Nora Igelnik

Journalist and Editor

The Lantern •

SB 1 becomes law; Ohio public higher education overhaul bill signed by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine Friday afternoon

Ohio Senate Bill 1 — which bans diversity, equity and inclusion programming and faculty striking, limits the teaching of controversial subjects, requires the online publication of course syllabi and more across Ohio’s public higher education institutions — was signed into law by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine Friday afternoon.

SB 1 — formally known as the “Enact Advance Ohio Higher Education Act” and introduced by Ohio Sen. Jerry Cirino (R-Kirtland) — previously passed through the Ohio Senate Feb. 13, p...
The Lantern •

PHOTO GALLERY: Approximately 200 students, faculty and staff walked out to protest Ohio Senate Bill 1 Wednesday

Roughly 200 students, faculty and staff walked out Wednesday in opposition of Ohio Senate Bill 1, which aims to ban diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and faculty strikes at public higher education institutions statewide.

The protest — which was organized by the Ohio Student Association — marched from the Oval to the Ohio Statehouse from noon to 2:30 p.m., as chants of “This is what democracy looks like” and “Mikey, Mikey hear us say, we need DEI to stay” rang through the streets, in r...
The Lantern •

Ohio House passes DEI-banning Senate Bill 1; bill returns to Ohio Senate for concurrence

A bill that would reconstruct the state’s higher education passed the Ohio House of Representatives Wednesday afternoon and will now move to the Ohio Senate for concurrence.

Ohio Senate Bill 1, also known as the “Enact Advance Ohio Higher Education Act,” aims to ban diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives and prevent faculty from striking, as well as limit the teaching of controversial subjects within Ohio’s public higher education institutions.

The Senate intends to concur with the House...
The Lantern •

Arts & Life desk’s picks for the top 20 TV shows of the 2020s

With streaming services like Peacock, Paramount+ and Max entering the TV scene in the early 2020s — combined with the COVID-19 pandemic keeping much of the world indoors for months — the decade has dramatically redefined entertainment as consumers know it.

As audiences began embracing new viewing habits, networks and streaming platforms responded with a surge of content — ranging from fresh takes on the Marvel and Star Wars universes with shows like “WandaVision” and “Andor” to acclaimed limite...
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Ohio State joins OpenAI higher education consortium as company commits $50 million to advance research and education at 15 institutions

Today, OpenAI launched NextGenAI at Ohio State, a consortium of 15 “leading research institutions” committed to using artificial intelligence for research breakthroughs and transformations in education.

The breakout artificial intelligence research organization that operates the AI chatbot ChatGPT is dedicating $50 million in “research grants, compute funding, and [Application Programming Interface] access to support students, educators, and researchers advancing the frontiers on knowledge,” ac...
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PHOTO GALLERY: Students, faculty and staff organize sit-in protest, letter-writing and march across campus Friday in response to Ohio State DEI changes

Students sit in front of the Center for Belonging and Social Change in protest of the closure effective Friday. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor
Penelope Rupert, second-year graduate student in comparative studies, sits outside of the Center for Belonging and Social Change Friday. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor
Students sit outside of the Center for Belonging and Social Change in protest of the closure effective Friday. Credit: Sandra Fu | Photo Editor...
The Lantern •

‘We laughed at him:’ Ohio State community reacts as President Carter announces end of Office of Diversity and Inclusion, Center for Belonging and Social Change

The fabric of Ohio State’s diversity, equity and inclusion programming has begun to unravel following Thursday’s University Senate meeting.

Inside Drinko Hall’s Saxbe Auditorium, Ohio State President Ted Carter Jr. announced the university’s plan to discontinue the Office of Diversity and Inclusion and the Center for Belonging and Social Change effective Friday, meaning 16 related professional staff positions will be removed within 60 days, per prior Lantern reporting. The 3:30 p.m. meeting dre...
The Lantern Projects •

Brotherhood and parties or violations and sanctions: Inside the hazing culture of Ohio State’s fraternities

In September 2022, the Student Conduct office within Ohio State’s Office of Student Life received an anonymous report alleging hazing had taken place on Alpha Tau Zeta’s property, specifically inside the fraternity’s house at 153 E. 14th Ave. Credit: Carly Damon | Asst. Photo Editor










Ohio State’s chapter of FarmHouse International Fraternity, Alpha Tau Zeta, is a fraternity committed to shaping men into intellectual, moral, spiritual and physi...
The Lantern •

US Department of Education, DOGE issued letter Friday threatening to pull public education federal funding if DEI initiatives remain

In a Friday letter posted on the Department of Government Efficiency — or DOGE — X account, the Department of Education threatened to remove federal funding from public education institutions if the elimination of diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives isn’t achieved by the end of the month.

