Kelsey Leavey
July 28, 2012
MASC 675 – Strategic PR Leadership and Management
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Table of Contents
Introduction ………………………………………………..... 3
Problem Statement ………………………………………….. 3
Research and Analysis ……………………………………… 4
Strategic Approach ………………………………………….. 6
Tactics ………………………………………………............. 6
Tactic 1: Responsibility and Apology …………………. 6
Tactic 2: Polices and Oversight ……………………... 7
Tactic 3: Moving Forward …………………………. 8
Plans of Measurement ………………………………………. 8
Conclusion …………………………………………………… 9
Works Cited ………………………………………………... 11
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Introduction
College football has been established as the heart of Pennsylvania State University for
over 45 seasons. The program has been so successful it allowed the University to build a stadium
that brings over 100,000 fans to University Park, Pennsylvania on Saturdays in the fall. The
respected reputation of Penn State has been built for over 150 years but in the fall of 2011 a child
sex abuse scandal and cover-up emerged involving high-level officials within the University.
The scandal centers on Jerry Sandusky, a former assistant coach for the Penn State football team,
who sexually abused a minimum 10 children over a 15-year period.
High-level University officials including the Athletic Director, the Head Football Coach
and the University President were made aware of abuse allegations from other staff members.
These officials failed to take steps to prevent ongoing abuse because they feared it would ruin the
reputation of Jerry Sandusky, the football program and the University. The policies in place
during the time period of abuse were inadequate and allowed for concealment and inaction by
senior level officials who were trusted to do the right thing. Ultimately the University needs to
take steps to address these policies to begin to move forward in rebuilding its reputation.
Problem Statement
The child abuse sex scandal involving Assistant Coach Jerry Sandusky has severely
damaged the reputation of the Penn State football team and the University. A poll conducted by
The Economist/YouGov in November 2011, found that 57% of respondents viewed Penn State’s
initial handling of the abuse allegations as poor. Furthermore, the outcome of Sandusky’s trial,
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the Freeh Report and NCAA sanctions continue to place media spotlight on Penn State. The
NCAA sanctions alone have cost the university at least $60 million and erased 112 wins from the
football program’s reputation for success. Removing those 112 wins effectively removed Joe
Paterno as college football’s most winningest coach.
Research and Analysis
In 1998, long time Defensive Coach for the Pennsylvania State University football team,
Jerry Sandusky, sexually assaulted one of his many victims in a Penn State locker room shower.
An investigation lead by University police, informed high level officials, such as the Athletic
Director, the Head Football Coach, the Vice President of Finance and Business, and the
University President, of the alleged abuse but no actions were taken to remove Sandusky from
University activities (Freeh 14). One year later Sandusky retired from his coaching position but
he was able to retain his privileges to use Penn State facilities for personal use.
In 2000, a janitor witnessed more abuse by Sandusky in the locker room showers but his
reports of abuse went unnoticed for fear that “they will get rid of us all” (Freeh 22). Three
months later an Assistant Football Coach witnessed Sandusky abusing a child in the Penn State
locker room showers. He reported the situation to Head Football Coach Joe Paterno. Joe Paterno
then informed those aware of child abuse allegations in 1998 of these new allegations. Once
again child sexual abuse allegations were brought to the attention of the Athletic Director, the
Head Football Coach, the Vice President of Finance and Business and the University president;
none of these senior level officials, disclosed any information to the police or the Board of
Trustees, which is responsible for the “government and welfare of the University” (Penn State
University Board of Trustees).
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On November 5, 2011, after a ten-year period of concealment and inaction on the part of
high-level university officials, Jerry Sandusky was arrested after a grand jury investigation. He
was charged with over 50 counts of child-sex abuse. The Board of Trustees was provided with
minimal information regarding the sexual misconduct of Jerry Sandusky prior to his arrest (Freeh
27). On November 6, 2011 the Athletic Director and Vice President of Finance and Business
were removed from their positions; three days later the President and Head Football Coach were
also removed. In June 2012 Sandusky was found guilty on 45 criminal charges involving 10
young boys over a period of 15 years.
Following the trial, the Board of Trustees commissioned an independent investigation of
the University’s involvement in the scandal. The Freeh report was released on July 22, 2012. The
report found that “in order to avoid the consequences of bad publicity, the most powerful leaders
at the University repeatedly concealed facts relating to Sandusky’s child abuse from the
authorities, the University’s Board of Trustees, the Penn State community, and the public at
large” (Freeh 16). The Freeh report also outlined an overarching culture at Penn State that
contributed to the failure of oversight functions on key officials and a “lack of awareness on
child abuse issues, the Clery act and whistle blower policies”(16).
As a result of this report many financial implications of this scandal have also emerged
including, fines and sanctions imposed by the NCAA, loss of corporate sponsorship, impending
civil lawsuits and a potential downgrade to the school’s credit rating. The NCAA sanctions
imposed on the University include a $60 million fine, a four year post season ban, a vacation of
112 wins during the period of abuse, and a reduction in scholarships (ESPN.COM). In 2011,
“Penn State’s athletic department earned $55.2 million from royalties, licensing, advertisements
and sponsorships” creating a substantial form of revenue for the department (Eichelberger). State
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Farm Insurance Company, one of those sponsors, has decided to pull its partnership with the
football team (Associated Press). General Motors is currently reconsidering its support of Penn
State. Lastly, Moody’s has notified Penn State that the University’s Aa1 credit rating is under
review. This is important because a downgrade in credit would make it “more expensive for
Penn State to borrow money” (Riley).
Strategic Approach
In an effort to rebuild and rebrand the reputation of Penn State, the university needs
to take a three step strategic approach. First the University must take responsibility and
apologize for the role it played in allowing sexual abuse to occur on its campus. Second, the
university must address the policies that inadequately protected these children, and more
importantly address the failure of organizational oversight that allowed the abuse to
continue for 15 years. Last, Penn State can no longer be a community that solely focuses on
the success of the football program. The University must move forward and focus on
positive ways the community can rebuild together.
Tactics
Tactic 1: Responsibility and Apology
First the Board of Trustees in partnership with high-level officials such as the newly
appointed President and Vice President of the University will convene. During this meeting
a concrete decision needs to be reached on the future of former head football coach Joe
Paterno’s legacy at Penn State, including what to do with his statue and the library named
in his honor. After a decision is reached on these matters, together the Board and high-level
officials will issue a statement communicating their decision. This statement should take
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place three weeks before the start of the new school year, to create the start of a new
beginning at Penn State. The statement will include:

