Announcing the Penn State Sunshine Fund

On Saturday night I had the honor of participating in a panel discussion about the events of November 2011. It’s hard to believe that two years have passed and we’re still seeking answers about what happened in the wake of the Sandusky scandal.

As you may know, I spent the last year fighting for your right to access records of some university trustees. In July, the Commonwealth Court ruled in my favor. Now, any citizen has the right to obtain records of some trustees through the Pennsylvania Right-to-Know Law.

Sadly, but not surprisingly, university administrators aren’t thrilled about my success. General Counsel Steve Dunham has pledged to fight the court’s decision, threatening to undo the minuscule amount of transparency that we battled to obtain. Dunham, Keith Masser and Rodney Ericskson are the only people standing in our way of learning more about the actions of the public officials on the Board of Trustees.

Penn State has lots of money and lots of lawyers for this battle. As a result, I’ve hired the most talented Right-to-Know lawyers in the state of Pennsylvania. But top legal talent isn’t cheap. And without financial help, my efforts will grind to a halt.

That’s why I launched the Penn State Sunshine Fund, a grassroots effort to support legal and lobbying activities geared toward making the university more transparent. Winning the July ruling cost $15,000, and at least two more appeals from Penn State are expected. Even more records exist, but it will take a court order to obtain them.

One person alone can’t compete with the resources that Penn State has at its disposal. But together, we can stand up to the administration and preserve your right to know what happened over the last two years.

Please consider contributing to the Penn State Sunshine Fund today. Our secure, online form makes it easy to support transparency initiatives with a credit or debit card. You can also donate with PayPal, or send a check.