Erickson: Penn State to Hire Compliance Director, Clery Act Coordinator

HERSHEY — Penn State will soon conduct a national search for university director of compliance, school President Rodney Erickson announced Friday.

He said an advertisement for the new position, prompted by preliminary recommendations from former FBI Director Louis Freeh, should be posted within about 10 days.

The compliance director ‘will coordinate and oversee the vast array of compliance issues throughout the university,’ Erickson told the Penn State Board of Trustees. It’s meeting Friday afternoon at the university Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.

Erickson said the job is one of two responsible positions formed in response to first-round suggestions from Freeh. The other new position — a Clery Act compliance coordinator — is being added to the Office of University Police and Public Safety, he said.

‘We will also use outside experts to provide Clery Act training,’ Erickson said.

The Clery Act, a federal mandate, requires many universities that receive federal funding to disclose a variety of crime and safety information. The U.S. Department of Education is investigating whether Penn State violated the Clery Act in its handling of alleged behavior by former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky.

Sandusky, 68, of College Township, is charged with 52 criminal counts in a child-sexual-abuse case. In connection, two former administrators — Gary Schultz and Tim Curley — are charged with perjury and failure to report. All three men have maintained that they are innocent.

Still, the Penn State board hired Freeh — and his firm — to conduct its own investigation into the matter and to provide recommendations for reform at the university. The investigation is ongoing, though Freeh delivered some preliminary recommendations to the board in January.

Among those, he urged the university to emphasize compliance with the Clery Act and to undertake administrative reforms. Freeh also encouraged a focus on security in Intercollegiate Athletics, which will add a new staff person, Erickson said Friday.

‘We’re also developing a procedure to ensure that the university immediately retrieves keys, access cards and all other university property from individuals who are not formally associated with the university,’ Erickson told the trustees. ‘We’re pursuing several additional initiatives to address (Freeh’s) recommendations, and we’ll keep you and the university community informed as details emerge.’

StateCollege.com will have additional coverage from the Friday board meeting in Hershey. Earlier and ongoing coverage is available via the pages linked below.

Earlier coverage

• StateCollege.com’s Penn State news page

• StateCollege.com’s Penn State-charges coverage