PSU makes visual case to move law school

Patriot-News Copyright (c) 2004 Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved.
Sunday, May 2, 2004

PSU makes visual case to move law school
JOE ELIAS Of Our Carlisle Bureau
No one expected the group touring Penn State University yesterday to commit to going there, after all it was only an informational tour. But there was more in the balance than where to earn a degree. Instead the future of a college was at stake.

The board of governors of The Dickinson School of Law saw first hand where the school could possibly be relocated, if they decide to move from Carlisle to the Penn State University campus.

They also saw the type of building that could be constructed for the $60 million university officials have promised if the board of governors approves a move.

The board took no action on the possible move during its two-day session in State College.

"I think what we saw today was Penn State's advocacy for the move," said LeRoy S. Zimmerman, chairman of the board of governors. "We knew we were going to get the university's story and that's what we got."

Zimmerman and about 22 of the Dickinson board's 36 members were shown four locations around the Penn State campus yesterday where the school could be located. Penn State President Graham Spanier and members of the university's facilities management team gave the tour.

The board also toured the $58 million, 215,000- square-foot Information Sciences and Technology Building, the college's most recently completed building that opened this year.

Spanier touted the building as an example of the facilities the law school would have, adding that a new building would rival the law school facilities available at other Big Ten institutions.

Trickett Hall, the law school's home in Carlisle is about 160,000 square feet.

Spanier called the tour a ?familiarization?? for the Dickinson board to the facilities available at the university.

?We didn't say anything new during the tour. The board has heard all of this before,?? Spanier said. ?This just provides a basis when we discuss the concepts.??

Board members said the tour would be helpful to them as they make their final decision on a possible move.

"Any decision we make is going to impact the law school for years," said Jason Kutulakis, a Carlisle attorney. "These discussions should be viewed as a positive thing no matter what happens."

Three of the four possible sites for a law school are within view of Beaver Stadium and the Bryce Jordan Center, including two sites in Innovation Park, the university's business incubator across from the stadium.

Spanier said moving the law school to State College would also help integrate the school with other programs and curriculum that Penn State offers, such as business, environmental sciences and technology.

What impact the university's presentation had on the board of governors, if any, remains to be seen.

Zimmerman said he is waiting to see what can be done with Trickett Hall or another location in the Carlisle area for the type of money Spanier was talking about spending for a new building.

"I keep wondering if similar things can be done in Carlisle," Zimmerman said.

Zimmerman said he has been told Trickett could be expanded or the university could buy and renovate the Carlisle Hospital, about three blocks down the street from the law school, after the hospital completes construction on a facility in South Middleton Twp.

Spanier said there was a plan to renovate the law school's facilities in Carlisle if the move is voted down but said he didn't know how much would be spent.

The two colleges merged in 1997 with officials from both schools vowing the law school would remain in Carlisle. The law school is not affiliated with Dickinson College.

When law school officials said in November that they were considering an offer from Penn State to move the college to State College, they pointed to cramped classrooms at the law school and its boxed-in campus in Carlisle.

Carlisle community leaders and supporters of the law school said they would fight plans to move the institution. Students and alumni said moving the school would rob would-be lawyers of real-life classrooms in the midstate's many courtrooms and law offices.

Law school Dean Phillip J. McConnaughay cited a need to expand and concerns about the law school's resulting ?languishing reputation?? as other reasons for the move in a memo last fall.

The law school received a third-tier ranking in the annual survey of colleges and graduate schools by U.S. News & World Report magazine.

The memo also mentioned university officials have had difficulty raising enough money to finance an expansion at the Carlisle campus. A six-year campaign to raise $16 million "yielded only $9 million in cash," said McConnaughay, who said he did not want to finance the expansion by increasing tuition, which is $24,300 a year.

Zimmerman said yesterday that he was told Penn State officials would support a decision to stay in Carlisle if that's what the board chose to do.

The board next meeting is May 14, the night before graduation, Zimmerman said. No decision is expected at that meeting.

Zimmerman said there is no timetable on a possible vote, but he hopes for a final decision "sooner rather than later."

Prospect of law school relocation stirs debate

Centre Daily Times (c) Copyright 2004, Centre Daily Times. All Rights Reserved.
Thursday, April 29, 2004

Prospect of law school relocation stirs debate
By Martha Raffaele The Associated Press
CARLISLE When Joe Heaton was considering where to study law, he wrestled with two options: the University of Cincinnati's law school in his native Ohio, and The Dickinson School of Law in Pennsylvania.

