BARRY FENCHAK FOR PENN STATE TRUSTEE

Responsible governance. For a change.

NOMINATE BARRY.

Nomination ballots will be sent to alumni January 15th, 2022.

Request your nominating ballot

Responsible governance. For a change.

I have, for years, put forward thorough, intelligent, and workable solutions to address Penn State’s issues. Those who know me are aware of my positions regarding Penn State, and of my resolute and unwavering commitment to serve for the benefit of all stakeholders of the University. Those who would like to find out more about me, please keep reading. Or contact me directly, I will reply. Always. — Barry

Key Issues:

  • Penn State NEEDS responsible stewardship provided by those who are committed to serving the University as fiduciaries, not those committed to serving themselves.
  • Penn State NEEDS smart stewards who have invested the time and the effort necessary to understand the issues facing the University.
  • Penn State NEEDS talented stewards who have the skills and abilities to develop proposals that address key University challenges.
  • Penn State NEEDS outspoken stewards who have the commitment and the tenacity to challenge an ingrained and dysfunctional status-quo.

Penn State deserves better, and Penn State Alumni DESERVE the opportunity to support someone who will provide those skills and abilities and commitments.

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Barry on SubStack

Does Barry Fenchak ever have anything positive to say? That’s a great question. Allow me to answer. December 17, 2021

Governance Failure in Action: The James Franklin Contract Process. Was this contract actually approved? December 12, 2021

Meet Penn State’s Next President. Neeli Bendapudi has been selected as the University’s 19th leader. December 9, 2021

What are the Ratings Services Saying about Penn State? Under Eric Barron, and the Board of Trustees, Penn State has experienced a dramatic drop in rankings. December 3, 2021

Penn State Board of Trustees meetings: November 2021 – November 21, 2021

Penn State Athletics: Seven Years of Sandy Barbour, Part II – Academics. PSU Athletics: In-classroom success under Sandy Barbour. August 17, 2021

What can Penn State Athletics do in response to the recent SCOTUS rulings? An opportunity to re-awaken the Grand Experiment. July 16, 2021

The SCOTUS vs the NCAA: What the ruling really means. June 21, 2021

Penn State Admi$$ion$: The Changing Admissions Landscape in a Post-COVID Era. June 16, 2021

Where Does Tuition Money Go? June 9, 2021

Penn State Athletics: Seven Years of Sandy Barbour, Part I – On-Field Results: Penn State Athletics: On-Field Success under AD Sandy Barbour. May 18, 2021

Follow Barry fenchak on substack

In Barry’s Opinion…

Governance Failure in Action: The James Franklin Contract Process

Was this contract actually approved? Penn State football head coach James Franklin’s new contract has been the source of much discussion since it was announced on November 23rd. Many have already written about and discussed that topic, and Mike Poorman did a thorough job breaking down the many issues in his excellent article James Franklin’s 100 Games and Penn State Contract: I Crunched the Numbers so You Don’t Have to.…

Keep reading
by barryfenchak4trustee

Meet Penn State’s Next President

Neeli Bendapudi has been selected as the University’s 19th leader December 9, 2021 It was announced today that Neeli Bendapudi, PhD, who is the current president of the University of Louisville, has been selected as Penn State University’s next president. She will be replacing Dr Eric Barron, who has been in the position since 2014. Dr Bendapudi has served as Louisville’s president since 2018 – which was her first…

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by barryfenchak4trustee

Penn State Board of Trustees: Meeting Report, November 2021

There was not much in the way of Governance conducted at the November Board of Trustees meetings, but I will just highlight a couple of items, within a brief chronological summary of the non-governance goings-on that might be of interest. HIGHLIGHTS: A potential highlight was Sandy Barbour’s presence for the Compensation Committee meeting. Barbour is not normally present, so this might indicate an athletics-related contract discussion was taking place,…

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by barryfenchak4trustee

What are the Ratings Services Saying about Penn State?

