Penn State BOT to Consider Reexamining Freeh Report Tuesday Morning

The Penn State Board of Trustees is holding a special meeting Tuesday morning to consider reexamining the Freeh report.

The Freeh report, which delivers a scathing criticism of how the university handled the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal, has been the subject of criticism by some in the Penn State and State College communities.

Alumni-elected trustee Al Lord asked the board to reexamine the report last July. He suggested looking into the report again in September, but Lord says his proposal was rejected both times for “invalid reasons.”

Penn State hired Louis Freeh to investigate the university’s handling of the Sandusky case after the scandal broke in 2011. Released in July 2012, the report heavily criticized the university’s leadership, claiming top officials “repeatedly concealed critical facts relating to Sandusky’s child abuse from the authorities, the Board of Trustees, Penn State community, and the public at large.”

Lord says the board has accepted many of Freeh’s suggestions for improving the governance of the university. The problem, Lord says, is that not every member of the board agrees with the rest of the contents of the report – including the disputed roles of former Penn State president Graham Spanier and head Coach Joe Paterno in the alleged coverup of the Sandusky scandal.

“Either one accepts all of something or rejects something,” Lord says. “You can’t do neither because, to me, that means you’ve accepted it.”

The board will meet in a closed, executive session on Tuesday morning from 10 – 11 a.m., followed by a public meeting from 11 to 12 p.m. in Ballroom C of the Nittany Lion Inn.

Lord says board members will vote on whether or not to form a four person subcommittee to examine the report. The proposed committee would determine what steps to take on the report, including whether or not to hire a third party agency to examine the report and its findings.

The Penn State University Park Undergraduate Association has officially opposed the proposal to reopen the Freeh report. Lord says he understand the group’s point of view, but questions whether that position can accurately represent all students and alumni.

Sandusky, a former assistant coach at Penn State, was convicted on 45 counts of child abuse. He is serving 30 to 60 years in state prison.

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