Dickinson won out, thanks to its affiliation with Penn State, which Heaton thought would lend prestige to his diploma. But Heaton he was surprised to discover Dickinson wasn't on Penn State's University Park campus in State College, but in a residential neighborhood in Carlisle, about 90 miles away.

"I got here and I thought, 'Where's the stadium? This is really small for a Big Ten school,"' Heaton said Wednesday while taking a break from classes in the school's cafeteria.

Heaton, who will graduate in May, is nonetheless pleased with his education. Still, he wonders whether it could have been better in a state-of-the-art facility at University Park.

"The quality of the education I've gotten is just superior ... but at the same time, being in this building, I feel like it's holding us back from where we could be," he said.

That same question is on the minds of Dickinson officials, who are considering whether to move the 170-year-old law school -- the oldest in Pennsylvania -- from its lifelong home to State College in an effort to boost its stature.

Since November, when a confidential memo from law school Dean Philip J. McConnaughay recommending the move to Dickinson's governing board was leaked to a local newspaper, community leaders, state legislators and even Gov. Ed Rendell have rallied against the idea, saying it could hurt the local economy.

"Because of the length of time the law school has been here, I think that people in the community almost felt like we were being robbed," said Michelle Hornick, president of the Greater Carlisle Area Chamber of Commerce.

McConnaughay said he considered renovating the school's aging buildings in Carlisle, where classroom, office and library space are inadequate and "multiple millions of dollars" worth of maintenance has been put off.

But he ultimately recommended the move, partly because of an analysis of college rankings compiled annually by U.S. News & World Report. He noted a strong correlation between a law school's ranking and its proximity to the main campus of the university to which it belongs.

The survey classifies Dickinson as a "third tier" school. Among Big Ten schools, Penn State is the only one with a law school on a distant campus.

"My intuitive sense was ... schools that were deeply integrated programmatically with a flagship campus of a major research university tended to fare better in terms of their academic reputation ... than did law schools that were not," McConnaughay said.

The law school was founded in 1834 as a department of Dickinson College, a private, liberal arts college in Carlisle. Its graduates include U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge, a former governor.

It became independent in 1890 and remained so until 2000, when it merged with Penn State.

Penn State spokesman Bill Mahon said the relocation was not envisioned at the time of the merger, although the merger agreement authorized Dickinson's board to make such a move at any time.
Even so, some state legislators say school officials made assurances that the law school would remain in Carlisle forever, and they have introduced various measures intended to block any move.

Rep. William Gabig, R-Cumberland, is sponsoring a bill to expressly prohibit Penn State from relocating the law school.

"They are a state-chartered institution ... that gets hundreds of millions of dollars from Pennsylvania taxpayers," Gabig said. "There is nothing in their charter that says they have the power to shut down a law school and start a new one."

Michigan State University experienced similar turmoil when it moved its law school, the former Detroit College of Law, from downtown Detroit to the university's main campus in East Lansing, also about 90 miles away. The move was completed in 1997, two years after the law school became affiliated with the university.

"There were alumni who felt we were leaving them behind and perhaps leaving behind some of our mission," said law school dean Terence Blackburn at Michigan State. "The old school was in some respects what I would have called a school of opportunity. It took a lot of people who didn't have the time to spend in full-time study, people who worked during the academic year."

But Michigan State has reaped several benefits as a result of the move, such as being able to offer a wide array of dual-degree programs, Blackburn added.

Dickinson's board had suspended its recent meetings because of a pending lawsuit in Commonwealth Court in which two newspapers were seeking access to the meetings. The court ruled Friday that the law school board can legally meet in private.

Board Chairman LeRoy S. Zimmerman, however, said the board is scheduled to meet Friday and Saturday in State College, and the media will be allowed to attend the meeting Saturday, when the board is scheduled to discuss possible law school campus sites.

The board is not expected to make any decision at that meeting Zimmerman said. J. Rodman Steele Jr., the board's vice chairman, said it will take time to arrive at a solution.

"I think that one of the questions that has to be answered is, why have many of our prospective students in the last 10 to 15 years chosen to go to other places over Dickinson, and does that relate to the law school itself, or does it relate to the location?" Steele said.

SHOULD DICKINSON LAW MOVE TO PSU CAMPUS?

