The disturbing scandal at Pennsylvania State University has given rise to revelation after revelation. Many of these revelations are cause for concern in themselves, but we are particularly troubled by the narrative of cover-up that involves university administrators, law enforcement and the broader State College community. Because these parties failed to thoroughly investigate the increasingly evident crimes of a former assistant coach, Penn State may find its name dragged through the mud in the national media and its finances devastated by litigation.
What is abundantly clear is that members of any university community—especially administrators and law enforcement—have tremendous incentives to protect their jobs and the reputations of their employers, even if this means giving justice and morality short shrift.
These scandals aren’t confined to athletics departments. At Duke and elsewhere, university interests always threaten to supersede what is right, whether that’s the speedy handling of sexual misconduct complaints or paying off-campus neighbors proper respect.
We offer an unfortunate litany of examples:
In March 2011, 16 Yale students and alumni filed complaints with the Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights. The complaints alleged that Yale had violated Title IX regulations by failing to deal with a campus environment that permitted sexual assaults. What is even more troubling, however, are the narratives that emerged in the wake of these complaints. More than one student purported being sexual harassed by university faculty without resolution.
Last spring, Duke saw similar three similar complaints regarding Title IX violations. Two of these accused the University of slow and inadequate action in response to grievances of sexual harassment, and the third alleged retaliation against a complainant after a complaint was filed with Office of Civil Rights. We don’t speculate as to the truth of these complaints, but their very possibility raises hackles.
These examples extend to more quotidian matters. For more than a decade, Trinity Park, a popular off-campus housing neighborhood near East Campus, played host to a heated controversy about how to deal with raucous students. This saga progressed in stages, with the University and the Durham Police Department alternatively cracking down and going easy on students. In 1998, the DPD arrested 62 people during the first weekend of school. But, by Fall 1999, residents were once again complaining about noisy and debauched students. That this struggle even occurred attests to the powerful influence universities have in shaping the application of the law.
It is evident that morality should never take a backseat to universities’ never-ending grab for reputation. Universities work feverishly to protect their fragile names, which drive the prestige game’s most important numbers—things like matriculation rates, rankings and endowment size. But morality should always trump these games.
When boundaries are crossed and laws are broken, universities should take action and inform police instead of turning a blind eye, even if this means exposing a story that becomes a national scandal. In fact, schools that overlook issues of law and morals may save face in the short term but cannot avoid long-term repercussions. A hidden scandal brought to light can be far more devastating than a crime honestly reported.
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