Information about the library and statute

The senior leadership of Penn State taking responsibility for the inadequate policies
and oversight that allowed this abuse to occur

A formal apology to all those affected by the scandal especially the children who
were abused

A commitment to reevaluate all university policies
Next the University will implement an interim educational seminar for all employees of the
university the seminar will include topics such as:

The signs of child abuse (sexual, emotion, physical)

What steps to take in reporting those signs

An overview of the Clery Act

An overview of the whistleblower policies currently in place at Penn State
This educational program will need to be completed by the first day of classes, August 27,
2012. This program should be done in partnership with an outside organization such as,
Prevent Child Abuse America, who will present information on the signs of child abuse.
Last, the university will put into place an interim hotline for anyone to report suspected
abuse until new guidelines are researched and implemented.
Tactic 2: Policies and Oversight

All policies university policies will be reviewed and a new review process for
university polices will be created
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
Create an outside review board to recommend new policies on how to handle child
abuse cases involving University employees

Create an outside review board to assess and recommend policies pertaining to
oversight and communication between high level officials and the Board of Trustees

A bi-annual child abuse education seminar and an separate child abuse educational
program for new employees will be created

Adopt a new policies for child abuse, oversight and communication at Penn State, in
partnership with these outside review boards

The Board and President will push other Universities to adopt similar policies to
prevent similar situations from occurring
Tactic 3: Moving Forward
After taking the time to reflect on how the University can improve itself internally,
the University can then begin to focus on tactics that rebuild and rebrand Penn State. This
scandal involved missteps by high-level officials at Penn State but did not involve missteps
by the student body. Moving forward will involve placing the spotlight on various student
run events and organizations. “We are Penn State” will take on a whole different meaning.

