Ohio’s colleges and universities welcome faculty and staff back to campuses for the first time under the state’s new higher education law known as Senate Bill 1. 

While public higher education institutions have already made some changes to comply with the controversial law, which critics say weakens schools’ independence, the full impact of the legislation won’t likely be felt for years. 

The law requires institutions to do a variety of things they’ve never done before, including making faculty publicly share their class syllabi. It also demands colleges and universities end all diversity, equity and inclusion (or DEI) work. 

At many campuses, DEI programs were eliminated preemptively before the law took effect on June 27. Leaders at schools including Ohio State University and the University of Cincinnati faced pushback from students this spring when each university moved to close DEI-related offices before Senate Bill 1 officially became law.  

Republican leaders said the state needed Senate Bill 1 to get rid of what they view as colleges’ longstanding liberal bias. Critics worry the law will stifle free speech and make campuses less attractive to both prospective students and employees. 

What changes will students notice this semester? 

Senate Bill 1 may not bring huge changes to students’ curriculums’ this fall. While the law does require universities to adopt policies saying institutions require “intellectual diversity” in the classroom, educators have long said they were already encouraging students to share and cultivate different perspectives.  

Most of Senate Bill 1’s more concrete developments won’t become official until 2026 or later.  

Ohio State leaders said they were already “working diligently” on addressing those changes across multiple university departments. 

Officials chose to prioritize requirements related to DEI bans and faculty-related matters this summer as those had the most pressing deadlines, officials noted on a website specifically dedicated to providing updates related to the law.  

The state’s faculty union, meanwhile, is calling on its members to push university administrators to create policies complying with the “bare minimum of the law” to combat administrators from over-complying with the legislation. 

Public colleges face a slew of Senate Bill 1 deadlines this fall  

The law requires institutions to deliver plans and recommendations to the Ohio Department of Higher Education outlining explicitly how institutions are adhering to the requirements by specific dates. 

Here is a breakdown of some remaining deadlines as listed on the ODHE’s website. Unless noted, these requirements apply to both two- and four-year colleges in Ohio.   

• Sept. 25: Public colleges must turn in recommendations about what academic programs they propose eliminating based on the law’s low-enrollment threshold. The law requires cutting majors that graduate five or fewer students annually over any three-year span. In these situations, current students are typically allowed to finish out programs that are ending, while new students would not be able to enroll.   

The University of Toledo already announced its plan to cut nine majors back in April. And just last week, Ohio University said it plans to end 11 programs. 

• Sept. 30: University leaders must provide proof that each institution’s board of trustees approved plans for an American civics literacy course, which will be a graduation requirement for students working towards a bachelor’s degree. Leaders must also summarize the curriculum and what an institution’s plan will be if a student fails the class. Students won’t be required to complete it until 2029, and universities are able to make their own exemption policies.  

• Dec. 31: This is a mammoth day of deliverables. Leaders are required to submit five policies and one report to the ODHE. 

The policies all center on faculty-related issues, including some related to how a university’s professors earn and keep tenure. Those earning that designation can typically only be fired under extreme circumstances. 

The report is a summary of an institution’s costs over the past five years, though the ODHE’s website said a standard reporting format for institutions to use is still being developed.

• June 30, 2026: By this date, universities will have to tell state leaders how they plan to enforce the law’s call for making faculty members publicly post their class syllabi. Educators will need to start doing that beginning in the fall 2026 semester.