Module 7 - Remediation

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Module 7 – Remediation Recommendations | Christina Worley Module 7 – Remediation Recommendations Introduction On November 4, 2011, criminal charges were filed against Gerald Sandusky, which included multiple counts of involuntary deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault, corruption of minors, unlawful contact with minors, and endangering the welfare of minors. Some of Sandusky’s offenses occurred between the years of 1998 and 2002, when Sandusky held the position of Defensive Coordinator for The Pennsylvania State University football team or a Penn State professor Emeritus who had full access to the University’s football facilities. Criminal charges were also filed against Timothy Curley, the University’s Athletic Director and Gary Schultz, Senior Vice President Finance and Business for failing to report allegations of child sexual abuse and committing perjury during their 2011 Grand Jury testimony. In June 2012, Sandusky was found guilty of forty-five counts of the criminal charges against him (Free Sporkin & Sullivan, 2012). On November 21, 2011, Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP was retained by the Special Investigations Task Force on behalf of The Pennsylvania State University’s Board of Trustees to perform an independent, full and complete investigation into “the alleged failure of Pennsylvania State University personnel to respond to, and report to the appropriate authorities, the sexual abuse of children by former University football coach, Gerald Sandusky; and “the circumstances under which such abuse could occur in University facilities or under the auspices of University programs for youth” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012, pg. 8). Additionally, the Special Investigative Counsel was asked to provide recommendations regarding University policies and procedures that will prevent and respond more effectively to incidents of child sexual abuse (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012).

Module 7 – Remediation Recommendations | Christina Worley The results of the investigation by Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan LLP found that there was a total disregard by senior leaders for the safety and welfare of the children that Sandusky had access to. The report states, “Four of the most powerful people at The University of Pennsylvania-President Graham B. Spanier, Senior Vice President-Finance and Business Gary C. Schultz, Athletic Director Timothy M. Curley and Head Football Coach Joseph V. Paterno-failed to protect against a child sexual predator harming children for over a decade. These men concealed Sandusky’s activities from the Board of Trustees, the University community, and authorities” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012, pg. 14). The Special Investigation Counsel further found that the actions by these four individuals empowered Sandusky to attract more victims and allowed him to have unrestricted and unsupervised access to the University’s facilities (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012). Based on the internal investigation results, Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP provided several remediation recommendations to the Board of Trustees and the University. This assignment will discuss the importance of remediation recommendations after a fact investigation and whether the specific recommendations given by Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP would have better protected the University and its students had they been previously implemented. Remediation Recommendations After an internal investigation, remediation recommendations are crucial for several reasons: preventing recurrence of the misconduct, maintaining compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, and company policies, rebuilding trust, improving organizational performance, and avoiding any further legal fines or penalties.

Module 7 – Remediation Recommendations | Christina Worley Penn State Culture Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP recommended that a Penn State-led effort be organized to examine and understand the culture of the University in order to “(1) reinforce the commitment of all University members to protect children; (2) create a stronger sense of accountability among the University’s leadership; (3) establish values and ethics-based decision making and adherence to the Penn State Principles as the standard for all University faculty, staff, and students; (4) promote an environment of increased transparency into the management of the University; and (5) ensure a sustained integration of the Intercollegiate Athletics program into the broader Penn State Community” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012, pg. 129). Additionally, it was recommended that a University Ethics Officer be appointed to provide advice and counsel to the Board of Trustees and the President. The Ethics Officer would be responsible for providing leadership and ethics training to all employees and coordinating ethic activities with the Chief Compliance Officer (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012). Had these recommendations been implemented previously, the University and its students would have been better protected. The report notes a flaw in the University's culture, stating “an over-emphasis on ‘The Penn State Way’ as an approach to decision-making, a resistance to seeking outside perspectives, and an excessive focus on athletics” (Free Sporkin & Sullivan, 2012, pg. 129). This organizational culture negatively impacted the way senior leaders at Penn State managed the sexual abuse allegations. An important part of the above recommendation is “increased transparency” (pg. 129). Transparency “holds individuals and leadership accountable for their behavior, performance, and adherence to ethical standards” (CultureMonkey, 2024, para. 7).

