Sports

Penn State Hires Sandy Barbour as Permanent Athletic Director to Take Over Next Month for Dave Joyner

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Pennsylvania State University has named its new, permanent Director of Athletics, Sandy Barbour, who previously held the same position at UC - Berkeley.

According to ESPN, Barbour ended a 10-year tenure at Cal when she resigned last month and her post will officially begin at Penn State on Aug. 18. Interim athletic director Dave Joyner was believed to be on his way out after the school announced the hiring of Eric Barron as president.

Joyner's post was only an interim basis, but he held the position for two-and-a-half years as the Jerry Sandusky child molestation scandal had the entire administration reeling. Penn State now has permanent replacements for the head football coach, the team staff, school president and athletic director.

"In Sandy, I believe we have found a proven leader who is well-suited to provide strong oversight for our 31 varsity sports, our 800-plus student athletes, and the $115 million budget of Intercollegiate Athletics," Barron said in the athletic department's official announcement. "I was impressed by her hands-on approach to things, her strategic thinking and her ability to combine sports, business and education in an effective and accountable way."

Barbour reportedly agreed to a five-year contract, according to ESPN, and her base salary will be $700,000. She also has a $100,000 retention bonus and built-in incentives that can reach up to $100,000 as well.

PennLive.com previously reported that Joyner's June exit seemed to be leaving the school without a permanent replacement. Barbour said she did not expect Penn State to give her a call when she stepped down at Cal, but the storied athletic program was enough to make her interested.

"I am incredibly excited to be coming to Penn State. I am drawn to this great University by two things: its pursuit of excellence in all endeavors, and its sense of family in every aspect of the Nittany Lion community," Barbour said in the announcement. "I'm as competitive as they come, and I know I'm joining a community that wants and expects to win big, all while maintaining a sense of tradition, integrity and ethics. I'm all in!"

At a news conference shortly after the hiring, Barron and Barbour addressed various issues she faced at Cal. For example, the football team's graduation rate was 44 percent under her supervision, whereas Penn State's sits around 85 percent.

"I want to be clear," she said, according to ESPN. "We are about students first. And that 85 percent graduation rate, it's going to go to 90."

Joyner will remain Penn State's AD until Aug. 18 and he will take on a consulting position after that.

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