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette Copyright (c) 2004 Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved.
Sunday, April 25, 2004

SHOULD DICKINSON LAW MOVE TO PSU CAMPUS?
MARTHA RAFFAELE, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
CARLISLE, Pa. When Joe Heaton was considering where to study law, he wrestled with two options: the University of Cincinnati's law school in his native Ohio, and The Dickinson School of Law in Pennsylvania.

Dickinson won, thanks to its affiliation with Penn State University, which Heaton thought would lend prestige to his diploma. But Heaton was surprised to discover Dickinson wasn't on Penn State's University Park campus in State College, but in a residential neighborhood in Carlisle, about 90 miles away.

"I got here and I thought, 'Where's the stadium? This is really small for a Big Ten school,"' Heaton said Wednesday while taking a break from classes.

Heaton, who will graduate in May, is nonetheless pleased with his education. Still, he wonders whether it could have been better in a state-of-the-art facility at University Park.

That same question is on the minds of Dickinson officials, who are considering whether to move the 170-year-old law school, the oldest in Pennsylvania, from its lifelong home to State College in an effort to boost its stature.

Since November, when a confidential memo from law school Dean Philip J. McConnaughay recommending the move to Dickinson's governing board was leaked to a local newspaper, local leaders, state legislators and even Gov. Ed Rendell have rallied against the idea, saying it could hurt the local economy.

"Because of the length of time the law school has been here, I think that people in the community almost felt like we were being robbed," said Michelle Hornick, president of the Greater Carlisle Area Chamber of Commerce.

McConnaughay said he considered renovating the school's aging buildings in Carlisle, where classroom, office and library space are inadequate and "multiple millions of dollars" of maintenance has been put off.

But he ultimately recommended the move, partly because of an analysis of college rankings compiled annually by U.S. News & World Report. He noted a strong correlation between a law school's ranking and its proximity to the main campus of the university to which it belongs.

The survey classifies Dickinson as a "third tier" school. Among Big Ten schools, Penn State is the only one with a law school on a distant campus.

The law school was founded in 1834 as a department of Dickinson College, a private, liberal arts college in Carlisle. Its graduates include U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge.

It became independent in 1890 and remained so until 2000, when it merged with Penn State.

Penn State spokesman Bill Mahon said the relocation was not envisioned at the time of the merger, although the merger agreement authorized Dickinson's board to make such a move at any time.

Even so, some state legislators say school officials made assurances that the law school would remain in Carlisle forever, and they have introduced various measures to block any move.

Dickinson's board has suspended its recent meeting because of a pending lawsuit filed by two newspapers that are seeking access to the meetings. And once the meetings resume, it will still take time to arrive at a solution, said J. Rodman Steele Jr., the board's vice chairman.

"I think that one of the questions that has to be answered is, why have many of our prospective students in the last 10 to 15 years chosen to go to other places over Dickinson, and does that relate to the law school itself, or does it relate to the location?" Steele said.

Closed talks on law school OK'd

Patriot-News Copyright (c) 2004 Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved.
Saturday, April 24, 2004

Closed talks on law school OK'd ; Dickinson board may weigh PSU offer
ELIZABETH GIBSON Of Our Carlisle Bureau
The Commonwealth Court yesterday ruled that The Dickinson School of Law's board of governors may keep its meetings closed to the public -- including talks on possibly moving the school out of Carlisle. The judges' 3-2 vote reverses a February order by Cumberland County Judge Edward E. Guido, which forbade the board from meeting behind closed doors.

The Patriot-News and The Sentinel of Carlisle had argued that the board of governors is a public entity because it is a committee of its parent institution, Penn State, and should be held to the state's open meetings law.

"We intend to appeal the [Commonwealth] decision," Patriot-News Executive Editor David Newhouse said.

"As a part of Penn State University, the law school's future is the public's business. As an important part of the Carlisle community, it is of vital importance to our readers," he said.

Commonwealth Judge Renee Cohen, in writing the court's opinion, said the board operates under a nonprofit association, separate and independent of Penn State, and is, therefore, not subject to the state Sunshine Act.

The board of governors "has no obligation to act in the best interests of PSU, but rather to act in the best interests of the association and the interests of the alumni of the former Dickinson School of Law that it represents," Cohen wrote.

She noted that the merger agreement between Dickinson and Penn State states that the law school cannot be relocated without the board's approval.

Board member G. Thomas Miller favors opening board talks on the topic.