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Module 7 – Remediation Recommendations | Christina Worley Administration and General Counsel: Structure, Policies and Procedures To create an atmosphere of “values and ethics-based decision making” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan LLP, 2012, pg. 131), there were several recommendations that included: ensuring the President and the Senior Vice President-Finance and Business’ duties are realistic and capable based on their oversight and control, upgrading the position of the Associate Vice President for Human Resources to Vice President who reports directly to the President, and evaluating the size, composition and procedures of the President’s Council. Additionally, there were several recommendations to administrative processes and procedures that aim to improve the background check and hiring processes. For example, it was recommended to “update, standardize, centralize, and monitor background check procedures” and “audit periodically the effectiveness of background check procedures and the University’s self-reporting system for employees” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012, pg. 132). Had these recommendations been in place previously, there would have been more centralized control of Human Resource functions and increased enforcement of policies relating to the protection of children. Instead, Spanier, Schultz, Paterno, and Curley were “able to make decisions to avoid the consequences of bad publicity” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan LLP, 2012, pg. 131) because of the way the University administrative functions were structured and there was a lack of enforcement of child protection policies. Board of Trustees: Responsibilities and Operations Spanier and other University leaders failed to report the abuse allegations to the Board of Trustees; however, the Board must take accountability for its lack of communication with those University leaders. Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP recommended the Board take several steps to

Module 7 – Remediation Recommendations | Christina Worley “increase public confidence and transparency, realign and refocus its responsibilities and operations, improve internal and external communications and strengthen its practices and procedures” (2012, pg. 134). Some of the recommendations included: developing an ethics/conflict of interest policy that includes guidelines for conflict management and a commitment to transparency, training on ethics and oversight responsibilities, revising committee structures to include a committee on Risk, Compliance, Legal and Audit, and steps to improving the channels of communication between the Board and University administrators and the community. Had these recommendations been implemented previously, the Board may have had knowledge of the abuse allegations in a timelier manner and would allow the Board to deal more effectively when there are incidents that could negatively impact the University and its community. Instead “the Board’s over-confidence in Spanier’s abilities, and its failure to conduct oversight and responsible inquiry of Spanier and senior University officials, hindered the Board’s ability to deal properly with the most profound crisis every confronted by the University” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012, pg. 134). Compliance: Risk and Reporting Misconduct There are many laws and regulations that affect Penn State’s operations, risk management and national reputation. Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP recommended several measures to ensure compliance: establishing and selecting an individual as Chief Compliance Officer (CCO), ensure there is a reporting relationship between the CCO and the Board, assigning a full-time University Police Department individual resources and personnel to meet Clery Act regulations, updating and prioritizing the University’s list of institutional risks, providing all University

Module 7 – Remediation Recommendations | Christina Worley students, faculty, and staff channels in which they may report misconduct, and publicize the employee misconduct hotline through various platforms. The Clery Act “requires colleges and universities to report campus crime data, support victims of violence, and publicly outline the policies and procedures they have put into place to improve campus safety” (Clery Center, n.d., para. 1). The report noted that “the University’s incomplete implementation of the Clery Act was a contributing factor in the failure to report the 2001 child sexual abuse committed by Sandusky” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012, pg. 137). Ensuring that a University Police Department individual is responsible for Clery Act compliance ensures that Penn State is doing everything they can to protect the community and keep it safe. The report notes, “A strong compliance function, much like exists in the University’s financial area, should encourage individuals to report misconduct more readily in the future” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012, pg. 137). Athletic Department: Integration and Compliance One of the most important recommendations made by Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP was to more “fully involve the Athletic Department within the broader University community; provide relevant training and support to the Athletic Department staff to ensure compliance with external regulations and University policies” (2012, pg. 139). The goal was to create a safe environment for the children who use the University’s recreational facilities. Some of the recommendations included: evaluating security and access protocols to provide reasonable protections, establishing an effective reporting relationship with the University Compliance Officer, ensuring that compliance related tasks are handled by the Athletic Compliance Office instead of departmental staff, and provide ongoing leadership, ethics, standards of conduct, abuse awareness and reporting misconduct training to all athletic staff.