Under Eric Barron, and the Penn State Board of Trustees, Penn State has taken the largest drop in the nation. Is it time for a change? Since 2014 Penn State University has taken the largest drop in rankings of any Top 100 university in the country.Let’s take a look at what they concluded, and then discuss why it has taken place (and on whose watch). The most widely-cited and…

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by barryfenchak4trustee

The Penn State Endowment

What good things could Penn State do with an extra $1.2 Billion? Over the last few years, the fees paid out to Penn State’s Investment Advisers have increased from approximately $11 Million per year, to nearly $75 Million per year. It is not unusual, in fact it is quite common, for large investment accounts to contract with Investment Advisors to oversee the management of those investments. In doing so,…

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by barryfenchak4trustee

What can Penn State Athletics do in response to the recent SCOTUS rulings? An opportunity to re-awaken the Grand Experiment

There has been an abundance of confusion regarding the recent ruling by the Supreme Court in the case against the NCAA. This ruling has often been conflated with the “Names Image and Likeness” (NIL) legislation that now allows student-athletes to profit from the use of their notoriety as athletes. But what the Supreme Court (SCOTUS) case dealt with is something different. What the SCOTUS ruling did was eliminate existing…

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by barryfenchak4trustee

Penn State Admi$$ion$: The Changing Admissions Landscape in a Post-COVID Era

Last year, Penn State University President Eric Barron announced that standardized test scores (aka, the SAT Test) would not be required in admissions applications. The rationale behind that change was reasonable: due to COVID restrictions, the SAT Board drastically scaled back the opportunities for high school students to take the SAT, and many students might not have had the opportunity to provide standardized test scores for the 2020 admissions…

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by barryfenchak4trustee

About Barry

Barry J Fenchak – Eng ’84, MBA ‘91

I was born in Ebensburg, Pennsylvania but came to State College at 17 years of age, and have lived in the Park Forest neighborhood ever since. I am a two-time Penn State graduate and the son, husband, brother, brother-in-law, and father of Penn State alumni. My wife and I have raised our family in Happy Valley. You can’t get much more Penn State than me.

After completing my Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering at Penn State/Main Campus in 1984, I worked in the chemical and pharmaceutical industry as a Process/Production Engineer and Production Manager. At the same time I enrolled in the Master of Business Administration (MBA) program at Smeal College of Business.

After completing my MBA degree in 1991, I opened an Investment Management and Financial Advisory practice in State College. I am a licensed Registered Investment Advisor and Securities Principal, and work with individuals, families, and businesses to develop, implement, and manage investment and financial strategies to secure their financial well-being.

From 1996-2016 I served as an Adjunct Professor at Penn State, teaching undergraduate courses in personal and corporate finance (FIN 108 and 301), as well as accounting principles (ACCT 211).

Position Statement

Penn State University is a complex and dynamic institution, operating in a challenging environment.  My priorities are congruent with taking on the greatest challenges facing our University.

Dedication to furthering the University’s core missions: 

  • Providing a quality affordable education, and sponsoring meaningful and beneficial research.
  • Fiscal responsibility and oversight of the University’s assets and resources.
  • Engaged and active advocacy as a steward for the University and its stakeholders.

Among Penn State’s greatest current challenges and shortcomings are:

  1. The highest in-state tuition of any public university in the nation. This issue has not arisen out of accident or happenstance.
  2. The plummeting of Penn State’s academic standing in the Big Ten – from 4th place to 10th place, and dropping. These issues are not unrelated…. And they must be addressed.
  3. The suffocating costs of administrative waste and largess, being loaded onto the backs of our Students and their Families. These issues are not unrelated…. And they must be addressed.
  4. Drastic declines in the in-state student composition of the Penn State University Park student body. These issues are not unrelated…. And they must be addressed.
  5. The most dysfunctional and the least accountable board of governance among the Big Ten’s public institutions.  A 38 member board which focuses it’s only efforts on in-fighting, self-service, and posturing, rather than serving as Responsible Stewards of the University. These issues are not unrelated…. And they must be addressed.

    I care deeply for my Alma Mater, and there is no one more qualified and committed than I, to take on that responsibility.