The letter — written by Craig Trainor, the Department of Education’s acting assistant secretary for civil rights — outlines public academic institutions’ “racial discrimination” through admissions, sch...
The Lantern •

University eliminates DEI leadership position; former senior vice provost of inclusive excellence Wendy Smooth returns to faculty role

Ohio State eliminated a top leadership position that directly focused on university diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives in late January.

Wendy Smooth, former senior vice provost of inclusive excellence, returned to a faculty position Jan. 31, according to an email sent by then-interim Executive Vice President and Provost Karla Zadnik to university colleagues. The email, sent on Jan. 9, said Smooth would return to a College of Arts and Sciences faculty position at the end of the month an...
The Lantern •

PHOTO GALLERY: ‘Nobody wants this bill:’ Ohio State students and faculty gather to oppose Senate Bill 1 at Ohio Statehouse Tuesday, bill passes 5-2 through Higher Education Committee Wednesday morning

The Ohio Senate heard hours of opposition testimony Tuesday over Senate Bill 1 — or the “Enact Advance Ohio Education Act” — which would most prominently eliminate diversity, equity and inclusion programs and ban faculty striking in an attempt to improve public higher education.

SB 1 passed through the Senate Higher Education Committee with a 5-2 vote among party lines Wednesday morning, according to the Ohio Capital Journal. The bill will move to Senate Rules and Reference.

Students and profe...
The Lantern •

Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine appoints former Buckeyes football coach Jim Tressel as new lieutenant governor

The position became available after DeWine appointed Jon Husted to former senator of Ohio — and now Vice President of the United States — J.D. Vance’s Senate seat Jan. 17, per prior Lantern reporting.

Tressel must now await confirmation by the Ohio House and Senate, according to the Statehouse News Bureau. If confirmed, Tressel will serve for the remaining two years of DeWine’s term.

The Mentor, Ohio, native served as the head coach of the Buckeyes football team from 2001-10, during which he w...
The Lantern •

Rear View Mirror: You’re a Gleek!

Rear View Mirror is a monthly TV show column that examines the cultural influence and societal reflection of the “New Golden Age of Television,” prioritizing shows from the late 1990s to the mid-2010s.

Disclaimer: There may be slight spoilers ahead.

Families during the 2007-09 Great Recession and its aftermath struggled with foreclosures, a lack of economic security and a high unemployment rate.

They could turn on the TV and listen to the news to learn more about the country’s faltering finan...
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Hundreds of Buckeye fans storm Ohio Stadium after Ohio State’s National Championship victory

Ohio State fans stormed the ‘Shoe Monday night and into Tuesday morning in an attempt to steal goalposts, following the Buckeyes’ 34-23 win against Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff National Championship.

By 1:15 a.m. Tuesday, crowds were no longer present on the field or outside the stadium.

University spokesperson Dan Hedman said at 12:55 a.m. “police are still working to monitor all areas of campus.”

“The crowd at the stadium is dwindling, police remain on site,” Hedman said. “At...
The Lantern •

J.D. Vance, first Ohio State alum to be elected vice president, sworn in during Monday’s presidential inauguration

Vance, a former venture capitalist and author of best-selling memoir “Hillbilly Elegy,” took the oath of office while standing beside his wife, Usha. Vance took the oath by using a family Bible that belonged to his great-grandmother, who is featured in “Hillbilly Elegy” — a chronicle of Vance’s rural Appalachian roots and experiences with his mother, who suffered from drug addiction, according to The New York Times. He received the Bible in 2003 when he left to serve in the U.S. Marine Corps.

V...
The Lantern •

Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted chosen to fill Vice President-elect J.D. Vance’s Senate seat

Current Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted was chosen by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine Friday afternoon to fill Vice President-elect J.D. Vance’s U.S. Senate seat. Credit: Joshua Gunter via TNS [Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted at the 2024 State of the State address in Columbus. Sen. JD Vance is expected to leave his seat in the coming weeks to become vice president, creating an opening for a new Ohio U.S. Senator.]

