Education Department launches investigation into child sex-abuse scandal at Penn State
The Washington Post
November 10, 2011
The U.S. Department of Education is launching an investigation into the scandal at Penn State University to see if officials there failed to comply with a law that requires institutions of higher education to disclose criminal offenses that occur on campus each year.
The department issued a statement on Wednesday saying that it was launching the probe in relation to the scandal in which former defensive coach Jerry Sandusky was charged with sexually abusing a number of young boys over a period of years, including incidents on campus. A number of school officials were told about at least one of the incidents after they happened by the police were never called. Legendary Penn State Coach Joe Paterno announced he is retiring at the end of the season as a result of the scandal.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan was quoted in the statement as saying: “If these allegations of sexual abuse are true then this is a horrible tragedy for those young boys. If it turns out that some people at the school knew of the abuse and did nothing or covered it up, that makes it even worse. Schools and school officials have a legal and moral responsibility to protect children and young people from violence and abuse.”
