Who hasn’t heard about the Penn State scandal? I feel I little confused about how to feel about this. It is my first year at Penn State and a scandal of this magnitude had to erupt. How it will affect my future employment opportunities is still unclear. The scandal boils down to sexual misconduct by Sandusky, a Penn State coach. He supposedly sexually abused young boys from a youth charity. Although Sandusky is the main perpetrator in the scandal, he is hardly the center of attention. Most of the media is focusing on the legendary Penn State football coach, Joe Paterno.
Joe Paterno has been given a bad reputation in the media. Many people claim that Paterno is culpable. Others believe that he is innocent. Both sides have legitimate perspectives. Legally, Paterno did what was required by rules and regulations. Some believe that he should have gone beyond the rules and regulations to follow up. Either way, Joe Paterno was not the child molester, but the media sees his role in the scandal as more important than Sandusky’s.
One inconsistency is that until today, McQueary was going to be the coach on Saturday’s game. The irony in that is that McQueary saw the sexual abuse first hand. What brought it upon the trustees to fire Joe Paterno, a legend, and keep McQueary? I feel that this is a grave inconsistency that shows an inappropriate reaction. As of now, McQueary is not going to coach Saturday’s game due to death threats that he received.
One result of the administration’s failure to empathize with the students was the riot Wednesday night. As a result of the riot, a WTAJ van was flipped, light posts were pulled out, and vehicles were attempted to be lit on fire. Anybody could have seen this coming when the trustees fired a legendary coach. For the trustees to not consider the backlash from firing a Penn State tradition is beyond comprehension. Joe Paterno had one more game to coach, and was not legally guilty as a trial had not been conducted.
One of the results of recent events is Penn State’s image being harmed. This is the largest university-level scandal to have evolved in recent years. How it will affect the university’s standings, both academic and sports, is still unknown. Many media outlets speculate that it will certainly harm both. This is of great concern to students and faculty alike. Through personal experience, my friends on facebook are reconsidering going to this university just because of this scandal. Also, some athletes decided to not play here next year because of this scandal. There are many backlashes, and the administration is doing everything they can to handle this situation poorly. Their responses are merely preventative and their decisions are not supported with evidence or explanation. This scandal has yet to come to full fruition as the trials and statements have not yet been conducted. Also, with a new administration and a new coaching staff, Penn State may become a new university altogether. Who knows what the future holds?
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