Current Penn State parents

Colleges and Universities A-Z Penn State
1

<p>Just reaching out to fellow Penn State parents - my daughter is a member of the class of 2016 at University Park. I am really saddened by the whole thing and my heart goes out to the victims and their families. My daughter is attending the Leap program and loving PSU. So far, the feedback has been extremely positive despite the scandal.</p>

<p>There are so many opinions regarding whether or not the football program should be shut down - many strong feelings out there - honestly I feel that those involved should be held accountable and punished. The focus should be placed on helping the victims and ensuring this doesn't ever happen again.</p>

<p>I pray the Penn State community will learn from this and pull together during this very challenging time.</p>

2

<p>DS is also a class of 2016 member at UP. The entire situation is a net loss for everyone. However, all but a handful of people were not involved in the scandal. It’s up to the students to learn, and not be dragged down by all the negative publicity. If anything it is a lesson on the value of integrity and the importance of critical thinking. PSU is not the only university with these problems. Syracuse and The Citadel are trying to manage their own situations. Scandals can happen anywhere, and complacency increases the risk. No institution is perfect. I am hoping that learning and introspection can lead to an improvement in the policies, culture and leadership structure. This is particularly challenging as a new parent that has no previous investment or affiliation with the University. I am instructing my son to go in with his head held high, and to not be afraid to challenge the status quo when things don’t look right - not just at the University. Be humble and be receptive to any challenges of your opinions. As you said, if the goal is to pull together and continue learning, then justice and morality will follow.</p>

3

<p>I have child interested in attending PSU, who is troubled about how the scandal will affect the school. I am a PSU alumni and am aware of how the football culture dominated for years. The program got away with a lot, even many years ago. Hopefully the public will eventually stop associating the many wonderful aspects of the school with the disgraceful behavior of the few authority figures involved in this tragedy.</p>

4

<p>I am a current Penn State parent. DS will be a junior next year. Altho DH’s family is from PA, we had no association with PSU until DS decided to attend. So no long-term allegiance. Shoot - DS didn’t even know who Paterno was until he got to campus. I am probably a little more invested in this than many because DS will be a 3rd year member of the Blue Band. Not an athlete, but still tied to the football program.</p>

<p>While this tragedy has shocked, saddened, and horrified us all, I - like desilu - have talked to my son about using this as an incredible learning experience for the future. Sadly, you can’t always trust those in power to do the right thing. You need to trust your instincts and ask questions when things don’t seem right. Hope that you are wrong, but also be prepared to take appropriate action if you are correct.</p>

<p>As I wrote on another thread, my son has traveled a great deal this past spring and this summer (mid-west and TX mainly) and almost always had/has his Penn State Blue Band sweatshirt or baseball cap on - and he has gotten nothing but supportive comments about the university and it’s students - nothing nasty, critical, or mean-spirited.</p>

<p>PS - Since the title of the thread is “Current Penn State Parents” - I hope the respondents stay that way so that this thread can be supportive and informative, rather than critical and judgmental.</p>

5

<p>Please see the post below from another thread. Take some comfort in knowing that the students who have been on campus throughout this ordeal have learned some tough lessons about leadership or lack thereof, media sensationalism, etc., but have generally remained positive and Penn State proud. </p>

<p>The Freeh Report (which PSU commissioned) could be a great development for PSU! The salvation of PSU must come from within, and I have no doubt many in the PSU faculty and administration (yes, even in the administration) welcome the Freeh Report as a catalyst of change and rebirth.</p>

<p>PSU always stresses honesty and integrity. The fact that some high officials did not practice what they preached does not mean the students had been taught the wrong things. In fact, the initial reaction of the students showed the opposite: they THOUGHT an honorable man was made a scapegoat and they would not stand for that.</p>

<p>Do not feel sorry for the current and even the incoming students. They will continue to learn the same science and engineering, and now they will also learn a great lesson in life. They will learn about adversity, prejudice, hatred, crime, punishment, perseverance, maturity and character in a way that’s far beyond the usual “college experience”. Who knows? They might be better for it.</p>

<p>Students, do not worry about future employment. There will always be people who want to label you by your race, religion, sexual orientation, and now, your bad college president and football coach. If you don’t get to work for those people, that’s not a big loss. Go work for someone else and prove your worth. PSU did not become the darling of corporate recruiters because of its football program. The employers are satisfied with their PSU hires so they keep coming back for more. Simple as that.</p>

