Penn State Board of Trustees to Alumni: Drop Dead

[LionJim]

Continued...

“Alright, now I’m telling you how I feel about it and I may be all wet. But I’ve dealt with all of them, and a lot of these latter groups. Some of these people in the latter group would make Happy Valley Sleepy Hollow if we let them. It’s certainly not invigorating. We’ve got a new President and I think that he and Dr. Oswald need to sit down and have to probably make some tough decisions.


“Pirandello, the brilliant Italian playwright–I suppose brilliant and Italian is redundant–wrote a play ‘Six Characters in Search of an Author’, in which the characters of an unfinished play come to life and then they try to finish the play. Well, I believe that Penn State has not necessarily all of a sudden come to life. That would be an unfair criticism of all of the great things that have been done here in the 33 years that I have been here. But I think it’s more alive today than at any time in 33 years that I’ve been here. I think it’s well organized, and I think it’s got thrust and wants to pursue. It’s alive but it’s looking. I think we are not looking for bricks and mortar–and most of you people are businessmen–and we are not looking for GSA money. I think we are looking for the soul of this institution. The soul may be an overstatement, but I’m not sure I’m overstating the case. I think we’re literally looking for a soul. Who we are, what we are, and I think that basically comes down to soul. We need to find out soul. We need vibrant, aggressive, brilliant teachers and scholars. We have some, but we don’t have enough of them and that’s why we need chairs. We need to give them the resources to grow and the freedom to challenge some of the old ideas and old conceptions that have made this country backward in a lot of ways, and have made this state the one with the highest unemployment of any state in the northeast part of the country.


“I’m a football coach. I sit down with my staff and I look at our schedule and our squad and we say this is what we want to do and this is what we can do. And then we set priorities and make decisions as to how we can achieve our objectives. We put a plan together and we stick with it. We don’t jump from one plan to the other and we bust our butt to get it done. And that’s what has to be done with Penn State in the ‘80s. We can’t wait. It would be nice to say we can wait and in three years put together a major fund-raising campaign. We can’t wait. I am only telling you that as somebody who’s in the field. We can only hold up our finger as Number One for six more months and then we have to play the game again and we may not be Number One. Six short months to capture this magic moment. We have got to raise $7 to $10 million bucks as far as I’m concerned in the next six months or we are going to lose some things and an opportunity we have. How do you go about raising $7 to $10 million is somebody else’s concern. I’m willing to help in any way I can. We need $7 to $10 million in the next six months to get us the impetus that we need because we don’t want to lose it. I think we’ve got to take this magic moment and stick it in a jar and we’ve got to preserve it until we open it up in 1990.


“Dr. Eddy, the other day at an alumni meeting down at Pittsburgh where we had over a thousand people in Allegheny County. Stan was there and some of the others were there and the next night we went to Westmoreland County where we had over 580 people and they turned away 300 people. There is a great group out there right now wanting to get involved in it. Dr. Eddy said it the other night better than I can. He said, and he almost sounded like a football coach, we have a great chance and challenge to make our University Number One in many areas and in coming together to do it we may find out we will have as much fun doing it as we had fun doing it in New Orleans. It was a very moving speech and it hit home. I have had a lot of people come to me wanting to know how they can help. I said to you I have given 33 years, two daughters, and probably three sons to Penn State. I am ready to help where I can to make “Number One” mean more than when we stick that finger up it’s only football. We are losing a great President; we’re starting a new era. As Jim Tarman said the other night, we are fortunate that where we are that we’ve been able to get there our way. We’ve not cheated, I mean not deliberately, you never know with that thick rule book. We’ve done it with people who legitimately belong in college. We’ve set a standard in one area that I think created a challenge for us to reach in all of our areas. You are the people who are going to have to help us do it. There are a lot of us that want to get on with it.


