Ohio State president says he’s “bullish” on the state of higher ed

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Ohio State president says he's "bullish" on the state of higher ed

Bellamkonda discusses important issues at Columbus Metropolitan Club forum

Despite acknowledging that higher education in the U.S. is under duress, Ravi V. Bellamkonda, 18th president of The Ohio State University, said the core mission of colleges and universities remains important. Educating students and discovering new knowledge are critical at a time when the private sector is less committed to research and development.

"I'm very bullish on higher ed," he said. "There are very few institutions in the country whose whole job is to investigate things we don't yet know, whether it's the human condition, whether it's our mental and physical well-being, or how we're organized as a society."

Bellamkonda said students develop skills in college that will serve them their whole lives.

"What I'm saying is in a dynamically changing world, you need a meta skill set: Critical thinking, the ability to work in a team when you didn't pick your own team, analytical skills, communication skills, an entrepreneurial mindset, some grounding in ethics and purpose and being centered. This is what college does. This is what general education does. And layered onto that are skills that are employable."

Bellamkonda answered questions on a range of issues from Columbus Dispatch higher-education reporter Sheridan Hendrix at an event hosted by the Columbus Metropolitan Club at the National Veterans Memorial and Museum this week.

Hendrix asked Bellamkonda about the university's AI Fluency initiative as headlines about artificial intelligence often paint a bleak future for the technology.

"We have spoken a lot about AI fluency over the last year. But since we last spoke about it, there's also been a lot of news about safety concerns, including a former Anthropic researcher warning that the technology could end humanity within a decade," Hendrix said. "I'm curious, how do those concerns inform Ohio State's messaging and its curriculum around AI?"

Bellamkonda said that, as a scientist, he was naturally skeptical of some of the hype surrounding AI. But he recognizes it is a transformative technology and cannot be ignored.

"So the question we have to ask ourselves as a society is: Because we are worried about the dangers of this technology, do we lock it up in some box and keep it until we have more faith in humanity to handle the technology?" he asked. "Unfortunately, it doesn't work that way, right? The way we grow as a society is by confronting and dealing with the challenges while at the same time, you know, using the technology for all the good that it can do. And there's a lot of good that AI can do, and we're just scratching the surface of that."

Bellamkonda said Ohio State would continue to work with faculty and students to develop a curriculum that includes thoughtful use of AI, when appropriate.

"If people are going to figure this out, I'd rather Ohio State be the place that figures this out," he said.

One of the final questions at the luncheon was what Bellamkonda would do if he could wave a magic wand for the university's future.

"I hope we are able to realize the potential the university has to transform the state and create opportunities for our citizens to thrive in the full sense of the word - economically, through the innovative things we're doing, as well as educationally in terms of the opportunities we create, and also well-being," he said.

"That we rise higher, and we leverage the highly business-friendly climate we have to really build a dynamic, thriving state that's a model to the country. To me, that's the aspiration, and any divine intervention I can get to go on that journey, we will take."

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