Ohio State president resigns after secret affair and misuse of power
A married Ohio State University boss has resigned from his seven-figure job amid a cloud of scandal after he was caught using his position to try and secure favors for his mistress.
Former president Walter Carter Jr. admitted his 'inappropriate relationship' with female associate Krisanthe Vlachos when he quit the top role on March 7.
Ohio State University released an investigation report detailing the sordid circumstances of his disgraced departure from the $1 million-per-year job.
Carter, who is known as Ted, abused his position to make 'wide-ranging efforts to assist Vlachos both inside and outside the university,' according to the report.
The pair used to keep their relationship quiet by Carter arranging for Vlachos to visit his office via a secret garage entrance to his office so she would not be seen.
Carter, who is also a retired Navy admiral, said he met Vlachos in 2023 while he was president of the University of Nebraska.
When he joined Ohio he allowed the ongoing 'relationship to improperly influence his actions and impair his judgment,' per the report.
All the while, Carter was married to Lynda Carter, formerly Kohlhepp, for 40 years. It is unclear whether she knew about the affair.
She appeared to be a supportive wife who was frequently pictured by his side at the college and on the sidelines of sports games.
The devoted spouse was even known as the 'First Lady of the University of Nebraska' when her husband was president there and they are believed to share two children together.
Carter turned down interview requests by investigators of the college report about his resignation, while his mistress did not respond to their outreach.
They took five covert vacations together, according to the report, to Orlando, Kansas City, Colorado Springs, Las Vegas, and Richmond in Vermont.
Carter even fabricated a business reason for one of their trips in order to take time off, though they never used university money to fund their holidays.
Their relationship remained a secret for years, but they were finally outed in November after being spotted together outside a hotel in Philadelphia.
The early morning encounter 'suggested the possibility of an inappropriate relationship,' a witness said, according to the report.
As their relationship advanced, Vlachos, who is the producer of a podcast spotlighting veterans, planned to move her work operation from her home in St Louis to Columbus, where Ohio State is located.
Carter tried to help her by asking an Ohio State employee for assistance finding her a full-time job within the university.
'Forwarding this resume for any potential job opening,' his email read.
'She is planning to move to Columbus immediately (from St Louis) and is looking for a full time position.
'She tells me she is open to any opportunity that fits her skill set. Think she would be a good fit for anyone's team.'
Carter is also accused of trying to secure resources for her podcast, including space from the public media station connected to Ohio State.
He also introduced her to business partners in an effort to secure $2.9 million in funding for an app she was hoping to launch to assist veterans in finding jobs.
However, the boss of JobsOhio, one of the companies Carter approached to try to secure funding, said his staff 'were not impressed at all with the technology.'
In December, Carter also tried to help Vlachos find a new space for a play she had organized, which had been scheduled to be performed at the National Veterans Memorial and Museum in Columbus, but it was canceled 'for unknown reasons.'
He used Ohio State's Theater, Film and Media Arts space to allow the performance to go ahead at short notice.
However, 'after interacting with Vlachos, both university staff and representatives from Task Force Pineapple (the play's production company) concluded that Vlachos was not capable of doing event planning,' according to the report.
'The production company had never worked with Vlachos, was only connected to her because its leader, Lieutenant Colonel Scott Mann, had appeared on her podcast, and eventually advised university staff to only work with the company and not Vlachos.'
Despite the underhand dealings, Vlachos had the audacity to blame Ohio State for not selling enough tickets when the play tanked, and 'appeared to be using the play to promote her podcast,' according to the report.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Carter and Vlachos for comment on the report.
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