“So, thank you very much for this wonderful resolution. I’m moved. I think you know how much I love this institution and how much I appreciate what it has meant to me and my family for 33 glorious years. 33 years of a great love affair that I have had with this place in this town. I have no regrets. I’m only anxious to get on with some other things to make it even bigger and better, not in a sense of size, but in the context of quality and influence in this country and in some of the things that I think it’s important for a major institution of this size to do. So, thank you very much. I hope I didn’t bore you with it too long.”

“I suppose brilliant and Italian is redundant,” wow, lovely.

 

[Keyser Soze 16802]

According to the gossip going around Facebook and X (see Kevin Horne) that's not the reason.

Could you provide a link to his X post you are referring to please sir?

 

[Keyser Soze 16802]

Could you provide a link to his X post you are referring to please sir?

Never mind I found it. Somehow this doesn't violate rules on board conduct?

 

[ChandlerPearce58]

All alum I should simply say thank you may I have another.....and stop donating....you want our money yet feel we aren't worthy of admission to your BOT.

 

[ChandlerPearce58]

To the couple people that think my stance has anything to do about Joe, stop. If our rankings — no matter how imperfectly they’re derived — haven’t been tanking (all while serving fewer PA kids, at least on a % basis), I would not feel so strongly. But blowing thru billions on new facilities and getting a crappy return on it begs some questions.

It’s about time the state and the university come together to figure out how to train and creating talent that works in-state at a higher rate.

Joe along with Graham were the school's two largest fundraisers.....often they would visit perspective donors together......it is no accident nor coincidence that fundraising and academic standings have severely decreased since 2011.

 

[ChandlerPearce58]

What happened with Joe happened. He's dead. Has been for some time. All of the admins and BOT folks who handled this are gone (some are also no longer with us). As much as I can, I've made my peace with it. The one thing it did was make me a bit more skeptical than I once was.

This stuff is from a completely different BOT--though they are acting in many of the same ways. My objections to their actions are in the here and now--not in the past. You can't change the past. But you can address the present. And it s*cks. I am more ashamed of Penn State now than I was in 2011, as bad as that was. You know, if they actually knew what they were doing as far as running a university goes, it wouldn't be quite as bad. But they think they do--and the facts seem to indicate that they don't. They know how to take over an institution, but they don't know what to do when they do. Rankings are down and costs are up. The average middle class PSU student can't afford to go there--and in fact it seems that TPTB want more out of state students so they can get more fees to try to stay solvent. Were I a student now, I'd never have been able to go to Dear Old State. I'd have ended up at Buck U (Bucks County Comm. Coll. for those who do not know the joke) or Temple. Maybe Princeton (yeah, I know that sounds odd, but they do give scholarships and my dad was out of work my first two years and I was quite academically qualified).

Very well written and I accept your thoughts and statements as accurate and honorable. As a member of the class of 1980....I was well established in my career when the poop hit the fan. Anyway....my feelings are more similar to desecrating the memories of our greatest military leaders and greatest statesman....so yes Joe is gone....but every time I view my diploma, see images of PSU....I am reminded "who" built my almamater.

 

[kgilbert78]

Barry: Is there any other place that quote from Gursahaney may be found, outside of your post? I'd like to quote it in my letter to the Penn Stater (which I will also publish here, as I do not expect them to publish it).

 

[PSUFTG2]

Barry: Is there any other place that quote from Gursahaney may be found, outside of your post? I'd like to quote it in my letter to the Penn Stater (which I will also publish here, as I do not expect them to publish it).

Its on the recording of the meeting.

32:30 mark.
Board of Trustees and GLRP Committee Meeting -July 30, 2024 - Penn State MediaSpace (kaltura.com)

My "rebuttal" begins at around the 34:30 mark in the video. You may find some interesting information there as well.

Several other (non-elected) trustees made similar condescending, arrogant, and pretentious remarks before (and after).
It was as if they felt no one would be listening and paying attention.

The way they speak, you would think that none of these non-elected trustees had anything to do with the numerous and precipitous declines of the University over the last decade.

