From:
Penn
Staters
for
Responsible
Stewardship
c.c:
Governor
Tom
Wolf;
Auditor
General
Eugene
DePasquale;
Solicitor
General
Bruce
Castor
Date:
July
19,
2016
Re:
Chairman
Election
The
leadership
of
Penn
State
has
been
under
intense
national
scrutiny
for
nearly
five
full
years.
Rumors,
accusations
and
unsupported
conclusions
--
but
very
few
proven
facts
--
have
divided
our
community
and
unfairly
damaged
the
reputation
of
our
fine
university.
While
Penn
States
liability
remains
unclear,
one
fact
is
indisputable:
Jerry
Sandusky
used
The
Second
Mile
to
gain
access
to
every
single
one
of
his
accusers.
Just
last
week,
that
fact
was
reinforced
in
every
claimants
deposition
related
to
the
PMA
Insurance
case.
Furthermore,
the
PA
Solicitor
General
has
undertaken
a
review
of
the
activities
and
liability
of
The
Second
Mile.
And,
in
a
separate
filing,
Penn
State
indicated
it
plans
to
seek
settlement
funds
from
The
Second
Mile,
asserting
it
was
in
a
position
to
stop
and
prevent
Sandusky
from
abusing
children
and
negligently
failed
to
do
so.
The
noose
is
tightening
around
The
Second
Mile
and
with
very
good
reason.
So,
then,
in
evaluating
candidates
for
the
next
Chairman
of
the
Penn
State
Board
of
Trustees,
we
make
this
obvious
--
but
emphatic
--
appeal:
Please
disqualify
Ira
Lubert,
the
candidate
with
deep,
far-reaching
and
questionable
ties
to
The
Second
Mile.
Mr.
Lubert
previously
served
as
a
Director
of
The
Second
Mile
from
2005
to
2008.
Mr.
Lubert
has
a
track
record
of
significant
donations
to
The
Second
Mile,
including
in-kind
usage
of
his
own
Green
Hills
Camp
facility
in
Reading,
PA.
Mr.
Lubert
left
the
Penn
State
board
after
serving
from
1997-2000
and
returned
as
a
Governors
appointee
in
2007-2014.
During
that
time,
he
presided
over
the
initial
round
of
settlement
claims
worth
$60
million.
He
then
returned
to
the
board
in
2015
as
a
Business
and
Industry
trustee.
Despite
a
clear
conflict
of
interest,
Mr.
Lubert
served
as
chair
of
the
Legal
Subcommittee
that
oversaw
the
settlements
that
Penn
State
disbursed
to
claimants
against
Jerry
Sandusky.
This
committee
failed
to
coordinate
with
Penn
States
insurer,
yet
another
error
that
is
causing
further
financial
and
reputational
damage
to
Penn
State.
Furthermore,
this
committee
has
failed
to
adequately
pursue
claims
against
The
Second
Mile,
the
organization
that
was
truly
responsible
for
Sanduskys
interactions
with
children.
Electing
a
Penn
State
Board
Chairman
so
closely
connected
to
The
Second
Mile
will
certainly
NOT
move
Penn
State
forward.
Rather,
it
will
severely
set
us
back
and
only
raise
more
questions
that
threaten
to
even
further
compromise
the
integrity
of
Penn
State
and
its
leadership.
Instead,
we
urge
you
to
consider
supporting
Governors
Appointee
Dr.
Robert
Capretto
as
2016-2017
Chairman.
Dr.
Capretto
is
eminently
qualified,
engaged
and
poised
to
lead.
Moreover,
through
his
words
and
actions,
he
has
already
demonstrated
his
ability
to
unify,
not
just
the
Board
of
Trustees,
but
the
many
loyal
stakeholders
of
Penn
State.
That
quality
in
a
Chairman
is
not
only
essential;
it
is
long
overdue.
Thank
you
for
your
consideration.