The man who played a key role in establishing “intellectual diversity centers” at five Ohio universities recently provided an update on how the implementation is progressing.
Lee Strang, executive director of the Salmon P. Chase Center for Civics, Culture and Society at The Ohio State University, testified on December 18 before the Ohio Senate Committee on Labor and Higher Education.
“Ohio’s five civic centers will enhance their research and teaching of civic thought through collaboration,” Strang said.
Centers for intellectual diversity are located at Ohio State, the University of Toledo, Cleveland State University, Miami University, and Wright State University.
Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine signed the five-site bill into law last summer when he signed the state budget. Ohio’s budget allocated $24 million for the centers – $5 million for each fiscal year for Ohio State, $1 million for each fiscal year for Toledo and $2 million for each fiscal year for each center at Miami, Cleveland State and Wright State.
Wright State recently named Air Force Col. Jason Anderson as the center’s director. Strang said Miami and Cleveland State plan to name their directors in the next few months.
Several professors and students he spoke out against these centers when they gave their testimony last year, the so-called Country Sen. Jerry Cirino, R-Kirtland, asked whether Strang was aware of the “significant number of departures” from the department’s perspective.
“I know no one is leaving because of the civic centers,” Strang said. “It’s a gigantic university system. Maybe there are people who have passed away. I haven’t heard of anyone.
Better educating people in basic knowledge about the United States was one of the reasons Strang wanted to create these centers.
“These centers are an intentional response to the twin problems of lack of knowledge about our shared civic tradition and our current incivility,” Strang said. “The Chase Center and others will equip students with the knowledge, skills and attitudes that Ohio and America need in young people to continue our experiment in Republican self-government.”
Strong worked with legislators on a bill that was ultimately woven into the state budget. First he had idea for the center in 2019 after visiting the Georgetown Constitution Center and the James Madison Program at Princeton University.
State Sen. Bill Reineke, R-Tiffin, asked about the reception of the centers on the five college campuses.
“Many faculty members at Ohio State have come to me after being initially skeptical and say, ‘I see what you’re doing, but you’re actually pursuing this mission that people of all stripes agree on,’” Strang said.
Pursuit Center
Strang provided some general information about the centers, but mainly talked about the Chase Center in Ohio, an independent academic facility housed within the John Glenn College of Public Affairs.
Pursuit Center, Which will have at least 15 tenured employees and will begin hiring faculty next semester, Strang said. Faculty from the University of Oxford, Princeton University, the University of Washington, the University of Notre Dame and Johns Hopkins University have expressed interest in the application, he said.
“At the heart of my vision for the Chase Center is that it will be a dynamic academic community composed of faculty and students who come together in an intellectual bond, united around the study of American citizenship,” Strang said.
He said the Chase Center will issue the certificate in spring 2026, the associate degree certificate in fall 2026 and the specialization in spring 2027.
Chase Center also plans to reach the K-12 level by offering continuing education for K-12 teachers and providing training materials that teachers can employ in their classes, Strang said.
“The five centers in Ohio will work together to improve K-12 education across the state,” he said.
Follow the OCJ reporter Megan Henry in Bluesky.
YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE.
