Quote:
Originally Posted by als463
The only thing I want to add to this is that you would be very surprised by how many parents who are part of a long history of Penn State Alumni would actually stand behind their child if they chose to stay. I say this because I have talked to numerous Penn State Alumni who have had their children get offers from schools that I see as having much better academics (though I bleed blue and white and am completely proud of my alma mater) than Penn State and turn them down to attend PSU. In fact, I have a sorority sister who attended another university where she pledged our sorority. She married a Penn State Alum and she really wants to see her daughter (who is under age 10) go to PSU and join my chapter. I LOVE that idea and will be the first one in line wanting to write her daughter, who is a sweetheart, a rec. I'm just saying that people give birth thinking, "Yep, this is a future Nittany Lion." I say this to show how deep it goes. Before anyone assumes this is because people are all about the "football" aspect of Penn State, it has much more to do with it than that. The degrees I hold in certain programs rank very high in the country. Academics are a major aspect of it.
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I will agree with this.
I didn't realize the "Power of Penn State" until I started looking into the school. I grew up in New England, which has many great schools. And yes, students there obviously have school pride, but there is something different about PSU.
I don't know if other colleges and universities do this, but I was living in NH, and my mom saw an ad in the newspaper for a Penn State presentation (for prospective students) being held at a local hotel. There were many high school students in attendance, and those that gave the presentation were so excited about Penn State. This is also where I learned about PSU's 20 campuses and all they had to offer.
A few months after I was accepted, I received an invitation in the mail to a BBQ - a family in NH holds a big party every summer, and they invite all of the incoming freshmen, and their families, in the tri-state area. My mom and I were a bit shocked by how into Penn State everyone was, and we KNEW that about half of these students' parents were Penn State alumni. They held a Penn State trivia game, and my mom and I looked clueless, as everyone else was yelling out answers to questions that we didn't even understand.
And I can't even tell you how many times I heard "WE ARE.. PENN STATE!" yelled that day.
When I finally got to PA, I was shocked at how into Penn State EVERYONE was. Young kids, teenagers, adults, parents, grandparents, etc. I worked in a small law firm after I graduated, and 3 different employees had season tickets to the games.. one of which didn't even like football - she just enjoyed the energy of the stadium, and the students. I had visited a few of my friends' parents houses around Christmas time each year, and ALL of them had Penn State-themed trees. With so many campuses all around the state, everyone lived and breathed that school.
Pennsylvania basically = Penn State
I live in NJ now, and I see more Penn State stickers on cars than I do any other school. The bars around here have more Penn State memorabilia in them than other universities, and I frequently run into alumni groups out in public that get together to watch the games.
It's not all about football. Even the love that people had for Joe Paterno wasn't all about football. There's a reason his name was attached to scholarships and awards, and it wasn't because he won a ton of football games.
Don't get me wrong - I'm not condoning whatever he may have done, and if he definitely knew about Sandusky's actions, he sure as hell should have done something about it. However, the reason people put him on a pedestal wasn't just because he taught his players how to win football games.
I have no doubt that current players will leave (as evidenced in DrPhil's latest post), but I wouldn't be quick to assume that every parent would turn their child away from playing there. I've definitely seen the power of Penn State.
..NOT to be confused with the power of the football team.
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