"The public in general and [Carlisle leaders] in particular are so seriously interested in the matter and [have] support of many to keep the school in Carlisle," he said.

But private board meetings already are set for April 30 and May 1 in State College.

And it is expected that the board will weigh a Penn State offer to build a $60 million facility for Dickinson on its main campus at University Park.

"My understanding is that there would not be a vote next weekend on moving the school," said board member Hubert X. Gilroy of Carlisle. He said board committees, which studied options for replacing the school's aging facilities, will share their findings, and the board may decide more study is needed.

Board Chairman LeRoy S. Zimmerman yesterday said the board will keep the community abreast of its discussions. He said the media are invited to an information meeting at the board's May 1 session.

Some board members reportedly have recently discussed a move with Penn State President Graham Spanier, and several board members met this week with law school faculty.

A new home for the school was outlined in a November proposal that law school Dean Philip McConnaughay made to the board.

Leaders in Carlisle and the midstate community immediately protested, and state lawmakers have stepped in to try to prevent Penn State from receiving its full state subsidy unless it promises to keep Dickinson in Carlisle.

Business leaders who fear the loss of an estimated 227 jobs and $20 million in net community spending if the law school leaves have offered to help with relocation and financing if the school stays in or near Carlisle.

McConnaughay has said Dickinson risks a continued slide in national rankings unless it improves its physical setting and opportunities for law students.

But the board, composed of Dickinson alumni who work nationwide in firms and state and federal government posts -- including national Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge -- has the final say.

Court panel says PSU law school board can close meetings

Centre Daily Times (c) Copyright 2004, Centre Daily Times. All Rights Reserved.
Friday, April 23, 2004

Court panel says PSU law school board can close meetings
By Martha Raffaele The Associated Press
HARRISBURG The governing board of Penn State's law school can legally meet in private to discuss proposals to move the school, a panel of state appellate judges said today in a 3-2 ruling.

The board's chairman said he would make an exception to the tradition of private meetings, however, by allowing the media to attend one day of its next two-day meeting scheduled at Penn State's University Park campus.

The Commonwealth Court panel's ruling overturned a preliminary injunction issued in February by a Cumberland County judge that barred the Dickinson School of Law board from holding closed meetings.

The Patriot-News of Harrisburg and The Sentinel of Carlisle went to court in November to try to force open an "informational meeting" about the school's facilities and location.

The board is considering a recommendation by the law school's dean to move the 170-year-old school -- the state's oldest law school -- from Carlisle to Penn State's main campus within the next few years. The dean has cited a need for the school to upgrade its facilities and a need to improve its reputation.

In the majority opinion, Judge Renee L. Cohn agreed with the board's contention that it should be exempt from the open-meetings law because it is an independent, private entity and not a "committee" of Penn State.

"Because the (board) has a separate legal identity, and has the authority to sue PSU, it does not come within the meaning of a 'committee of' PSU," Cohn wrote.

Judges Doris A. Smith-Ribner and James Gardner Colins disagreed, saying that under an agreement that merged the law school with Penn State in 2000, the board of governors has the authority to advise the university's board of trustees on law school matters.

"There is no question that meetings at which the board takes official action or renders advice on agency business should be open to the public subject to any limitations imposed under the Sunshine Act," Smith-Ribner wrote in the dissenting opinion.

Patriot-News attorney Craig Staudenmaier said he was disappointed by the ruling but added he would have to review it with the newspaper before deciding whether to appeal to the state Supreme Court.

"When you look at the manner in which the board was formed and its functions, it is in essence a de-facto committee of Penn State, and its meetings should be just as open to the public," Staudenmaier said.

Sentinel attorney Niles Benn did not return a telephone call seeking comment.

Dickinson's board had suspended its meetings in recent months pending the Commonwealth Court panel's ruling. Its next meetings are scheduled for April 30 and May 1 in State College, and media will be allowed to attend on May 1, when Penn State officials are scheduled to discuss possible law school campus sites, said board Chairman LeRoy S. Zimmerman.
The board is not expected to decide on whether to move the law school at that meeting, Zimmerman said.

"The board has to make its decision, and it will be made in a timely fashion, but only after the board has examined the facts and all of the options," he said.

Merger pact allows law school move, Spanier says

Patriot-News Copyright (c) 2004 Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved.
Wednesday, April 14, 2004

Merger pact allows law school move, Spanier says
ELIZABETH GIBSON Of Our Carlisle Bureau
Last fall, state lawmakers wrote to Penn State University President Graham Spanier asking him to publicly state his support for keeping The Dickinson School of Law in Carlisle instead of moving it to University Park. They finally got a response.