Current Ohio Lt. Gov. Jon Husted was chosen by Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine Friday afternoon to fill Vice Presid...
The Lantern •

Lawsuits, crime and football: Five takeaways from The Lantern’s January interview with university President Ted Carter Jr.

The Lantern sat down with university President Ted Carter Jr. Tuesday to ask about pressing issues affecting the Ohio State community, from lawsuits to campus crime to the upcoming National Championship game.

Below are the five major takeaways from Carter’s responses.

Lawrence Tower mold lawsuit

Regarding the mold growth in Lawrence Tower and the subsequent relocation of roughly 500 students to other housing accommodations for the spring semester, Carter said the university took action upon l...
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Buckeyes’ bright futures: 20th annual Spring Career Fair to be held Jan. 21

Career-ready Buckeyes can soon flock to the Ohio Union in snappy business wear with crisply printed resumes in hand for the 20th annual Spring Career Fair.

Open to current students and recent graduates alike, the fair will take place Jan. 21 from 1-5 p.m. in the Union’s Archie M. Griffin Grand Ballroom and Performance Hall. The College of Arts and Sciences is managing the event, but a wide range of disciplines will be represented, from business analysis to laboratory research to graphic design...
The Lantern •

University cancels in-person classes Monday due to winter weather, expected to resume Tuesday

Ohio State has canceled in-person classes Monday due to weather, following a winter weather advisory.

According to a Buckeye Alert sent out around 7 p.m. Sunday, in-person classes are canceled; however, the university encouraged instructors to host “virtual synchronous classes, where feasible.”

“In-person classes are expected to resume on Tuesday, January 7,” the alert states. “Campus will remain OPEN.”

The National Weather Service is projecting seven to 10 inches of snowfall in Columbus from...
The Lantern •

Ohio State men’s soccer player Nathan Demian shot on Chittenden Avenue early Sunday morning, expected to recover

Ohio State men’s soccer player Nathan Demian was shot in an off-campus shooting at 262 Chittenden Ave. around 2 a.m. Sunday morning.

Demian, a third-year in computer and information science and defender on the team, was transported to the Ohio State Wexner Medical Center in “serious condition.” As of 2:47 a.m. Sunday morning, Demian was reported to be in stable condition, according to a Columbus Division of Police report.

According to the police report, officers responded to 911 calls reportin...
The Lantern •

Ohio State cancels raises for over 300 employees after overturning of US Department of Labor rule

Hundreds of university employees had their raises rescinded after a United States district judge overturned a new Department of Labor rule Nov. 15 that made more employees eligible for overtime pay due to a salary threshold increase.

A Nov. 22 email from Katie Hall — Ohio State’s senior vice president of talent, culture and human resources — and Sarah Sherer — senior associate vice president and chief human resources officer for the Wexner Medical Center — alerted 306 Ohio State employees they...
The Lantern •

Students react to election results, identify what factors influenced their vote

Following the 2024 presidential election, The Lantern reached out to Ohio State students to hear their opinions on the outcome.

Following a close and contentious election, former President Donald Trump won with 50% of the popular vote and 312 electoral votes, while Vice President Kamala Harris received 48.3% of the popular vote and 226 electoral votes, according to the Associated Press.

Out of 31 responses, six leaned conservative while 25 leaned liberal.

The Lantern created a Google Form sur...
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Rear View Mirror: The early seasons of ‘Shameless’ are shamelessly brilliant

Rear View Mirror is a monthly TV show column that examines the cultural influence and societal reflection of the “New Golden Age of Television,” prioritizing shows from the late 1990s to the mid-2010s.

Disclaimer: There may be slight spoilers ahead

“Shameless,” one of Showtime’s most acclaimed television series, is a dark comedy that expertly navigates the fine line between humor and heartbreak.

“Shameless” — which ran for 11 seasons from 2011 to 2021 — follows the Gallagher family, led by al...
The Lantern •

Election 2024: Bernie Moreno wins 2024 Ohio Senate race

Trump-backed, staunch Republican Moreno — a car salesman born in Bogotá, Colombia — defeated incumbent and long-time Democratic player Sen. Sherrod Brown (OH-D) to win the election with 50.6% of the vote when it was called Tuesday at 11:27 p.m., according to the Associated Press.

Brown, who had previously held his Senate seat since 2007, and Moreno led a contentious race fueled by constant and aggressive campaign advertising.

According to a Nov. 1 X post from AdImpact Politics, an advertising...
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