Penn State opens books for anyone to see, including coach Bill O'Brien's contract.
In the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal, Penn State president Rodney A. Erickson recently launched a new web site, http://openness.psu.edu/, that offers readers complete access to key financial and contractual documents that were historically blocked from public view. Erickson stated that this web site is a “commitment to open communication” responsive to harsh criticism that Penn State’s internal operations were held in secret.
Documents available are unedited and complete in nature to include the cost of the scandal. Penn State revealed that the university spent over $3.2 million to date on legal and public relations fees to temper the Sandusky aftershock. Additionally, and rightfully so, Penn State is picking up the legal fee tabs for former president Graham Spanier, former AD Tim Curley and former vice president Gary Schultz.
In an unprecedented move, the school also made publically available a PDF version of head coach Bill O’Brien’s $2.3 million contract. During JoePa’s tenure, football coaches contracts were not made public and for decades Joe Paterno’s was sealed in a safe.
This is atypical for a university, but if Penn State’s goal is to be more transparent, Erickson is certainly taking a step in the right direction.
