YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Youngstown State University President Jim Tressel announced at Wednesday’s Board of Trustees meeting that he’s stepping down next year.
His departure will be official Feb. 1, 2023.
Tressel came to Youngstown State in 1986 to serve as head football coach and eventually became the executive director of Intercollegiate Athletics. Within his 15 years in the football program, the school won four national championships.
For 10 years, he went to Ohio State University to become the head football coach, where he lead the Buckeyes to seven Big Ten championships and the National Championship in 2002.
For a short time after leaving Ohio State, he went to the University of Akron to serve as executive vice president for Student Success. He then found his way back to Youngstown State in 2014, becoming the university’s 9th president.
“It has been truly a blessing and labor of love to serve Youngstown State University in a number of capacities, and we will continue to do so, in whatever fashion that the YSU Board of Trustees sees fit,” Tressel wrote in a message to the school community.
Gov. Mike DeWine released a statement Thursday, calling Tressel “a champion.”
“Not only has he championed the cause of YSU, but he has been a champion for the Mahoning Valley, a champion for investing in Ohio’s workforce and furthering economic development through university partnerships, and a champion for higher education across Ohio,” DeWine said. “Youngstown State has always been an important asset to the Mahoning Valley, and President’s Tressel’s work during his tenure has only solidified its importance.”