<p>I have no connection to PSU besides that my wife and I work for a large research university just like it. Our son is not at all interested in football, drinking and parties. PSU remains high on his list because of Schreyer and the major he wants to pursue. He has not changed his mind and that’s fine with us. The students who should reconsider are those who picked PSU for the wrong reason in the first place. </p>

<p>.</p>

6

<p>My son will be attending PSU Schreyer this fall. Opportunities for him included CMU, Bucknell, Johns Hopkins, RPI, Case Western, etc. I have visited over thirty schools in conjunction with my kids’ college admissions processes and feel extremely secure in his ability to excel at this institution and in life. Well said by the above poster.</p>

7

<p>stealthposter-you said it better than I ever could.</p>

<p>I am an alum, and my daughter will be a junior. I had always downplayed Penn State as an option for her, since she seemed like a small school kind of kid. We would visit occasionally for the Arts Festival, or to visit friends (never for football, btw). When she was in 10th grade she attended a PSU volleyball camp ,and we started going to a few of the women’s volleyball matches. After one of the games she turned to us and said, “I love this place.” And so it began. </p>

<p>She works hard and gets good grades. She is a TA, and a member of the University EMS. She went to football games as a freshmen, vended as a sophomore and will be working EMS as a junior. She laughs at the thought of a “football culture”. She goes to the games, then goes home and gets on with the business of being a student. </p>

<p>The Sandusky affair has had a big impact on her. She is no longer the child we sent to school. She has lost her innocence, as have we all where Penn State is concerned. However, she knows that the guilt of those involved is not her burden. Spanier, Curly, Schultz and the others involved will have to live with this on their consciences the rest of their lives, in addition to getting the punishment they deserve for allowing it to happen.</p>

8

<p>I am a PSU alum and parent, and also currently work for Penn State. I am extremely sad and disappointed by this whole saga. The worst part is, this is negatively affecting students who had nothing at all to do with the scandal. As others have said, the students have gotten a very hard lesson about what happens when leadership fails. I am very impressed with how the majority of students have handled this whole thing. </p>

<p>Current/future students will have to suffer the consequences of this for quite a while, which is a real shame. Unlike others who have posted on this thread, we have experienced negative comments and behavior when wearing Penn State items. Students will have to deal with that sort of thing, as well as all of the other fallout which will take years to play out. If the football program is shut down, even for a short time, it will have major financial impact on the school (and the town), which will of course eventually affect students and parents. </p>

<p>Frankly, if my kids were only in high school right now and were just at the stage of considering schools, I would discourage them from including PSU in their list – and it kills me to say that, coming from a three-generation Penn State family.</p>

9

<p>My D is also a freshman, at UP - attending LEAP currently and loving every second of it. She was accepted at numerous other schools, Delaware, Pitt, JMU, etc. but chose Penn State for the academics, philanthropic opportunities, alumni networking, and just the general spirit of the school, alum, and community. Two of her cousins attended and she visited numerous times (football and non-football weekends) and so it was always on her short list of schools. We did not ‘grow up’ Penn State, in fact, my husband is a diehard Univ of Michigan fan and it’s now the running joke in our family - - but we will never stop being supportive of her decision to attend this university, nor has our opinion about the school in general changed. I am in agreement with most others who have posted, I do believe that this is a very strong university, with a strong community following and fierce alumni base who will defend all that is good about Penn State.</p>

10

<p>I totally agree about the high quality of the academics at Penn State. I’d rank it right up there with the top schools in the country, which is a main reason we sent our kids to PSU. </p>

<p>Unfortunately, the financial reality is that it will be extremely difficult (probably impossible) to maintain those academics with the fallout from this mess. I work for Penn State, and my department was already instituting layoffs and cutbacks for financial reasons way before this Sandusky case came to light. </p>

<p>The combination of lawsuit settlements, fines and the probable loss of huge football-related money will be financially devastating to the school, and all that money will need to come from somewhere. The faculty/staff, facilities and resources that contribute to the high-quality academics all cost a lot of money, and cutbacks will have to be made. Students (including my own kids) who currently love their academic programs might not be so thrilled with the bare bones version they may see in the near future. </p>

<p>I am so sad that so many students who did nothing wrong will suffer the negative consequences of the actions of leadership that failed to do what they should have done.</p>

11

<p>“I am so sad that so many students who did nothing wrong will suffer the negative consequences of the actions of leadership that failed to do what they should have done.”</p>

<p>That’s it in a nutshell.</p>