But legislators yesterday said the April 9 missive fails to respond to their request and appears to be timed to protect funding for Penn State as state budget talks get under way.

Spanier sent the letter to 45 House and Senate members, saying he aimed to clarify a proposal to move Dickinson.

"Unfortunately, some misinformation has accompanied the public discussion of this issue, presumably because of the understandable anxiety associated with the possible relocation of [Dickinson]," Spanier wrote.

Talk of moving Dickinson began in November. School officials said the Carlisle facility was outdated and that moving to Penn State's main campus would improve the school's profile.

Lawmakers, including Gov. Ed Rendell, and community and business leaders have opposed a move.

Rep. Will Gabig, R-Carlisle, introduced a bill last month that would make a move illegal.

In yesterday's budget talks, Rep. John Maher, R-Allegheny, introduced an amendment that would make $2 million in proposed funding for Penn State contingent on Dickinson staying in Carlisle.

In his letter, Spanier wrote that some lawmakers have been mistakenly told that an agreement between the law school and Penn State at the time of the 1997 merger prohibited a relocation. He wrote that a move can occur with the consent of the law school's board of governors.

"Sadly, the president has resorted to word games," said Maher, whose father was a Dickinson dean and whose mother is a member of the board of governors.

He and other lawmakers said that law school and Penn State officials promised in 1997 that Dickinson would remain in Carlisle.

The governors board has suspended discussion of the issue until Commonwealth Court decides whether board talks must be open to the public. The Patriot-News and The Sentinel of Carlisle have argued the meetings should be open.

Spanier also wrote that, while Penn State will try to address the interests of the law school and the community, its primary clients are the students.

"The university doesn't have clients. It has a state charter. It has impacts, social and economic," Gabig said. "It's the duty of the elected officials ... to ensure that they're not doing damage to the social and economic standing of the community."

Penn State drops ball on obligation to Carlisle

Patriot-News Copyright (c) 2004 Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved.
Sunday, April 11, 2004
Review & Opinion
Penn State drops ball on obligation to Carlisle ; School forgets role as "people's university"
CHRISTOPHER HOUSTON
Late last month, Penn State celebrated its 150th anniversary as Pennsylvania's only land-grant university. With great fanfare, the Pennsylvania Senate and House of Representatives each passed resolutions commending Penn State "for 150 years of service to the citizens of this commonwealth." President Graham Spanier referred to Penn State as "the people's university," and trustee James S. Broadhurst assured those gathered in the Capitol Rotunda that " "Penn State: making life better" is more than just a slogan."

To a lifelong resident of Carlisle and a graduate of the Dickinson School of Law, the insincerity and irony of these words are painfully acute. While Penn State touts its statewide reach through 24 branch campuses, its contributions to Pennsylvania's quality of life and its economic impact as the largest non-governmental employer in the state, it continues to plot to relocate the Dickinson School of Law from Carlisle to State College.

In its quest to demonstrate its might, Penn State has, in fact, forgotten that the excellence of the whole is dependent upon the strength of its parts.

Penn State's reach extends to Carlisle because of the Dickinson School of Law, with which it merged in 1997. The law school not only greatly enhances the quality of life in the community, but it is also a major regional employer with an annual economic impact of $20 million. As such, the citizens of Carlisle have become dependent on Penn State to ?make life better,?? just as do the citizens who live in the communities where Penn State's other 23 campuses are located.

I am the director of real estate development for the Cumberland County Redevelopment Authority and am in the business of trying to ?make life better?? for the citizens of our county, including Carlisle. I am well aware of the ripple effect that a major employer has upon a community and the devastating economic impact that results from its departure.

Five months ago, Phil McConnaughay, dean of the law school, presented to its Board of Governors a recommendation to move the school to State College. The lengthy memorandum was well-researched from a single point of view -- and it was intended to be confidential. And herein lies the problem.

Setting aside the issue of whether the meetings of the Board of Governors should be conducted in public, Penn State, at the least, has an obligation to responsibly inform and involve those citizens whose welfare will be directly affected by its actions. Neither Dean McConnaughay nor the Penn State administration consulted with the elected and civic leaders of Carlisle before distributing the now infamous memo. If that isn't bad enough, they haven't even bothered to consult with the community since the proposal became public.