 

[GrimReaper]

Barry: Is there any other place that quote from Gursahaney may be found, outside of your post? I'd like to quote it in my letter to the Penn Stater (which I will also publish here, as I do not expect them to publish it).

Penn Stater? You mean the University's version of Pravda? Let us know when you next set foot on campus so we can begin work on a prisoner exchange.

 

[kgilbert78]

I actually found the quote in the Seedy Tee....

 

[ChandlerPearce58]

Barry: Is there any other place that quote from Gursahaney may be found, outside of your post? I'd like to quote it in my letter to the Penn Stater (which I will also publish here, as I do not expect them to publish it).

I am also pushing our Alumni Chapter to get the mother Alumni assoc view of this and to refrain paying any alumni dues which ALL Alumni should do.

 

[ChandlerPearce58]

“I suppose brilliant and Italian is redundant,” wow, lovely.

My wife would say replace Italian with Sicilian!

 

[BobPSU92]

My wife would say replace Italian with Sicilian!

 

[Nitt1300]

I am also pushing our Alumni Chapter to get the mother Alumni assoc view of this and to refrain paying any alumni dues which ALL Alumni should do.

The "mother" association view is whatever the "leaders" of the university tells them it is.

 

[ValleyForgeLion]

I am also pushing our Alumni Chapter to get the mother Alumni assoc view of this and to refrain paying any alumni dues which ALL Alumni should do.

I say this with no sarcasm intended: good luck. Good luck because the Alumni Association is supposed to be by and for the alumni, but it was co-opted by Penn State about 20 years ago (I got an inside look at all this). When the Sandusky scandal hit, locking down the AA was one of the first moves Ken Frazier and Karen Peetz made. They put Kevin Steele in place as president with Steve Wagman as his wingman. There was a rumor Kevin Steele didn't have any Penn State gear and would appear at pep rallies with his golf jacket on, so Steve would scurry to find something blue and white. Kevin Steele made sure there was no honoring of JoePa, no support for the statue, and any chapter that raised a fuss got a nasty phone call from Kevin.

They hired Paul Clifford, an alumnus of Bloomsburg, because then AA president Kay Salvino thought he was 'so nice' and no other quality candidate would apply. Quite a few of his hires at the Hintz Center are not alumni (when you call the AA, ask the person answering the call).

The Alumni Council nominating process that some trustee on the meeting (I couldn't see their name) was vaunting as a great model was ushered in quickly around 2015 when alumni started getting members on Alumni Council who began rocking the boat in public meetings of the Council. This was the same time they eliminated Roberts Rules of Order because it was 'old-fashioned and hampered progress' --- just like last Tuesday.

Alumni Council members started complaining that the new members were making them uncomfortable because they wouldn't move on, and wanted to talk about stuff and not just give out awards and pose for pictures and then hit the NIL for a free dinner and booze. They were also saying mean things about Penn State leadership and making donations dry up.

The Nominating Committee came up with a questionnaire candidates had to fill out but didn't provide the rubric the answers would be judged against. If you left a question blank you lost points, which was not stated. Many candidates were told they just weren't what the Alumni Council was looking for, but thanks for applying.

One candidate who got an almost perfect score was Ken Frazier's good friend, Tracy Riegel. She's now doing 1 year as trustee as the past-president of the AA, and the smart Vegas money says she's going to want to run for an Alumni Trustee spot next year. I bet she's going to ace that Nominating Committee application as well.

I applaud you bringing this to the attention of your Alumni Chapter and wish you every success. Let us know their response.

 

[ChandlerPearce58]

I say this with no sarcasm intended: good luck. Good luck because the Alumni Association is supposed to be by and for the alumni, but it was co-opted by Penn State about 20 years ago (I got an inside look at all this). When the Sandusky scandal hit, locking down the AA was one of the first moves Ken Frazier and Karen Peetz made. They put Kevin Steele in place as president with Steve Wagman as his wingman. There was a rumor Kevin Steele didn't have any Penn State gear and would appear at pep rallies with his golf jacket on, so Steve would scurry to find something blue and white. Kevin Steele made sure there was no honoring of JoePa, no support for the statue, and any chapter that raised a fuss got a nasty phone call from Kevin.

