COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio State University President Kristina Johnson wants every undergraduate to get a debt-free education, and during a state of the university address Thursday, she had harsh words for elite institutions that aren’t doing enough to be accessible.

What You Need To Know

• President Johnson said Ohio State is making progress toward its debt-free education goals


• In her state of the university address, Johnson celebrated Intel's partnership with Ohio State


• She delivered the address to an in-person audience that included students, faculty and alumni

Johnson said American universities should strive to be the pathway to greater opportunity for low-income and first-generation students to excel in their careers and pursuits after graduation. That goal requires tackling the worsening national problem of crippling student loan debt, she said. 

“Universities themselves are the great equalizers: Students from low-income families and students from high-income families who attend the same college have pretty much the same income in adulthood. That is the American dream in a nutshell: If you study hard and work hard, you have just as good a shot at a great life as anyone else,” Johnson said. 

Ohio State has fundraised $84 million for its Scarlet & Gray Advantage Program which is the university’s effort to allow students to get a debt-free bachelor’s degree within a decade, she said.

The university already graduates more low-income students than all the Ivy League schools combined, Johnson said.

“The problem is that many of the nation’s very best colleges and universities make relatively little room for low-income and first-generation students. They seem to be concentrating privilege, rather than equalizing opportunity,” Johnson said. 

Johnson said Ohio State is also focused on increasing diversity in academia, touting the university’s Race, Inclusion and Social Equity (RAISE) initiative, which will add 50 tenure-track faculty. 

“We are recruiting new faculty to consider the racial inequities in our society and history—and to better represent our diverse student body—so all of our students can begin to imagine themselves in roles they might not otherwise consider,” she said. 

Ohio State has been named as a main academic partner on Intel’s plan for a massive investment in chip manufacturing in central Ohio. The company’s CEO Patrick Gelsinger is delivering the university’s commencement address, the university announced this week.

Intel is expected to make a $20 billion initial investment that could generate more than 20,000 direct and indirect jobs, Johnson said. She noted that Gelsinger said he wants Ohio State’s top students in relevant fields to work at Intel after graduation.

“Intel reminds us the degree to which economic growth here in Ohio depends on the human capital we develop,” she said. “We already offer a bachelor of science in engineering technology program at our Lima, Mansfield and Marion campuses—and coming soon to Newark. The program is focused specifically on educating leaders for advanced manufacturing.”

Ohio State is working closely with a dozen other universities and community colleges in the region to plan the academic offerings needed to prepare a growing semiconductor workforce in the U.S., she said.

Johnson said she was glad to be delivering this address with a live audience, which included students, faculty, staff, alumni, elected officials and business partners. 

The university lifted its mask mandate last month, citing low case numbers and high compliance with a vaccination requirement. 

With pandemic relief funds, Johnson said Ohio State is investing in mental health and well-being so students can have more opportunities to get help on campus. 

“Although it has been a long, hard pandemic, Buckeye nation managed COVID-19 with spirit and resolve. My heart goes out to everyone in our community who suffered a loss during the past two years, and I thank everyone who helped to keep this community safe—especially our frontline health care workers at the Wexner Medical Center, whose heroism has been humbling,” she said.

Johnson said “positive momentum in our health system,” as well as the university’s investment performance helped Ohio State have a strong year financially, outperforming 2020. 

The university learned valuable lessons about education models from the pandemic, she said. 

Ohio State aims to continue to expand online offerings for certificate and licensure programs as well as professional master’s degree programs, increasing access to learning for working people who want to advance or switch career fields, Johnson said.

She said she also envisions an “education cloud” for Ohio State students to continue their education later in life, earning “micro-credentials” through the online learning offered by the university.