For the last five months, I have sat on a task force composed of elected and civic leaders and convened by the Greater Carlisle Area Chamber of Commerce. We have met weekly and have repeatedly extended our offer of the community's services and resources to allow for an honest and open exploration of ways to keep the law school in Carlisle.

We met with the dean and board chairman LeRoy Zimmerman -- once - - at our request. We met -- once -- with the chairs of two of the four ad hoc committees formed by the Board of Governors to look at alternative sites for the school. But then the board and its committees stopped meeting.

In other words, a genuine discussion that involves all stakeholders and thoroughly ex- plores all options to keep the Dickinson School of Law in the community in which it has existed for more than 170 years has yet to take place.

WHAT, I FIND MYSELF ASKING, goes on in the communities in which Penn State's 23 other campuses are found? Are secretive plans afoot there as well to siphon off jobs, income and opportunity? Will these communities face the prospect that confronts Carlisle -- an abandoned building in the heart of town, the loss of a sizable and well-educated work force and the demise of an historic institution? As a Dickinson School of Law alumnus, I want to see the excellence of my alma mater enhanced. But as a resident of Carlisle, I also want to protect the health of my community.

When I first learned of it, I must admit that I was hopeful that the merger with Penn State would strengthen the academic credentials of my alma mater, but concerned that the law school would possibly be moved elsewhere.

When the merger was finally announced, I was comforted with the fact that Penn State had agreed at that time to keep the law school in Carlisle forever. This in my mind showed that Penn State was committed to our community. In seven short years, Penn State has forgotten about its commitment.

As the state's largest public university and the recipient of more than $300 million annually in state funding, Penn State's mission is, in its own definition, to ?make life better?? for the people of Pennsylvania. I hope that the public and the members of the General Assembly will hold the university to its promise.

CHRISTOPHER C. HOUSTON is deputy director of the Cumberland County Redevelopment Authority.

Keep law school here, candidates say

Patriot-News Copyright (c) 2004 Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved.
Tuesday, March 23, 2004

Keep law school here, candidates say ; House hopefuls split on state spending, medical malpractice, health costs
MATT MILLER Of Our Carlisle Bureau
There was common ground on keeping The Dickinson School of Law in Carlisle. Otherwise, wrangling prevailed as the 199th state House District candidates faced off at Dickinson College last night. Divisions centered on money -- specifically controlling state spending -- and how to rein in health care expenses and rising medical malpractice insurance costs.

Christian Muniz even chastised fellow Democrat Gov. Ed Rendell for a "bad budget" and said Republican leaders passed it "simply to embarrass the governor." Such partisanship has hamstrung government, Muniz said.

Muniz of Carlisle, an aide to State Rep. Jeff Coy, D- Shippensburg, is vying with Matthew Teter of North Middleton Twp., a Verizon sales manager, for the Democratic nomination in the 199th, which covers most of central and western Cumberland County.

Carlisle businessman Dick Suter is challenging State Rep. Will Gabig of Carlisle for the GOP nod.

Last night's forum drew about 100 people.

Teter vowed to be a "vigilant budget hawk" and to bring "cutting- edge companies" to the area for "sustainable economic growth."

He blamed the malpractice insurance crisis on an "ambulance- chasing mentality" and on judges who allow juries to return "ludicrously" high awards in such cases.

Muniz called for "reasonable" caps on malpractice awards and said the state insurance commissioner should be elected, not appointed, to "add a healthy bit of politics" to insurance regulation.

Business taxes are too high, Muniz said, and the state must invest more in site preparation and other elements to attract firms.

Gabig said the best thing state leaders can do to attract business is "to keep control of spending, which will keep control of taxes."

Medical malpractice reform, particularly caps on jury awards, is "something we need to move on," he said.

Suter called for a "real, balanced solution" for property tax reform.

He backed "limited" caps on malpractice awards and urged doctors to help weed out poor physicians. "The medical profession has to do a better job of policing their own," he said.

On the economic front, "the first thing we need to do is to keep the jobs that we have," he said. "We have to be sure that our tax structure is competitive with neighboring states."

As for the law school, Gabig touted his newly introduced bill that would block a plan to move the school, an arm of Penn State University, to Penn State's main campus.

Teter and Muniz backed that strategy, and Muniz demanded that Penn State be made to open its books regarding the economics of the proposed relocation. Suter blasted the law school board for its "secrecy" in handling the issue.

