Ohio State trustees approve $1.2 million for new master plan, talk NIL

On Feb 11, 2022

Ohio State trustees had a packed agenda this week and approved $1.2 million for a new university master plan and discussed fundraising efforts, record-breaking research expenditures and NIL deals.

At its February meeting, Ohio State University’s Board of Trustees approved spending $1.2 million to update its master plans for the campus area, launched a new student business accelerator and discussed student athletes’ name, image and likeness deals.

Committee meetings took place mostly in-person throughout the week culminating with a full board meeting early Thursday afternoon.

Here’s a look at some of the board’s actions:

$1.2 million for ‘Framework 3.0’

Trustees approved spending $1.2 million to update the “Framework 2.0” master plan created in 2017. That plan was responsible for developing the West Campus Innovation District and the University Square, a public plaza at 15th Avenue and High Street that university leaders have described as the “front door of Ohio State.”

Now, six years later and with most of those projects “on the horizon to complete,” Ohio State is looking to the future for what’s next, Jay Kasey, senior vice president of administration and planning, told trustees at the Master Planning and Facilities committee meeting Tuesday.

This new master plan will be called “Framework 3.0.” It’s unclear what signature projects might arise from this new phase of the university’s plan.

NIL deals at Ohio State:Which Ohio State sports have secured the most name, image and likeness deals?

The university will spend the $1.2 million in allocated funds to contract with a planning consultant and begin updating the existing plan, which could take up to a year and a half, according to university documents.

“Much has changed since the completion of Framework 2.0,” the documents read. “Framework 3.0 will include more detailed planning and recommendations for the Office of Student Life for student housing, dining, recreation and support services.”

The next phase will also consider faculty and enrollment growth, research facilities, post-pandemic space needs, transportation and mobility, deferred maintenance needs, campus landscape and future needs of the Wexner Medical Center.

‘The new landscape of NIL’

Ohio State Athletic Director Gene Smith shared how the university has navigated this “new landscape of NIL” at Thursday morning’s Legal, Risk and Compliance committee meeting.

Smith said the university “embraced NIL as an opportunity to educate students” and give student athletes the chance to earn money on their likeness as any other student can. Many Ohio State athletes are Pell grant recipients or are on partial scholarships, Smith said, so students can help alleviate the cost of living through these deals.

Every Ohio State athletic team has at least one student with an NIL deal, Smith said. In all, 225 student athletes have NIL deals at the university totaling nearly $3 million in revenue.

The top male sport for NIL deals is football, with 173 deals totaling $2,678,893. The average football deal at Ohio State is $15,537, significantly more than the national average of $2741.

Gymnastics takes the top spot for women’s athletics. That team has 35 deals totaling $31,767. At Ohio State, the average deal equals $961. That’s still slightly more than the national average of $677.

Some of the brands Buckeyes have worked with most include Cameo, Liquid IV, Wings Over Columbus, Mark Wahlberg Chevrolet, Ricart Automotive Group and Giant Eagle.

Smith admitted there are challenges with NIL deals, and that the university is working with its athletes and lawmakers to avoid negative experiences. Inducements and enticements in recruiting, for instance, is an area of concern.

Although NIL deals aren’t supposed to be used to recruit players, Smith said this is happening nationally with other schools because there are no federal guidelines.

Three Ohio State student athletes shared with committee members what their experience with NIL deals has been thus far.

TreVeyon Henderson, a sophomore running back on the football team, said before NIL deals were legal, he would invest some of his scholarship money in the stock market to pay for his living expenses.

Now, NIL deals with Ricart and FTX – a cryptocurrency exchange – have enabled him to support his mom back in Virginia he said. Henderson also learned more about paying taxes and investing.

“It completely changed my life,” he said.

Sarah Morbitzer, a sophomore on the women’s volleyball team, didn’t think she could benefit much from NIL deals. But after learning she could use her likeness to host volleyball camps, she jumped on the opportunity. She made about $1,600 from a seven-hour camp.

Mitchell Pehlke was already making money off of his YouTube channel before he joined the Ohio State men’s lacrosse team. He had to demonetize his channel when he started school, something he said was a huge pain and also a hit to his wallet. NIL deals have allowed him to start making money from his YouTube videos again, as well as seek out new opportunities, like one with Degree Deodorant.

“While there are concerns and challenges,” Smith said, “these students are representative of what is good (with NIL).”

More investment in research, entrepreneurship

The Research, Innovation and Strategic Partnerships committee discussed the early stages of the President’s Buckeye Accelerator, a support program for student entrepreneurs housed at the Keenan Center for Entrepreneurship.

Six teams of students will be awarded $50,000 to develop their businesses over a year and receive skill building, mentorship, community building and funding.

Cheryl Turnbull, senior director at the Keenan Center for Entrepreneurship, said program coordinators were hoping to get 15 applications but received nearly 40.

“Entrepreneurship shouldn’t be confined to a business school,” Turnbull said.

Grace Wang, Ohio State’s executive vice president of enterprise for research, innovation and knowledge, also announced that the university crossed a major research milestone, surpassing $1.2 billion in research and development expenditures in fiscal year 2021.

‘Great momentum’ in fundraising

Despite challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic, university fundraising is moving in a positive direction, Senior Vice President for Advancement Michael Eicher told the Audit, Finance and Investment committee Thursday morning.

“We seem to be coming out of the pandemic dip,” he said.

Ohio State is on-track to meet its $650 million fundraising goal for the fiscal year, Eicher said, which would be the best year in fundraising history.