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Module 7 – Remediation Recommendations | Christina Worley Had these recommendations been in place previously, Sandusky may not have been able to get away with his abuse for so long. The report indicated that the Athletic Department had been working in a silo for several decades; “there was little personnel turnover or hiring from outside the University and strong internal loyalty” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012, pg. 139). In fact, the football program had opted to not participate in the Clery Act training, sexual abuse awareness training and camp procedures training (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012). Many noted that the athletic staff “lived by their own rules” (pg. 139). The above recommendations would have supported the Athletic staff and promoted a safe environment for the children. University Police Department: Oversight, Polices & Procedures While Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP noted that University Police did respond promptly to the abuse allegations, the way the investigation was managed left room for improvement. Recommendations were made to improve the department's structure, organization, and procedures with emphasis on Police Department training and qualifications for sexual abuse investigators. Additionally, it was recommended that a policy be implemented to request assistance from outside law enforcement agencies with sensitive cases. These recommendations will ensure that moving forward, allegations of abuse will be managed appropriately and according to the policies and procedures in place. Management of University Programs for Children and Access to University Facilities To create a safer environment for children who utilize the University’s facilities, Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP made recommendations that “provide better oversight of staff members responsible for youth programs and increase abuse awareness through training of responsible

Module 7 – Remediation Recommendations | Christina Worley adults” (2012, pg. 142). Some of the recommendations included: increasing physical security in areas utilized by children, requiring, and providing abuse awareness training to all University leaders, faculty, coaches, staff, and volunteers, and increasing oversight of the University’s policies and procedures for programs involving minor youth. Had these recommendations been in place previously, it is likely that many children would not have been victimized by Sandusky. The report found that policies for programs involving minor youth were inconsistent there was a lack of enforcement; “Sandusky was allowed to conduct football camps at University Park and three Commonwealth campuses without any direct oversight by University officials” (Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP, 2012, pg. 142). The above recommendations prioritize the safety of minor children who utilize the University’s facilities. Conclusion For Pennsylvania State University to move on after the Sandusky scandal, the remediation recommendations put into place by Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP must be implemented. The report also recommended ongoing monitoring once the recommendations are implemented so that confidence in the University’s leadership is restored. Additionally, ongoing monitoring “ensures that their initiatives to prevent and respond to incidents of sexual abuse of children and to improve University governance are duly enforced, monitored, measured, and modified, as needed” (Freeh Sporkin Sullivan, 2012, pg. 144).

Module 7 – Remediation Recommendations | Christina Worley References Clery Center. (n.d.). The jeanne clery act. Retrieved from https://www.clerycenter.org/the-clery-act#:~:text=The%20Clery%20Act%20requires %20colleges,place%20to%20improve%20campus%20safety. CultureMonkey. (2024, February 21). What is transparency at work: benefits, top tips, and examples to practice transparency in leadership. Retrieved from https://www.culturemonkey.io/employee-engagement/transparency-at-work/ #:~:text=Accountability%20means%20taking%20responsibility%20for,and%20that %20commitments%20are%20met. Freeh Sporkin & Sullivan, LLP. (2012, July 12). Report of the special investigations counsel regarding the actions of the Pennsylvania state university related to the child sexual abuse committed by Gerald a. Sandusky. Retrieved from chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/https://media.pennlive.com/ midstate_impact/other/REPORT_FINAL_071212.pdf

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