As new era begins at Penn State, challenges remain


The shriek of the final whistle in Penn State’s loss to Ohio University represented a milestone for the university as it struggles to move past the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal that has damaged it immeasurably over the past 10 months, the Associated Press reports. The first game under new coach Bill O’Brien began a new era for one of college football’s elite programs, and the Saturday defeat at the hands of an underdog showed the team may face a long season ahead following the overhaul of its coaching staff and the departure of several star players. Outside the stadium on Saturday the talk among tailgating fans was littered with the vocabulary of the Sandusky scandal – notably criticism of the NCAA sanctions, the Freeh report and the university’s board of trustees.

“We can’t move on until the board of trustees moves out,” said Georgia Verkuilen, a State College native who now lives in Belvidere, N.J. She was handing out lung cancer awareness ribbons with the initials of Joe Paterno, the longtime coach died of complications from the disease in January, two months after being summarily fired by the board…

Click here for the full story

Sign up for our newsletter

Newsletter: Innovations in K12 Education
By submitting your information, you agree to our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.