Penn State University’s board of trustees voted unanimously Friday to approve a request for a 48% increase in the state’s appropriation.
The school will ask the Pennsylvania General Assembly for $469.5 million for the 2023-24 school year. The move, Penn State says, will bring the support it receives from the legislature closer to other public universities in the commonwealth.
The request would represent an increase of nearly $115.2 million for the school’s general support allocation.
General support covers “core teaching costs” and investment in the university’s academic programs, according to PSU.
“For years we have gotten the lowest dollar-per-student of any state-supported school,” said Edward Brown III, the president and CEO of KETCHConsulting, Inc., and a member of Penn State’s 38-member board of trustees.
“I just want the public to understand, the legislature to understand, the fairness of that request,” he added.
The board also voted to allow food and beverage vendors at Beaver Stadium to sell beer. The stadium, which can hold over 100,000 fans, currently only offers alcohol in the club and suites sections.
It has not yet been announced when beer sales will begin. Eight of the 14 schools in the NCAA’s Big Ten Conference currently offer alcohol sales at football games.
Fans will have to scan their state-issued IDs to purchase their first alcoholic beverage. They will receive a wristband to show vendors during subsequent sales.
The university said it would also implement a “secret shopper” program to monitor ID checks.
Board member Valerie Detwiler, one of five trustees who voted against the measure, urged caution to her fellow members and asked them to vote against allowing beer sales.
She raised questions about claims that alcohol-related instances and ejections were decreased when beer sales were implemented in other stadiums.
“While less instances are obviously a wonderful thing, I’m not sure that selling alcohol in a stadium of 110,000 fans is the answer to reducing the number of events,” she said.
Ms. Detwiler, the senior vice president and senior commercial banker at Reliance Bank, also cautioned against leaning into alcohol sales simply because other Big 10 schools allowed it.
“Selling beer in the stadium will have a negative impact on the game day experience for families, and in turn, our future students,” she said.
Brandon D. Short, another board member, disagreed, noting that other schools have proved that they are able to handle alcohol sales without issues.
“Beyond the data, we’ve had alcohol sales in the club seats at Beaver Stadium and the Pegula [Ice Arena] since 2017,” he said. “Why would we think that people who sit in club seats can drink responsibly but the average fan can’t?”
In a press release, Penn State said beer revenue would go towards deferred maintenance projects at the stadium. Fans will also be limited to two, 16-ounce alcoholic beverages.
The board also approved the university’s operating budget for the next fiscal year, with a deficit of $140.1 million.
Mick Stinelli: mstinelli@post-gazette.com
First Published: September 23, 2022, 7:05 p.m.
Updated: September 23, 2022, 7:57 p.m.
