After a week-long itinerary of community events and preceding celebrations, Jared R. Tice, Ed.D,. was officially inaugurated as the university’s 18th president.
Although he has officially served in a presidential capacity since Aug. 1, the investiture is more of a formal ceremony rather than an official start to Tice’s presidency.
“[The inauguration] not only allows me to express my gratitude and excitement about leading our 196 year old institution of higher education in this critical moment in the United States and for higher education, but also to set a vision and strategic direction for the university,” Tice said.
The week-long inauguration schedule had a wide variety of events for students and faculty, including the unveiling of the “Capital Comet Pilsner,” a new beer brewed in collaboration between the university and Columbus Brewing Company.
Named after the “Presidential Pilsner,” the beer is “brewed with German Tettnang and Saphir, along with an addition of Ohio-grown Comet hops from Auburn Acres (Chagrin Falls). Herbal aromatics with notes of fresh cut grass and delicate citrus.”
Inauguration week ended with the Investiture Ceremony including a long string of addresses to President Tice from representatives all over the university community.
One of those speakers was former University President Dave Kaufman, who retired at the end of last school year.
“You’ve already experienced care, professionalism and superior teamwork of our administration and staff,” Kaufman said in his address. “Most importantly, you will find our high achieving students — past, present and future — are the reason we are here.”
When his speech finished, Kaufman gave the president’s gavel to President Tice — a significant keepsake that is made from the wood of the “Big Elm,” a tree that stood in the middle of campus.
“When [the university] first relocated from downtown Columbus to this campus in the 1880s, graduating classes would gather around what was called the ‘Big Elm,’ which was a tree that stood in the middle of campus,” Kaufman said.
“When the Big Elm finally had to be cut down, pieces of the stately tree were turned into souvenirs. This president’s gavel is the most significant keepsake and has carried on the enduring spirit of this historic landmark.”
The symbolic passing of the torch marked the beginning of the university’s newest chapter.
Although the week felt jam-packed with important events, Tice downplayed the week’s importance. To him, it was just another week on the job.
“It really is like a regular week being the president of [the university],” he said. “It’s exciting to give everyone insights into what it’s like to be the president … this week, and I’m really excited to have a celebration of all the great things our students, faculty and staff are doing.”
After being sworn into the presidency by Steve Bahls, the chair of the university’s Board of Trustees, Tice opened his address with gratitude.
“Today is a day of celebration. It is a day of gratitude, ceremony and tradition,” Tice said. “But more than any of those days, it is a day of calling. Inauguration is never simply about a person. It is about a people.”
He thanked a multitude of people, including the students.
“To our students, you are the heart of this place. You are not an audience to the future of [the university]. You are central to it. You are not merely those we serve at the margins of institutional life. You are the reason for it,” Tice said.
“Your questions sharpen us. Your aspirations call us higher. Your presence gives this university purpose each day, and in this office, you will be my life’s work. Your flourishing, your formation, your belonging, your success, your sense of purpose, your readiness not only for a first job but for a life of meaning, contribution, leadership and service.”