MATT MILLER: 249-2006 or mmiller@patriot-news.com

TABULAR OR GRAPHIC MATERIAL SET FORTH IN THIS DOCUMENT IS NOT DISPLAYABLE


PHOTO; GARY DWIGHT MILLER; Caption: From left, candidates Christian Muniz, Will Gabig, Matthew Teter and Dick Suter squared off last night at a debate for the 199th state House District.

Dual campuses for Dickinson is "unique" idea ----- uniquely bad

Patriot-News Copyright (c) 2004 Bell & Howell Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved.
Saturday, March 6, 2004
A Section
Dual campuses for Dickinson is "unique" idea
ELIZABETH GIBSON Of Our Carlisle Bureau
If The Dickinson School of Law moves to University Park, its Carlisle campus could remain a vibrant learning center. Penn State President Graham Spanier discussed the possibility last month of having two Dickinson campuses. Yesterday, school Dean Philip McConnaughay described how the arrangement could work.

McConnaughay said that if the law school's main home moved to State College, most undergraduate law students and faculty would move with it.

Trickett Hall in Carlisle then could become a branch campus for scholars in advanced law and government studies. They would be taught by Dickinson professors based in Carlisle and experts in state and local government offices.

McConnaughay suggested it could be known as Dickinson's Institute of Government Law.

The center would offer advanced degrees to practicing lawyers and government employees and year-long courses to leaders from developing nations.

"We're really talking about an expansion of the law school. We would try to add some depth in government-related activities," McConnaughay said. "I think it would be unique in the U.S."

McConnaughay said he thinks a branch campus would satisfy local and state leaders' demands that Dickinson stay in Carlisle.

"It's true that this solves potentially some of the political uproar over a move. It's equally true that this program could be of significant benefit economically to Carlisle and the region," McConnaughay said.

He outlined his suggestions this week in a letter to the Dickinson board of governors.

Board Chairman LeRoy Zimmerman, who had not yet read program descriptions, called it a ?fascinating proposal.??

"On the face of it, it sounds appealing," he said.

Robert M. Frey, an emeritus member of the board, hadn't seen the letter but said there is no guarantee the proposed programs would attract enough students to sustain a second campus.

He said the concept was premature since the board, which alone has the power to recommend moving the school, hasn't made a decision about Dickinson's future location.

Citing a decline in national rankings and the need for upgrades at the Carlisle facility, McConnaughay proposed a move in November. He said Penn State offered to build a $60 million facility for Dickinson in University Park.

The board has suspended discussions on the issue pending its appeal of a Cumberland County Court decision to open board meetings to the public.

The Patriot-News and The Sentinel of Carlisle convinced the county court that the board is a Penn State body and should not bar the public and media from its meetings.

If the school stays in Carlisle, McConnaughay said only some of the latest ideas would be pursued.

McConnaughay said Penn State would initially fund a branch campus with the expectation it would eventually be sustained on fees and tuition. No cost estimate has been made, he said.

The institute, McConnaughay said, stands to make Carlisle a destination for new, regular visitors.

"It could be of significant economic benefit to the region," McConnaughay said.

Judges ask law school to justify secrecy

Centre Daily Times (c) Copyright 2004, Centre Daily Times. All Rights Reserved.
Thursday, March 4, 2004

Judges ask law school to justify secrecy
By Ron Todt The Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA Appeals court judges peppered attorneys with questions Wednesday on whether the board of governors of Penn State's Dickinson School of Law had the right to meet privately on proposals to move the school.

The five-judge Commonwealth Court panel heard arguments on the Dickinson board's appeal of a preliminary injunction issued a month ago by Cumberland County Common Pleas Judge Edward E. Guido.

The Patriot-News of Harrisburg and The Sentinel of Carlisle went to court in November to try to force open an "informational meeting" about the school's facilities and location. Guido sided with the newspapers and ordered the board to open all future meetings.

News reports said the law school's dean was recommending that the school move from Carlisle to State College by the fall of 2008, citing a need to expand and concerns about its "languishing reputation."

In Wednesday's hearing, attorneys focused on whether the Dickinson board was operating as a Penn State "committee" subject to the open-meetings law, or whether it should be considered an independent body that could hold closed meetings.

Dickinson board attorney Jack Stover said that, far from functioning as a Penn State panel, the board was set up as part of a 1997 merger agreement to be a separate body.

