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THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY TIMELINE 1950 TO PRESENT |
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| 1950 | Sculptor Erwin F. Frey, whose works include the statue of
William Oxley Thompson, received the Sullivant Medal for
outstanding achievement Enrollment stands at 25,948 |
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| 1951 | Trustees impose Second Speaker's Rule, which required that
speakers external to the University had to submit to the
president requests to speak ten days prior to the event Dedication of Ohio Union on High Street Wayne Woodrow "Woody" Hayes becomes football coach OSU scientists discover carbon monoxide and methane gases in earth's atmosphere |
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| 1952 | Alumnus Ralph D. Mershon dies and his will provides for more
than seven million dollars to OSU Former trustee and cheerleader Herbert Atkinson dies and his ashes are buried in a wall of Bricker Hall |
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| 1954 | Ringing of bell in Ohio Stadium after football victories begins | |
| 1956 | Novice G. Fawcett becomes the eighth president of OSU | |
| 1957 | Dedication of St. John Arena Dedication of Mershon Auditorium |
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| 1959 | The Armory, one of the landmarks on the campus, is torn down following a fire the previous year | |
| 1960 | Trustees approve establishment of a branch campus at Lima Basketball team wins NCAA championship Enrollment reaches 31,535 |
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| 1961 | Distinguished writer and former OSU student James Thurber dies; his papers became a prominent feature of the OSU Libraries Rare Books and Manuscripts. | |
| 1965 | Speakers Rule is ended University hires its first archivist and the University Archives is formally established |
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| 1966 | University College is established Baseball team wins NCAA championship |
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| 1967 | Lincoln and Morrill Towers open | |
| 1968 | University ends its ban on alcohol on campus Football team wins national championship |
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| 1969 | Black Studies Division is approved for the College of the Humanities | |
| 1970 | Office of Affirmative Action is established In May, student protests and violence leads to occupation of campus by Ohio National Guard and state troopers Office of Minority Affairs is established, Student enrollment is at 63,203 |
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| 1971 | Original University Hall is razed to replace it with a replica | |
| 1972 | Harold Enarson, president
of Cleveland State University, became ninth president of
OSU Drake Union is opened and overlooks the Olentangy River University Senate begins, the first governance structure which includes students, faculty, and administrators at OSU |
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| 1974 | Nobel Prize in Chemistry awarded to OSU graduate Paul Flory | |
| 1975 | Establishment of Office of
Women's Studies Archie Griffin wins his second Heisman Trophy, the only player to do so |
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| 1978 | Blizzard closed OSU campus for two days Dedication of Hilandar Room in OSU Library, a research collection of Slavic and Byzantine manuscripts |
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| 1979 | OSU adopts Medical Practice
Plan to redirect some income from physicians practicing at
OSU Hospitals to support medical education and research OSU alumnus and cartoonist Milton Caniff has room dedicated in his honor in the Journalism building, the beginning of the Library for Communication, Graphic and Photographic Arts, in which the work of Caniff and other cartoonists is preserved for research and teaching |
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| 1980 | The track in Ohio Stadium and the University Recreation Centers are re-named in honor of Jesse Owens | |
| 1981 | Edward Harrington Jennings becomes tenth president of OSU | |
| 1982 | Stadium Drive is renamed in honor of Coach Woody Hayes | |
| 1983 | Nobel prize in chemistry is awarded to OSU graduate William Fowler | |
| 1984 | Task force recommends that all classes be consolidated on the Main Campus and that West Campus cease being a classroom campus for freshmen and sophomores | |
| 1985 | University Campaign begins, with the goal of raising $350
million dollars from private sources (actually succeed in
gaining $401.2 million by 1990) University Honors Program established OSU acquires the papers of polar explorer and aviator Admiral Richard E. Byrd and renames its Institute of Polar Studies as the Byrd Polar Research Institute Dr. Richard Olsen in the College of Veterinary Medicine discovers Feline Leukemia Vaccine |
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| 1986 | Plan to have selective admissions is approved, to begin in 1987 | |
| 1987 | Celebration of 300th Commencement in June | |
| 1988 | Faculty approve new model curriculum Young Scholars Program founded to identify promising boys and girls from low-income, minority group and target them for special guidance in preparing for admission to the University |
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| 1989 | Wexner Center for the Visual Arts is completed | |
| 1990 | Arthur James Cancer Hospital opens E. Gordon Gee, president of University of Colorado, becomes eleventh president of OSU |
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| 1991 | Renowned choreographer Twyla Tharp donates her archives to OSU's Lawrence and Lee Theatre Research Institute | |
| 1993 | Opening of the Science and Engineering Library Max Fisher donates $20 million to OSU’s College of Business to build a new complex of facilities |
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| 1995 | Celebration of OSU’s 125th anniversary and the
commencement of another fund-raising campaign, with the goal
of $850 million Festivities of the celebration include a time capsule in the Main Library and the development of an historical documentary |
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| 1996 | Broadcast of a documentary by WOSU "Echoes Across the Oval," depicting the history of OSU by means of historical photographs, films, and interviews | |
| 1997 | President Gordon Gee announced his resignation from OSU to become president of Brown University | |
| 1998 | Dr.
