UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State is scheduled to hold a news conference at 4:15 p.m. on Saturday, Jan. 11. Live video of the news conference will be available at http://video.btn.com/allaccess/?media=426760. The event also will be available on the Big Ten Network's on-demand video portal, BTN2GO.

A full transcript of the conference will be posted at http://www.GoPSUsports.com on Saturday evening.

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Sept. 24, 2013 UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State officials are gratified by the decision of the NCAA Executive Committee to modify the scholarship limitations previously imposed on the University under the consent decree between the University and the NCAA. This action, announced today, taken in recognition of Penn State's significant progress under and continued compliance with the Athletics Integrity Agreement, grants immediate relief from both the initial scholarship restrictions and overall team limit restrictions previously imposed on the University's football program. This modification will restore a total of 65 scholarship opportunities for football student athletes wanting to attend Penn State. Specifically, the amendment to the consent decree increases the limit on initial football scholarships from 15 to 20 for the 2014-2015 academic year, and from 15 to 25 for each of the next three seasons. In addition, the amendment increases the overall football team limit of 65 total scholarships to allow for 75 total scholarships in the 2014-2015 academic year, 80 total scholarships in the 2015-2016 academic year, and 85 total scholarships (the NCAA limit for football) for each of the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 academic years. "I am very happy for Coach O'Brien, the football coaches and staff and the players; especially pleased for our current and future student-athletes, who are the most important reason why we love working in intercollegiate athletics. We will continue to work hard within the Athletics Integrity Agreement to fully comply and to achieve excellence in everything we do at Penn State." - Dave Joyner, Director of Athletics "Today's announcement by the NCAA is tremendous news. As a staff, we are especially pleased for our players, who have proven themselves to be a resilient group of young men who are able to look ahead, focus and overcome adversity. Penn State has long been known for graduating its student-athletes and providing them with a world class education. The scholarship additions will allow us to provide more student-athletes with a tremendous opportunity to earn that degree and play football for Penn State." - Bill O'Brien, Head Football Coach    Penn State scholarships gradually restored Year Initial Total 2014-15 20 75 2015-16 25 80 2016-17 25 85 2017-18 25 85 "The action taken today by the NCAA, following its review of the positive report issued this month by Sen. George Mitchell, recognizes the significant efforts over the past year to make Penn State a safer, stronger institution," said Penn State President Rodney Erickson. "This news is certainly welcome to our University community, particularly the student athletes who may want to attend Penn State and will now have the means to do so. As we promised throughout this process, we are committed to continuing to improve all of our policies, procedures and actions." Sen. Mitchell is the independent, third-party athletics integrity monitor for Penn State who published a report on Sept. 6 indicating that Penn State has substantially completed the initial implementation of all of the Freeh recommendations and all of its annual obligations under the Athletics Integrity Agreement (AIA). The report includes Mitchell's impartial external review of Penn State's efforts to implement the 119 recommendations made by Judge Louis Freeh in July 2012. Under the AIA, the University was obligated to take all reasonable steps to implement the recommendations by Dec. 31, 2013. The University, the NCAA and the Big Ten Conference entered into the AIA in August 2012 as part of the consent decree imposed by the NCAA. The agreement contains a number of prescriptive measures designed to ensure that the University continues to meet or exceed all applicable NCAA and Big Ten rules and standards of integrity. Erickson thanked Head Coach Bill O'Brien for his leadership during this critical time and for his dedication to his players and to the University through the past two difficult seasons. He also acknowledged the work of student athletes, both on the field and in the classroom. "The resiliency displayed by those young men, as well as our entire student body is something of which we are proud," Erickson said. "I would also like to thank the literally hundreds of University administrators, faculty, staff and students whose hard work over the past 15 months helped lay the groundwork not only for this action by the NCAA but, even more importantly, for a better Penn State."   Penn State Press Release NCAA Press Release

"22" will be the first number to be retired at Penn State.

During halftime of today's Penn State-Eastern Michigan game, the undefeated 1973 was honored, a team that included Penn State's only Heisman Trophy winner, John Cappelletti. During the ceremony, it was announced that the school would be retiring that he and other great Penn State running backs have worn throughout the years. The number 22 is the first number to be retired by the football program.

In 1973, Cappelletti ran for 1,522 yards and 17 touchdowns for a Penn State team that went undefeated and beat LSU in the Orange Bowl. He was honored with the Heisman for his performance at a ceremony still remembered today due to the his acceptance speech where he honored his little brother, Joey, who was fighting leukemia.

Others who wore the number 22 for Penn State include:

• Evan Royster, the Nittany Lions' all-time leading rusher
• Ray Isom, one of the leaders of the secondary for Penn State's 1986 national championship team
• Chuck Burkart, who went 22-0 as a starter at Penn State between 1968 and 1969.

Akeel Lynch, who currently wears #22, will retain the number for his career at Cappelletti's wishes.

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Update from Penn State

In the past week, Penn State has received some good news from two distinct sources. On Sept. 10, U.S. News & World Report issued its annual college rankings, the most recognized and popular of all college rankings.