"If we're not a committee, we're not under this act," Stover said. Forcing such meetings open, he said, would be like requiring open meetings by the board of a nonprofit group set up to give out scholarships or provide medical care to state prison inmates.

"Why is it so important for this meeting to be secret?" President Judge James Gardner Colins asked. Stover said members had the right to meet privately to communicate freely and that any decision would still go to a public meeting of the Penn State board.

"Our right is to decide whether to waive or enforce (covenants)," Stover said. After that, he said, "Penn State University decides, and that will be a public decision."

Other members of the panel asked whether a university could create a nonprofit body to handle debate on touchy issues so such meetings could be private. Stover said such meetings could be forced open by the state attorney general.

Sentinel attorney Niles S. Benn said the court should look at how the board functioned rather than what it was called. "I have a very hard time determining that this is not a committee of Pennsylvania State University," he said.

Judge Dan Pellegrini repeatedly questioned how the Dickinson board could be a Penn State committee if it was also empowered to sue the university.

"If I'm part of Penn State, how can I sue it?" he asked. "How can you sue yourself?"

"Because that's what Penn State University agreed to," Benn responded.
Colins pointed out that even if the law school board were to decide to waive all covenants and become part of Penn State "lock stock and barrel," the decision would still have to go to an open meeting of the Penn State board.

If not, he said, "I think there's the potential for litigation to employ many graduates" of the law school.

Patriot-News attorney Craig Staudenmaier, however, said the open-meetings law was intended to give the public access to not only the decision but to the debate involved. "The process is just as important as the final result," he said.

Benn said he expects a decision by the appeals panel in the next few weeks.

The law school has set up four committees to study proposals to expand the current location, move the school to another site in the Carlisle area or to State College, and how to fund the options. Lawmakers from south-central Pennsylvania, meanwhile, are seeking ways to keep the school in Carlisle.

Dickinson, founded in 1834, is Pennsylvania's oldest law school and the fifth-oldest in the United States, according to the school. The law school, which has about 650 students, merged with Penn State in 2000.

Judges hear appeal of law school ruling - March 4, 2004

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Thursday, March 4, 2004

Judges hear appeal of law school ruling ; Dickinson wants public barred from meetings
RON TODT Of The Associated Press
Appeals court judges peppered attorneys with questions yesterday on whether the board of governors of Penn State University's Dickinson School of Law had the right to meet privately to discuss proposals to move the school out of Carlisle. The five-judge Commonwealth Court panel heard arguments on the Dickinson board's appeal of a preliminary injunction issued last month by Cumberland County Common Pleas Judge Edward E. Guido.

The Patriot-News and The Sentinel of Carlisle went to court in November to try to force open board meetings. Guido sided with the newspapers and ordered the board to open all meetings.

Law school Dean Philip McConnaughay in November urged the board to consider a Penn State offer to build a $60 million facility for Dickinson at University Park. McConnaughay cited the need to expand and voiced concerns about the school's drop in national rankings.

Attorneys yesterday focused on whether the Dickinson board was operating as a Penn State ?committee,?? subject to the open-meetings law, or an independent body that could hold closed meetings.

Dickinson board attorney Jack Stover said that under a 1997 merger agreement, the board is a separate body.

"If we're not a committee, we're not under this act," Stover said.

"Why is it so important for this meeting to be secret?" President Judge James Gardner Colins asked.

Stover said members had the right to meet privately and that any decision would still go to a public meeting of the Penn State board.

Other members of the panel asked whether a university could create a nonprofit body to debate sensitive issues. Stover said the state attorney general could force open such meetings.

Niles S. Benn, The Sentinel attorney, said the court should look at how the board functioned. ?I have a very hard time determining that this is not a committee of Pennsylvania State University,?? he said.

Judge Dan Pellegrini asked how the Dickinson board could be a committee if it could also sue the university.

"How can you sue yourself?" he asked.

"Because that's what Penn State University agreed to," Benn responded.

Colins pointed out that even if the law school board were to decide to waive all covenants and become part of Penn State, the decision would still have to go to an open meeting of the Penn State board.

Patriot-News attorney Craig Staudenmaier said the open-meetings law was intended to give the public access to the decision and the debate. ?The process is just as important as the final result,?? he said.

The law school has set up four committees to study proposals to expand the current location, move the school to another site in the Carlisle area or to State College, and to study how to fund the options.

Dickinson, founded in 1834, is Pennsylvania's oldest law school. The law school, which has about 650 students, merged with Penn State in 2000.