U.S. starts investigating Penn State's responses

The U.S. Department of Education began its probe Monday into whether Pennsylvania State University officials broke federal law in their handling of sex-abuse allegations against former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky.

University president Rodney Erickson took pains to show that his new administration was responding to the scandal as a team of four investigators went to the campus with plans to pore over crime logs, and interview dozens of students and employees.

Within hours of their arrival, the university announced the launching of a sex-abuse hotline, a program to advise faculty members on how to address the issue in their classes, and a series of campus forums to address student concerns.

"We are making every effort to provide the review team with immediate access to all requested records and information sources," Erickson said.

The Education Department - one of several agencies to announce probes since Sandusky's arrest Nov. 5 - will focus on possible violations of the Clery Act, which mandates that universities that participate in federal student-aid programs track and report campus crime.

Any violations of the law - named for a Lehigh University freshman raped and murdered in her dorm room in 1986 - could lead to civil sanctions, including the loss of aid, according to a Nov. 6 letter from the agency.

Sandusky is accused of molesting at least eight boys he met through the Second Mile, a charity for at-risk youth he founded in 1977. While none of the allegations involves Penn State students, several purported incidents occurred in campus athletic facilities or while on sanctioned football program trips, including at least two bowl games.

Two university officials - former vice president Gary Schultz and athletic director Tim Curley - have been charged with perjury and failing to report their purported knowledge of a 2002 incident in which Sandusky was allegedly seen raping a 10-year-old boy in the showers of the football locker room.

University trustees fired president Graham B. Spanier and football coach Joe Paterno on Nov. 9 over their responses to the allegations. Neither has been criminally charged.

Since taking over Spanier's job, Erickson has pledged to provide a full accounting of the university response in hope of restoring faith among the campus community.

Among other measures announced Monday, he said he would respond to questions at a forum organized by student groups scheduled for Wednesday.

In addition, similar programs - featuring social workers and psychiatrists - were announced throughout the week. University officials also encouraged faculty members to incorporate discussion of the unfolding scandal in their classrooms.

"President Erickson made it clear we need to do whatever we can to help students get through this," said Angela Linse, dean of the university's Center for Teaching Excellence.

The Department of Education, though, will be focused on the actions of the prior administration. The team plans to review crime logs, police reports, and all Clery Act reporting documents dating to 1998 - the year of the first incident of alleged abuse cited in the grand jury's presentment.

Meanwhile, on Monday, the Second Mile tried to rebut concerns that it was seeking to disburse its $9 million in advance of lawsuits filed on behalf of its founder's purported victims.

In legal filings, attorneys from the Philadelphia firm Archer & Greiner maintained that there was no evidence that the Second Mile "has engaged in any conduct to improperly hide or dissipate assets." The charity has hired former Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne M. Abraham, a partner at the firm, to conduct an internal investigation into its own handling of sex-abuse claims.

The response came after lawyers representing two alleged victims sought a court order that would block the charity from giving its resources to other local social-services agencies.

Since Sandusky's arrest, donors and board members have fled from the Second Mile, its president has resigned, and current executives are struggling to see whether the organization, which says it serves more than 100,000 children statewide, can survive.

Chief executive David Woodle pledged Monday to keep programs running through December but urged donors to contribute to another charity - the Pennsylvania Coalition Against Rape.

"We are continuing to review options for the next phase of our programs," he said. Meanwhile, "our organization is committed to supporting survivors of sexual violence throughout Pennsylvania."