Summary
Ohio State University has reached a $100 million settlement with nearly 300 former students who alleged sexual abuse by the university’s campus doctor decades ago. The board ratified the settlement covering 279 of the 280 former students on Wednesday, concluding another phase of long-running litigation arising from accusations against Richard Strauss for conduct spanning 1978 to 1998.
Background and agreement details
The agreement resolves claims brought by former students who say they were sexually assaulted by Strauss during his tenure at Ohio State, where he worked with the athletic department and on the university medical staff for nearly two decades. Strauss retired from the faculty in 1998 and died by suicide in 2005.
In a joint statement, the school and a lawyer for the victims said: "The mediation and its confidentiality are continuing as the parties work to finalize the details of the settlements, and additional information will be shared as appropriate." That statement indicates the settlement process remains subject to ongoing mediation and confidentiality provisions as final details are completed.
Reporting and litigation history
A 2019 report that detailed investigative findings concluded that Strauss had sexually abused at least 177 men, almost all of whom were students, and found that university staff who were aware of the abuse failed to act. The described conduct included groping and fondling of students’ genitals and other acts carried out under the guise of a medical examination.
News of that investigation and its findings led to a substantial wave of legal action: more than 500 plaintiffs filed suits against Ohio State alleging they were sexually abused by Strauss and that the university displayed deliberate indifference. Earlier this year, in February, Ohio State reached eight additional settlements that raised the total number of survivors covered to 304 and the total paid to more than $60 million.
Current status
The $100 million ratified by the board covers 279 of the 280 former students named in the most recent settlement batch. The university and counsel for the victims said the parties are continuing mediation under confidentiality rules while finalizing settlement specifics, with the promise that "additional information will be shared as appropriate" once those details are complete.
This development represents a continuation of a multi-year legal and investigatory process tied to allegations that span two decades of Strauss’s employment and the subsequent lawsuits and settlements by hundreds of former students.