William E. Kirwan, President of the University of Maryland,
becomes the twelfth president of OSU The Jerome Schottenstein Center and the new Max Fisher College of Business open |
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2002 |
President Kirwan announces his
resignation to become Chancellor of the University of
Maryland, effective June 30. Former President Edward Jennings serves as interim president. Karen Holbrook, Provost at the University of Georgia, becomes the 13th President of OSU. Mirror Lake renovation is completed. Don Scott (OSU's airport) celebrates 60th anniversary. |
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| 2003 | Freshman Success Series begins and
features small seminars in which all freshman students learn
from faculty in small classes as a way of enhancing the
undergraduate experience and preparing new students for the
academic rigor and excitement of OSU. Football team wins National Championship. Orton Hall Chimes are re-dedicated. Archie Griffin becomes president of OSU Alumni Association. OSU Commencement is moved from Fridays to Sundays as a convenience to graduates and their families. |
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| 2004 | WOSU-TV broadcasts its first digital
signal. Political Science Department is ranked 4th in the world. OSU adds more faculty than any other university to the prestigious American Association for the Advancement of Science. Ross Heart Hospital opens. |
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| 2005 | Hagerty Hall and Page Hall re-open
after extensive renovation. South Campus Gateway Center opens on High Street, a consequence of the project to improve the OSU campus neighborhood by bringing private residences, restaurants, and small business establishments to the area. OSU's Sullivant Medal is awarded to Liang-Shik Fan for his research into the clean use of coal. National Science Foundation reports that OSU is among its top ten public research institutions. OSU breaks ground for an Early Childhood Development Center in Columbus, the result of a major gift from Betty Schoenbaum. For the second year, OSU added more faculty than any other university to the prestigious American Association for the Advancement of Science. Renovation of the Oval is completed, a project that included new turf, walks and an irrigation system. |
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| 2006 | John Glenn Institute merges with the
School of Public Policy. OSU Libraries partners with the Undergraduate Student Government to loan free textbooks for General Education Curriculum Courses. Metro High School opens, a collaborative venture with Battelle Memorial Institute and OSU that focuses on education in math, science and technology. U.S. News and World Reports announces that OSU is 19th among the top 50 public universities in the United States, up from 24th in 2002. OSU's Thompson Library closes for a massive renovation that will add a new wing to the west and restoration of its historic rooms and will reopen in 2009. President Holbrook announces that she will not seek renewal of her contract as President of OSU. Colleges of Human Ecology and Education merge to form the College of Education and Human Ecology. |
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| 2007 | OSU accredited for another 10 years,
given high marks by review team. President Karen Holbrook ends her service to OSU on June 30. Joseph Alutto, Dean of the Fisher College of Business, serves as interim president and as acting Provost. Trustees select E. Gordon Gee, Chancellor of Vanderbilt University, to return as the 14th President of OSU, commencing October 1. Following recommendations of an academic committee, OSU reduced from 191 to 181 the number of credits required for a bachelor degree. This change rendered OSU more similar in its requirements to other universities and would help to reduce the cost of higher education. Ohio Union is torn down, a new building to be completed in 2010. OSU's Professor Lonnie Thompson is awarded the National Medal of Science, arguably the greatest recognition for any scientist in the United States. |
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