They hired Paul Clifford, an alumnus of Bloomsburg, because then AA president Kay Salvino thought he was 'so nice' and no other quality candidate would apply. Quite a few of his hires at the Hintz Center are not alumni (when you call the AA, ask the person answering the call).

The Alumni Council nominating process that some trustee on the meeting (I couldn't see their name) was vaunting as a great model was ushered in quickly around 2015 when alumni started getting members on Alumni Council who began rocking the boat in public meetings of the Council. This was the same time they eliminated Roberts Rules of Order because it was 'old-fashioned and hampered progress' --- just like last Tuesday.

Alumni Council members started complaining that the new members were making them uncomfortable because they wouldn't move on, and wanted to talk about stuff and not just give out awards and pose for pictures and then hit the NIL for a free dinner and booze. They were also saying mean things about Penn State leadership and making donations dry up.

The Nominating Committee came up with a questionnaire candidates had to fill out but didn't provide the rubric the answers would be judged against. If you left a question blank you lost points, which was not stated. Many candidates were told they just weren't what the Alumni Council was looking for, but thanks for applying.

One candidate who got an almost perfect score was Ken Frazier's good friend, Tracy Riegel. She's now doing 1 year as trustee as the past-president of the AA, and the smart Vegas money says she's going to want to run for an Alumni Trustee spot next year. I bet she's going to ace that Nominating Committee application as well.

I applaud you bringing this to the attention of your Alumni Chapter and wish you every success. Let us know their response.

Our Augusta chapter is small....maybe 50 members....while disappointed... I am not surprised by the information you gave.....Thank You

 

[Keyser Soze 16802]

I say this with no sarcasm intended: good luck. Good luck because the Alumni Association is supposed to be by and for the alumni, but it was co-opted by Penn State about 20 years ago (I got an inside look at all this). When the Sandusky scandal hit, locking down the AA was one of the first moves Ken Frazier and Karen Peetz made. They put Kevin Steele in place as president with Steve Wagman as his wingman. There was a rumor Kevin Steele didn't have any Penn State gear and would appear at pep rallies with his golf jacket on, so Steve would scurry to find something blue and white. Kevin Steele made sure there was no honoring of JoePa, no support for the statue, and any chapter that raised a fuss got a nasty phone call from Kevin.

They hired Paul Clifford, an alumnus of Bloomsburg, because then AA president Kay Salvino thought he was 'so nice' and no other quality candidate would apply. Quite a few of his hires at the Hintz Center are not alumni (when you call the AA, ask the person answering the call).

The Alumni Council nominating process that some trustee on the meeting (I couldn't see their name) was vaunting as a great model was ushered in quickly around 2015 when alumni started getting members on Alumni Council who began rocking the boat in public meetings of the Council. This was the same time they eliminated Roberts Rules of Order because it was 'old-fashioned and hampered progress' --- just like last Tuesday.

Alumni Council members started complaining that the new members were making them uncomfortable because they wouldn't move on, and wanted to talk about stuff and not just give out awards and pose for pictures and then hit the NIL for a free dinner and booze. They were also saying mean things about Penn State leadership and making donations dry up.

The Nominating Committee came up with a questionnaire candidates had to fill out but didn't provide the rubric the answers would be judged against. If you left a question blank you lost points, which was not stated. Many candidates were told they just weren't what the Alumni Council was looking for, but thanks for applying.

One candidate who got an almost perfect score was Ken Frazier's good friend, Tracy Riegel. She's now doing 1 year as trustee as the past-president of the AA, and the smart Vegas money says she's going to want to run for an Alumni Trustee spot next year. I bet she's going to ace that Nominating Committee application as well.

I applaud you bringing this to the attention of your Alumni Chapter and wish you every success. Let us know their response.

This is so spot on......people need to understand that PSU's leadership and governance are as corrupt as Russia's