to universal derision
1968 Trustees establishes School of Natural Resources.
1968 Dept of Computer & Information Sciences formed.
1968 College of Optometry.
1969 black studies division approved for college of humanities
1970 office of affirmative action established
1972 Harold Enarson, 9th pres.; former pres. Cleveland Stat U
1972 Faculty cedes powers to U Senate of student, staff, faculty
1972 Department of Black Studies stated.
1975 office of women's studies starts; 1980 center; 1996 dept.
1978 Kathryn T Schoen first women vice president
1979 medical practice plans redirects some OSU fac. income to OSU
1981 Edward H Jennings, 10th pres.; former pres. U Wyoming
1984 honors program established
1984 first U Campaign begins, raising $460 M by 1990
1987 selective admissions begin
1988 GEC (general education curriculum) approved. Unintended
effect is increase by 1-2 quarters in time to graduate.
1989 Wexner center opens
1990 E Gordon Gee, 11th pres.; former pres. U of Colorado
1993 science and engineering library opens
1994 restructuring of university begins; mainly reduction from
120 departments to less than 100 over two years.
1995 second U Campaign begins, aims for $850 M in 2000; see below
1998 Goes to Brown presidency
2000 Gee goes to Vanderbilt presidency; See also aftermath story.
1999 upper administration reorganized: decreasing those reporting
to president, increasing those to provost.
2000 Second U Campaign actually raise 1.23 B.
Left just as budget restructuring was starting
.... no third U Campaign for endowment
2002 Budget restructing started without rebasing college budgets
as promised, yielding fully anticipatable growth and decay.
2007 Illusory reform curriculum "allows" graduation in 4 years with
no substantive curriculum reform.
Your