In settlement with Spotlight PA, Penn State University agrees to transparency reforms
Spotlight PA has settled its open meetings lawsuit against Penn State University’s governing body, securing significant victories in the name of transparency and accountability.
In a settlement finalized last week, the university’s Board of Trustees agreed to provide training for individual trustees focused on Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act, the state law that governs access to meetings of public bodies. The Board also agreed to provide more detailed disclosures regarding the reasons for holding nonpublic meetings, including executive sessions and conferences.
Spotlight PA and the Board of Trustees reached the agreement roughly a year-and-a-half after the nonprofit newsroom filed a lawsuit against the university’s senior leadership with free legal support from Paula Knudsen Burke, the Pennsylvania Local Legal Initiative attorney for the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press. The lawsuit, which has now been dismissed, accused the Board of Trustees of repeatedly violating the Sunshine Act by holding meetings in private.
“This is such an important win for transparency in the Commonwealth. The university and its Board of Trustees are ultimately accountable to the people of Pennsylvania, and their business is the public’s business,” Burke said. “This agreement, which explicitly includes Sunshine Act compliance training, sets a clear expectation that they can no longer hide behind closed doors and executive sessions.”
Spotlight PA first raised concerns about Penn State’s practice of routinely holding private meetings in October 2023. In a letter to the Board of Trustees, Burke highlighted reporting by the nonprofit news outlet that revealed that the university’s leadership had taken official action and conducted deliberations outside of public meetings in violation of Pennsylvania’s Sunshine Act. The letter reminded officials of their obligations under the open meetings law and urged them to address the concerns before their next meeting.
Spotlight PA filed its lawsuit after the Board of Trustees excluded the news outlet’s reporters and other members of the public from attending a series of meetings starting the next month, including executive sessions during which trustees privately discussed proposed $700 million renovations for Penn State’s football stadium. The lawsuit, which alleged several Sunshine Act violations, argued that the Board of Trustees failed to provide the public advance notice about the topics they planned to discuss during private meetings and conferences. Among other things, it also claimed that deliberations during executive sessions, including those concerning the football stadium, sometimes fell outside of justifications for holding nonpublic meetings.
According to the terms of the settlement, the university trustees will be provided Sunshine Act training by the Pennsylvania Office of Open Records. (The first training has already been scheduled for Sept. 11.) And starting in 2026, training must be offered to incoming trustees on an annual basis. The training will ensure that university leaders understand their obligations under the open meetings law, including the possibility of criminal charges for willful violations.
While the Board of Trustees may still meet in private during executive sessions and conferences, the settlement requires the governing body to be more transparent about what those meetings will cover and who will attend them.
Either immediately before or after meeting in an executive session, the Board of Trustees must announce the reason for the private meeting. And before or after holding a conference, the Board must publicly state the reasons for the conference, the person or entity providing training for the board, and the topic covered in the training.
Additionally, the settlement requires the Board’s executive committee to provide public notice whenever it convenes, and to publish a written agenda on its website for each of the meetings.
“The settlement ensures that one of Pennsylvania’s most influential institutions will conduct its business with the transparency that taxpayers, students, faculty, and staff deserve,” said Christopher Baxter, CEO and president of Spotlight PA.
The settlement remains enforceable for five years, providing Spotlight PA the ability to bring an action under the agreement, or again under the Sunshine Act, if necessary.
Check out Spotlight PA’s story to learn more about the settlement. The full agreement can be viewed below.
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press is the leading pro bono legal services provider for journalists and news organizations in the United States, offering direct legal representation, amicus curiae support, and other legal resources to protect First Amendment freedoms and the newsgathering rights of journalists. Stay up-to-date on our work by signing up for our newsletters and following us on Bluesky, LinkedIn, Instagram, and Facebook.