Penn State now ranks No. 8 among all public national universities in the "2014 Best Colleges Rankings," up five places from last year.

"Our university consistently delivers the highest-quality education to our students and helps prepare them to succeed in their careers and in life beyond the classroom," said University President Rodney Erickson. "We are proud of our students, faculty, staff and alumni, and their positive impact on the world speaks loudest and best for Penn State."

But it's always nice to be recognized among the leading universities.

In the overall "National Universities" category, which includes both public and private institutions, Penn State has risen to No. 37 overall, up nine places from last year. According to U.S. News' methodology, schools in the "National Universities" category emphasize faculty research and offer a full range of undergraduate majors, plus master's and Ph.D. programs.

In the Big Ten, Penn State ranks No. 2 among public nationals, and No. 3 in the overall nationals.

For more on this story, go to http://news.psu.edu/story/286949/2013/09/10/rankings/penn-state-rises-2014-us-news-best-colleges-rankings or visit http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/09/09/us-news-college-rankings-universities/2791069/

The other positive news last week was the report by Sen. George Mitchell, the independent, third-party monitor assigned by the NCAA under its Athletics Integrity Agreement (AIA) with Penn State. On Sept. 6, Sen. Mitchell issued his first yearly report, which commended Penn State for accomplishments over the past 12 months in the areas of safety, risk management, human resources, youth programming and athletics, among others.

Sen. Mitchell commended the University for the amount of resources, time and energy devoted to implementing virtually all of the 119 recommendations from the Freeh Report, fulfilling all of the annual requirements of the AIA that was signed by the NCAA, the Big Ten and Penn State.

In a recent interview on the topic, University President Rodney Erickson noted that the reforms that have been put in place have not only made Penn State a safer institution, but also have resulted in the University being a leader in the nation in terms of security, governance, human resources policies and more.

"What we’re really trying to accomplish as an institution is to weave what we’ve done into the fabric of the institution," Erickson said, "so that long after any individual or individuals have left the university, we’ll continue to operate under what I believe is a set of best practices for governance, for administration, for policies and for operations."

Erickson said that Penn State has become the university that others look to for advice on reform and change.

"While this is a significant milestone, there is still more to be done," Erickson said. "This does not represent the conclusion of our efforts. We are keeping our teams in place and will be embarking with a sustained sense of urgency on the next phase of our plan to continuously improve our governance, policies and procedures and operations."

For more information about the report, go to http://news.psu.edu/story/286607/2013/09/06/athletics/penn-state-officials-vow-continued-focus-positive-change

As always, University Relations hopes these communications provide timely and important information to you about Penn State. Thank you for being a part of our University.

Plans are set for the Croke Park Classic in historic Dublin, Ireland, where the Nittany Lions will meet the University of Central Florida Knights for their season opener on August 30, 2014. Bring your blue and white, and be there to cheer them on!

Join the Official Penn State Tour, presented by the Penn State Alumni Association and the Nittany Lion Club. The tour provides alumni, members, students, fans, and friends with a unique opportunity to discover Ireland’s rich history, traditions, and scenic beautyundefinedas well as attend the Nittany Lions’ first international game. The contest versus UCF will kick at 1:30 p.m. at Croke Park. Game tickets are currently only available through the Official Penn State Tour.  

About the Official Penn State Tour
Alumni and fans can select from a variety of experiences and city tours ranging in length from four to eight days. Tour packages include:

• accommodations at three-, four-, or five-star hotels
• game tickets
• an exclusive private party at the world-famous Guinness Storehouse
• excursion tours
• game-day transportation
• full Irish breakfast each morning
• and much more!

Additionally, our tour partner, Anthony Travel, will offer special rates on airfare through Aer Lingus, Ireland’s national airline. Many travel and tourism experts anticipate an influx of American tourists to Ireland surrounding the game. Fans considering traveling to the Emerald Isle for the Croke Park Classic should heed travel advice to plan ahead.

For complete information on travel packages or to book your Penn State tour now, visit PSU.CrokeParkClassic.com.

Game Ticket Details
Game tickets are currently only available by purchasing an Official Penn State Tour package provided by Anthony Travel. Fans purchasing an official package prior to December 31, 2013, will be assigned seats based on Nittany Lion Club priority points. For fans who are not NLC members, seating will be determined by the date the travel package was purchased. After December 31, 2013, game ticket assignments will be made on a first-come, first-served basis. All tickets will be allocated in the Official Penn State seating sections.

An unspecified number of individual game tickets in other areas of the stadium (not in the Penn State sections) may be available at a later date. The only way to assure seating in the Penn State sections is via the Official Tour packages.

See you in Dublin! Go State!

For details about other Penn State Alumni Association events, visit alumni.psu.edu or connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.

The Nashville Penn Staters made a donation to the Sexual Assault Center of Nashville before participating in the Walk in Their Shoes 5k. We are proud to support this organization in our community!   Click here to view a copy of the Thank You letter we received!

 

 

 

 

http://news.psu.edu/story/274731/2013/04/25/campus-life/reminder-nittany-lion-shrine-closed-renovations-summer-starting

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