Board of Trustees issues statement on Paterno firing

Thursday, 12 January 2012 17:40

Written by Ron Musselman

Steve Garban, chair of the Board of Trustees, and John Surma, vice chairman of the Board of Trustees, issued the following statement in response to questions raised regarding Joe Paterno's Nov. 9 firing in wake of a child sex abuse scandal involving former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky at president Rodney Erickson's town hall meeting Wednesday night in Pittsburgh:

"Many alumni have asked why the Board decided to remove Coach Paterno from his position as Head Football Coach. On Wednesday, November 9, Coach Paterno announced that he would retire at the conclusion of the 2011 football season. Given the nature of the serious allegations contained in the Grand Jury Report and the extraordinary circumstances then facing the University, the Board's unanimous judgment was that Coach Paterno could not be expected to continue to effectively perform his duties and that it was in the best interests of the University to make an immediate change in his status.

"Therefore, the Board acted to remove Coach Paterno from his position as Head Football Coach effective as of that date. Coach Paterno remains employed by the University as a tenured faculty member. The details of his retirement are being worked out and will be made public when they are finalized. Generally speaking, the University intends to honor the terms of his employment contract and is treating him financially as if he had retired at the end of the 2011 football season."