HARRISBURG, Pa. — Penn State’s board of trustees and president focused on repairing the school’s tarnished image and braced for financial backlash in the immediate aftermath of the child sex-abuse scandal that erupted two months ago, going so far as to recommend reminding any outraged donors that they wouldn’t get their money back, according to internal memos obtained by The Associated Press.
Four memos sent Nov. 14-18 and released to the AP this week describe the school’s scrambling response less than two weeks after former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky was arrested on child molestation charges. Two Penn State administrators also were charged with lying to a grand jury and failing to properly report suspected child abuse.
In the first memo, nine days after the charges were filed, new school president Rodney Erickson told the 47-member Board of Trustees that the public-relations teams of the university and the athletic department had met to “align our messages” and that he had received positive feedback after two network TV interviews.
The scandal led to the ouster of Graham Spanier, Erickson’s predecessor, and the firing of football coach Joe Paterno.
A Nov. 18 note from Erickson also included an attachment with “talking points” for donors, including that the school had not changed its policy that gifts are not returned.
“The overwhelming majority of our leading donors have made public statements affirming their faith in the university and its future,” according to the university’s talking points. The document named a couple who gave $88 million to launch an NCAA ice hockey program.
Both the number of donors and number of gifts to Penn State increased in November, compared with the same month a year earlier. Total donations to Penn State were $3.1 million in November, compared to $1.1 million in November 2010.
The records were obtained through a public records request filed Nov. 22 with the state Department of Education. Penn State, which receives hundreds of millions of dollars in taxpayer support annually, is largely exempt from the law and has declined requests for certain information as its internal investigation continues.
The Associated Press
