Penn State is voting on removing one of the two Board of Trustees members who voted against the Beaver Stadium renovation project this past May.
Halie Kines of the Centre Daily Times reported that during Monday’s governance committee meeting, board members were discussing whether or not Trustee Barry Fenchak violated the code of conduct during an executive session.
The Penn State board of trustees is set to vote on removing an outspoken alumni-elected trustee after a committee reviewed a potential code of conduct violation.
My story on this morning's committee meeting: https://t.co/6WWyq90P5a
— halie kines 🗞️ (@haliekines) September 9, 2024
Per the resolution, Kines reported, Fenchak “initiated a verbal interaction with a female staff member — witnessed by two other staff members — that violated the Trustee Code of Conduct provisions” on professionalism, ethical conduct, and is inconsistent with the bylaws.”
Governance Committee Dan Onoroto told the committee it had to make a recommendation on what the violations would result in: removal, sanction, admonishment or no action at all.
Onorato also said, per Kines, that the committee reviewed this complaint as well as a statement from an interview Fenchak gave Friday, Sept. 6, plus Fenchak’s initial written response when notified of the complaint.
Another things that need to be weighed, per the Kines, are “if the violation was the first time or a repeated offense, the public or private nature of the offense, and the severity of the injury or potential injury to the board or university.”
Vice Chair of the Governance Committee, Robert Fenza, supports the resolution.
“I think as trustees we have a level of responsibility to our university to conform with the expectations of members and to our code of conduct,” Fenza said. “But more importantly, as I stated, and as many of you have stated, we really need to make sure this sort of behavior is admonished properly, and that we do protect the staff members who are assigned to us from intimidation, and you know, this kind of uncomfortable behavior. So I support this resolution,” Fenza said.
Kines reported that another trustee read a statement from Trustee Julie Anna Potts, who had previously been committee chair. The statement said she couldn’t attend but would vote for Fenchak’s removal if she could.
“…His well documented behavior falls short of the high standards to which we must hold ourselves as Penn State Trustees, whether in our public statements, in relation to one another, and most especially in our behavior toward members of the Penn State staff,” the statement read.
Trustee Nuran Gursahaney made the initial motion to remove Fenchak, and Daniel Delligatti seconded that motion. The committee that unanimously voted in favor of the motion. The next step is for the entire board to review the recommendation and it’s not yet known when they will meet to discuss the matter.
The next scheduled Board Meeting is Nov. 7-8.
As expected, the Penn State Board of Trustees approved Beaver Stadium’s $700 million renovation project.
The resolution passed with a 26-2 vote, with three— including Jay Paterno— abstaining.
This project, which has been in the works for more than a year and would bring significant changes to Penn State’s football home of more than half a century, was met with opposition by some board members.
Four days before the proposal passed, a trustee named Barry Fenchak— who was one of the two that voted “no” along with Anthony Lubrano published an article on his website called “Why We Can’t Afford the Beaver Stadium Renovation Proposed by Penn State Board of Trustee Leadership.”
Fenchak argued that because PSU’s athletic department would increase its debt to $877 million, the school didn’t have the “revenue nor the donations to fund the project. Therefore, the board “should not approve the project.”
