Ohio State University trustees reportedly are trying to lure E. Gordon Gee back to their campus for a repeat performance as president. Mr. Gee, who is now chancellor of Vanderbilt University, has turned them down, but they haven’t given up, The Columbus Dispatch reported. One former trustee told the newspaper that Mr. Gee, who led Ohio State from 1990 through 1997, was “a proven leader” and “a prolific fund raiser.”

Mr. Gee left Ohio State in 1998 to become president of Brown University, then shocked Brown by departing only two years later for Vanderbilt, where he became one of academe’s highest-paid leaders. At Vanderbilt, Mr. Gee has won praise for raising the institution’s profile and its endowment, and for reorganizing the athletics program. The chancellor also has drawn scrutiny for his spending practices.

He declined to comment to the Columbus newspaper about Ohio State’s interest, but issued a statement last week saying that his “commitment to Vanderbilt is unwavering and unshakable.” —Charles Huckabee