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Task force members named to oversee
Penn State endowment fund

By Michelle Brutlag Hosick
NCAA.org

An NCAA-created national task force will oversee an endowment funded by the $60 million fine imposed on Penn State.

All funds from the fine will follow the endowment guidelines established by the Child Sexual Abuse Endowment Task Force and flow to programs designed to prevent child sexual abuse or assist the victims of child sexual abuse nationwide.

The task force members were drawn from national nonprofit organizations (some specializing in child advocacy), the federal government and the NCAA membership. Task force members include:

• Nan Crouter, dean of the college of health and human development at Penn State;
• Rita Hartung Cheng, chancellor of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale;
• Craig Hillemeier, vice dean for clinical affairs at Penn State College of Medicine;
• Brian Gallagher, president and chief executive officer of United Way Worldwide;
• Jane Lowe, team director of Vulnerable Populations Portfolio, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation;
• Harris Pastides, president, University of South Carolina;
• Bryan Samuels, commissioner of the Administration on Children, Youth and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services;
• Pamela Shifman, director, Initiatives for Girls and Women, NoVo Foundation;
• Raymond Torres, vice president of the Annie E. Casey Foundation and executive director of Casey Family Services;
• Tim White, chancellor of University of California, Riverside (chair).

The task force will develop a philosophy for how the endowment funds will be used, including what types of programs are eligible, required grant criteria, and investment and spending policies. Members also will determine how the assets will be managed both financially and legally, and will identify an independent third party to administer and manage the endowment.

The task force will make reporting and accountability recommendations to ensure the performance and uses of the assets meet expectations.

Once the philosophy, criteria, investment and spending policies and the third-party administrator have been identified, the task force’s work will be concluded.

The third-party administrator will choose which nonprofit groups receive funds each year based on criteria established by the task force. The NCAA expects that several different nonprofit groups will receive funds each year.

The fine will be collected in five $12 million annual payments. Once received, the money will go to the third-party administrator to be invested based on guidelines from the task force.  The proceeds may not be used to fund programs at Penn State, and no current sponsored athletics team may be reduced or eliminated to pay the fine.

The task force will determine how much of the endowment will be distributed and how much will remain in the endowment through perpetuity.