Never Let a Crisis Go To Waste
The Silver Linings of Penn State’s
Child Maltreatment Solutions Network
Director, Jennie Noll, PhD
Professor, Human Development & Family Studies
protectchildren.psu.edu
Penn State Crisis
2010 Asst. coach Mike McQueary testified before
the grand jury investigating Sandusky
Asst. Coach Jerry Sandusky sexually abused
10 boys over 15 years
• At-risk youth in a sports/mentoring program
• Guilty of 45 counts
• Serving a 30-60 year sentence
Penn State Crisis
• Indicted
• President of the University Graham Spanier
• Head Football Coach Joe Paterno
• Senior VP for Finance & Business
• $93M spent by Penn State (so far)
• Settlements
• Legal fee
• Asst. Coach Jerry Sandusky sexually abused 10 boys over 15 years
• At-risk youth in a sports/mentoring program
• Guilty of 45 counts
• Serving a 30-60 year sentence
Penn State Crisis
• NCAA Sanctions
• $60M fine
• 4 year post-season ban
• 4 year reduction in scholarships
• 5 year probation
• Vacating all wins from 1998-2011 (112 in all)
Penn State Crisis
A Traumatized and Polarized Community
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Paterno statue torn down
Half defended Paterno
Paterno fired and then dies within a few months
Football program suffers
Media storm ascended onto Happy Valley
Rush to judgment vs due process
Debates over whether NCAA overstepped its
authority
Penn State Crisis -- Today
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Paterno wins have been restored
NCAA reduced sanctions
New President, Head Coach, Athletic Dir.
$60M NCAA fine returned to Pennsylvania
• Treatment & Prevention
• $12M returned to Penn State for research & education
• New allegations that Paterno knew in 1976
Penn State’s Academic Response
2012-present
Child Maltreatment Solutions Network
• 12 faculty cluster-hire of transdisciplinary researchers
• Start-up & pilot funds
• Build on Penn State’s strengths in social science research;
children, youth, and families
• Create interdisciplinary collaborations to maximize impact
Penn State Hershey
College of Medicine
University Park Campus
Division of Child Abuse Pediatrics
Center for the Protection of
Children
Provost
Co-funds
College of
Nursing
College of
Liberal
Arts
College of
Health &
Human
Dev’l
College of
Education
Transforming Lives of
Children (TLC) Clinic
Mental Health Services
Network Mission
To build a sustainable network of researchers and
practitioners who over time will produce new knowledge,
foster the design and evaluation of novel approaches to
prevention, detection, and treatment of child maltreatment,
create interdisciplinary education opportunities and
experiences for Penn State students, and put the products of
these efforts to work in communities throughout
Pennsylvania and beyond.
Penn State’s Academic Response
Education initiatives
• Undergraduate Degree in Child Maltreatment & Advocacy
Studies
• Graduate Certificate in Trauma Studies
• Annual Conference Series / Book Series
• Guardian Scholar’s Foster Care Youth
Pennsylvania’s Legislative Response
2015-16: 23 new child welfare reform laws
• Sexual abuse defined as a crime
• no longer just a civil matter
• Definitions of perpetrator expanded
• Definitions of mandated reporter expanded
• Mandated background checks & reporter training
• Definitions of neglect expanded
• Advocacy center and MDIT in all 67 counties
Pennsylvania’s Legislative Response
Financial appropriations not commensurate with reform
• System burden
• Reporting hotline overwhelmed ~42,000 calls unanswered
• Background check system overloaded
• Cost passed on to organizations
• Workforce burden
• ↑allegations & investigation
• ↑caseloads
• ↑burnout and turnover
Science Impacting Policy
Figure X.X: The Translational Roadmap for the TCCMS
Clinical
Populations
T1
T2
Basic Science
Project 1
Grow new
science
Address
relevant
questions
Educate &
Engage
Project 2
Clinical
Practice
Dissemination &
Outreach Core
Disseminate &
Communicate
Impact policy
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↑
↑
↑
ADMIN CORE
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↑
Research to Policy Bridge
Direct Access to Policy Makers
Impact of Legislation
• Workforce Issues
• Time Study / Optimal Caseload
• Need for Advocacy Center in EVERY county
• Fought to get $60M back to PA
• Appropriated by a committee of
experts; front-lines workers; academics
• Impact on census
• Allegation types
• Substantiation rates
• Impact on prevention?
Statewide Prevention Effort
Treatment:
Basic Science:
Innovative, novel &
expanded
Biologic substrates of stress
Promote optimal heath
Optimized & Tailored
Models of Risk / Resilience
Efficient & Affordable
Novel pharm/behavioral
treatments
Maximize uptake
Prevention:
Policy:
Universal
Costs of maltreatment
Targeted
Impact of legislation
Secondary prevention of
sequelae
Economics of prevention &
treatment
Sustainability
Implore public investment
Other Opportunities for Silver Linings
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Denis Hastert, former US Speaker of the House
Rotherham, South Yorkshire England
Queen Victoria School in Dunblane
Catholic Church Scandals
Boko Haram
Thank you
Matt Forde – National Head of Service