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From 1978 to 1998, Richard Strauss was employed by Ohio State as a physician treating students and student-athletes. Strauss died in 2005.

In March 2018, Ohio State received a report from a former student-athlete about sexual abuse by Strauss decades earlier. Ohio State took the allegations seriously and acted immediately. Less than one week later, Ohio State announced an investigation and notified the Columbus Division of Police. Perkins Coie LLP was retained to conduct an external, independent investigation.

Ohio State broadly communicated about the investigation, contacting 115,000 alumni and former student-athletes and reaching an additional 147,000 people through university-wide notifications to inform them of the investigation; encourage them to share any information they had with the independent investigators; and provide updates about the investigation.

Over the past five years, Ohio State has led the effort to investigate Strauss’ abuse and the university’s failure at the time to prevent it.

Since 2018, Ohio State has:

• condemned Strauss’ abuse and the university’s failure at the time to prevent it; 
• expressed its regret and sincere apologies to each person impacted by Strauss;
• thanked the survivors for courageously bringing Strauss’ abuse to light;
• covered the cost of professionally certified counseling services and medical treatment for anyone affected by Strauss for as long as needed, as well as reimbursed costs for pre-existing counseling and treatment related to Strauss; 
• provided survivors multiple opportunities to share their experiences with university leadership and the Board of Trustees; 
• established a task force on sexual abuse, which included national and Ohio State experts who partnered with survivors of sexual abuse, including a Strauss survivor; 
• took special action to revoke Strauss’ emeritus status; 
• provided more than $60 million in monetary compensation to 296 survivors through a trauma-informed approach that did not require survivors to prove they were harmed through any litigation process such as discovery or depositions.  

Ohio State has covered the cost of professionally certified counseling services and medical treatment for anyone affected by Strauss for as long as needed, as well as reimbursed costs for pre-existing counseling and treatment related to Strauss. In addition, Ohio State has sincerely and persistently tried to reconcile with survivors through monetary and non-monetary means. Among other things, all male students who filed lawsuits have been offered the opportunity to settle, and the majority of survivors have settled their claims, for a sum of more than $60 million. In addition, Ohio State has undertaken numerous additional efforts to ensure that this never happens again.

Yes. Ohio State offered survivors the opportunity to settle their suits for substantial amounts. Plaintiffs had the opportunity to settle through mediation, an individual settlement program, or separately negotiated group and individual settlements. Most settlements were managed independently by a third party who specializes in assessing damages and determining settlement amounts in sexual abuse lawsuits. The majority of the survivors settled their claims. Ohio State provided $60 million in settlements to 296 survivors through a trauma-informed approach that did not require individuals to prove they were harmed through any litigation process such as discovery or depositions. Ohio State has sincerely and persistently tried to reconcile with survivors through monetary and non-monetary means, and all male students who filed lawsuits have been offered the opportunity to settle. The remaining plaintiffs who were male students rejected monetary offers and continue to pursue their legal claims.