STATE COLLEGE, Pa. — Penn State’s Board of Trustees announced Friday that trustee Kenneth Frazier will head a special investigation committee, which will look into the circumstances that gave rise to a grand jury report that charged former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky with a series of sexual assaults involving eight young boys.

The meeting was the first public gathering of the 32-member board in light of the scandal. The meeting was moved from a hotel boardroom to a ballroom to accommodate the amount of people that attended, according to reports.

The special investigation committee will be responsible to determine what failures occurred, who is responsible for the failures and what measures are necessary to make sure this type of scandal never hits Penn State again.

The scandal caused major media outlets and national attention to flock to State College. Legendary football coach Joe Paterno was fired Wednesday night in the midst of his 46th season, one in which he became the winningest coach in major college football history. President Graham Spanier was also removed by the Board of Trustees on Wednesday.

The grand jury report states administrators didn’t contact authorities after a graduate assistant, later revealed to be current wide receivers coach Mike McQueary, said he saw former assistant coach Jerry Sandusky sexually assaulting a young boy in the football team’s football facility shower in 2002.

Authorities have said that Sandusky met many of his alleged victims through The Second Mile, a charity he established in 1977 to help at-risk children.

‘There will be full accountability for those found responsible,’ said Steve Garban, chairman of the Board of Trustees during the meeting, according to the Associated Press. ‘All resources will be made available for the committee to fulfill its charge and there will be no restrictions placed on its scope or activities.’

Once the investigation is complete, Garban said a full report will be given to the board at one of its regular meetings.

According to the AP, Frazier said the committee will have the power to hire independent lawyers and will publicly release the entirety of its findings.

‘That’s absolutely what we intend to do,’ Frazier said. ‘The purpose of this investigation is to ensure that the public understands everything that we learn in this investigation and a report will be made completely public as quickly as we possibly can.’

Pennsylvania Education Secretary and Trustee Ron Tomalis will serve as the vice chairman of the special investigation committee, according to Penn State Live, the school’s official news source.

Garban also pledged to support Penn State President Rod Erickson at the meeting. The board removed the interim tag from Erickson’s title of president, but will reportedly continue to search for a permanent successor to Spanier.

‘I know we can do this,’ Erickson told the trustees at the meeting. ‘We are resilient; We are a university that will rebuild the trust and confidence that so many people have had in us for so many years.’

McQueary will not attend Saturday’s game

Penn State wide receivers coach Mike McQueary will not be on the field for the game between the 12th-ranked Nittany Lions (8-1) and No. 19 Nebraska (7-2) at noon Saturday.

‘Due to multiple threats made against Assistant Coach Mike McQueary, the University has decided it would be in the best interest of all for Assistant Coach McQueary not to be in attendance at Saturday’s Nebraska game,’ read a statement from Penn State Athletics.

jdharr04@syr.edu 

Published on November 10, 2011 at 12:00 pm

Contact Jon: jdharr04@syr.edu