8/9/2019 Goldstein Statement

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As a new member of the board, and as a student, I wanted to sharewith you my reection and the observations Ive had over the past sixmonths.

I am worried my message will be misunderstood, so before I start, I

want to take a few moments to go over what I believe this is not:

his is not my making accusations, I too am a member of this

board and aspire to what I am about to lay out

his is not my condemning one group of people on any particular

side of any particular issue ! I think everyone can bene"t fromthese thoughts

his is not my saying that the way any individual or groupconducts itself is wrong, or bad ! as I know that there is much

that goes on behind the scenes that dictates our responses andour emotions, and #uite frankly, I lack the experience that manyof those around this table possess.

Instead, what I am saying is this: $enn %tate was accused of having aculture problem! and three years later, we still "ghting over it. I am nottroubled by the fact that we are discussing it, nor the fact that thereare di&erent opinions on the matter, as debate and discourse arehealthy and allow us to consider the potential impact of the variousoptions available to us. 'hat I am troubled by is the fact that we are"ghting, and more importantly how we are "ghting.

(ohn ). *ennedy once said +et us not seek the -epublican answer orthe emocratic answer, but the right answer./ 0ow are we to knowwhat the right answeris when there is so much distrust among usthat it is hard to listen to others perspectives1 0ow are we to knowwhat the right answeris when sometimes we dont even discuss, orwe make decisions in timeframes inade#uate to consider all sides ofthe story1 0ow are we to know what the right answer is when politicsmake it hard to determine whether our colleagues are acting in waysthey consider to be in the best interests of the university, or instead, toundermine the perceived politics of another colleague1 In his#uotation, *ennedy goes on to say, +et us not seek to "x the blamefor the past. et us accept our own responsibility for the future./ heenvironment that exists on this board is not something I think any of usshould dedicate further time to dissecting ! instead I hope we can takeresponsibility for our future ! and future of this university.

8/9/2019 Goldstein Statement

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As leaders at the top, we have a chance to perpetuate a culture that$enn %tate can be proud of. et us take command of our own culture,and let us continue to build upon a culture that is focused on ourstudents, our alumni, our faculty, our sta&, those who feel someconnection to $enn %tate, our legislators, $ennsylvanians, and our

future $enn %taters. hat is challenging, but I think it is possible. If wecan put aside our di&erences, put aside our mistrust, put aside thepolitics, I wonder if together we cant make it through the nuances weface as members of this board during such a very di2cult ! albeitchanging 3 time.