Focus publicity on THON, a dance marathon which raised over $10 million last year
to support child cancer research
o This aspect of the moving forward campaign will receive the most attention
o THON will receive a comprehensive communications campaign including
paid media, traditional media, and social media

Youtube and social media campaigns spotlighting small and large student run
organizations and how they give back to the community
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
Refocus efforts on promoting athletic programs at Penn State outside of football
Plans of Measurement
In order to measure the effectiveness of this strategic approach multiple areas will
be measured over the next 5 years. First, the media coverage and sentiment related to the
apology statement will be measured. The sentiment associated to the statement will be
measured by conducting public opinion polls. In order for the apology statement to be
successful, public opinion of the statement needs to remain positive. In November 2011,
when 57% of respondents viewed the initial handling of the Penn State scandal as poor
(YouGov). For tactic one to be successful, respondents must view the handling of the
apology statement as excellent or good.
Second, to measure the effectiveness of tactic two, the university will conduct
evaluations of staff members at the end of each year. Evaluations will ask general questions
measuring the retention of knowledge on the newly created policies, about the signs of
child abuse and how to prevent it. To be successful a percentage of staff members, to be
determined by the outside review board must pass their evaluations. Also, the number of
universities who adopt policies similar to the newly created Penn State policies will
provide a measure of success.
Penn State will also conduct public opinion polls during the course of this approach
to gauge the effectiveness of their rebuilding and rebranding campaign in regards to tactic
three. Survey questions gauging the awareness of THON over a five-year period at Penn
State will measure the success of the comprehensive communications campaign. Also the
number of national news stories featuring THON will need to increase over this five-year
period.
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Conclusion
The reputation of Penn State has been severely damaged by the sexual misconduct
of Jerry Sandusky, and the inactions of high-level officials with in the University who placed
protecting the reputation of their beloved institution above the safety of children. The
reputation of Penn State can only begin to rebuild if they address head on what they did not
want to acknowledge for 15 years. This strategic approach serves three purposes. First it
allows the University to take responsibility and to apologize for facilitating the actions of a
child predator. Second, it modifies the policies that allowed the scandal to transpire on its
own campus and gives Penn State an opportunity to prevent child abuse from happening
on other campuses across the country. Last, it begins the process of rebuilding and
rebranding of Penn State as an institution.
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Works Cited
Associated Press. "State Farm Pulling Its Ads From Penn State Football Broadcasts."State Farm
Pulling Its Ads From Penn State Football Broadcasts. N.p., 26 July 2012. Web. 28 July
2012. <http://www.insurancejournal.com/news/east/2012/07/26/257260.htm>.
"The Economist/YouGov Poll." YouGov. The Economist, 21 Nov. 2011. Web. 28 July 2012.
<http://today.yougov.com/news/2011/11/21/61-approve-firing-penn-state-coach-joepaterno/>.
Eichelberger, Curtis. "State Farm Drops Sponsorship of Penn State Football PostScandal." Bloomberg. N.p., 24 July 2012. Web. 29 July 2012.
<http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-07-24/state-farm-drops-sponsorship-of-pennstate-football-post-scandal.html>.
ESPN. "Penn State Sanctions: $60M, Bowl ban." ESPN. ESPN Internet Ventures, 24 July 2012.
Web. 27 July 2012. <http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/8191027/penn-statenittany-lions-hit-60-million-fine-4-year-bowl-ban-wins-dating-1998>.
"Penn State University - Board of Trustees." Penn State University Board of Trustees. N.p., n.d.
Web. 29 July 2012. <http://www.psu.edu/trustees/>.
Riley, Charles. "Moody's Puts Penn State on Credit Review." CNNMoney. Cable News Network,
24 July 2012. Web. 28 July 2012.
<http://money.cnn.com/2012/07/24/news/economy/moodys-penn-state/index.htm>.
Sporklin, Freech. "Report of the Special Investigative Counsel Regarding the Actions of The
Pennsylvania State University Related to the Child Sexual Abuse Committed by Gerald
A. Sandusky." Freech Sporklin & Sullivan LLP, 12 July 2012. Web. 28 July 2012.
<http://www.thefreehreportonpsu.com/REPORT_FINAL_071212.pdf>.
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