Paterno-supporter Lubrano elected to Penn State board of trustees; Jay Paterno, Pope reelected
After tallying the results of the board of trustees election, Penn State alumni are now set to see a “new” face among the group.
While incumbents Jay Paterno and Alice Pope were reelected Friday, Anthony P. Lubrano — who took a two-year hiatus after previously acting as a BOT member — will serve as the “new” trustee among the nine total elected by alumni.
Their new terms will start July 1 and last for three years.
“First and foremost, it’s an honor. It’s truly an honor to serve on the board of trustees,” Lubrano told the CDT. “The alumni at the university think highly enough of me to elect me. I will tell you, this time around, I’m much smarter than the first time.”
Lubrano, president of a financial services and wealth management firm, is perhaps best-known for his public stance in opposing FBI director Louis Freeh’s report that implicated Joe Paterno in the Jerry Sandusky child sex-abuse scandal. In June 2018, Lubrano, Pope, Jay Paterno and other alumni-elected trustees called a special meeting to announce their review of the Freeh report, which rejected all the report’s conclusions. Lubrano’s term on the board ended two days later, on July 1.
Lubrano previously said he left the board in 2018 for “personal reasons.”
Of the 18,809 total ballots cast over the last month, Lubrano received 12,919 votes — trailing behind Jay Paterno (14,654) and Pope (13,205). But he comfortably cruised past the only other announced contender, Jeffrey Ballou, news editor of Al Jazeera English, who earned 7,986 votes.
“Our congratulations go back out to Anthony. We look forward to Anthony’s return in a productive, constructive manner,” BOT Chairman Mark Dambly said, as at least one trustee laughed in the background. “We look forward to having him return.”
Lubrano said he ran more out of “outrage” the first time, over the way Paterno was treated and Freeh subsequently conducted himself. But, now, he’s looking to focus much of his energy on how the university can financially withstand the coronavirus — while still potentially limiting the size of the board and making a Penn State education affordable.
“I could probably spend my entire day on the financial aspects of the institution and try to make it better able to withstand another pandemic,” he added, “because this one is potentially going to impact the university in ways no one could ever imagine.”
Elected alumni comprise just nine seats on the 38-member governing body for the university. So three others, all of whom have been on the board for at least several years, were also reappointed or reelected by other groups Friday. They include Dambly (Business and Industry), who’s served since 2010; Walter Rakowich (Business and Industry), who’s been there since 2014, and Matthew Schuyler (at-large), who’s served the past five years.
Ballots for the alumni election were made available April 10, and alumni had until 9 a.m. Thursday to vote. About 3% of Penn State’s alumni base voted.
This story was originally published May 8, 2020 at 4:58 PM.
