Steve Garban resigned Thursday from the Penn State Board of Trustees , becoming the first board member to step down following the release of a scathing report that found it was part of the failure that allowed a longtime sexual predator to prey on boys at the school . Garban 's resignation follows last week 's release of an internal review conducted by former FBI director Louis Freeh that found Penn State 's most powerful leader showed `` total and consistent disregard '' for child sex abuse victims and covered up attacks by former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky . `` After absorbing the findings of the Freeh Report last week , the Board of Trustees accepted responsibility for the failures of governance that took place on our watch . Following the release of the report , you also asked each member of the Board to evaluate our individual paths forward , '' Garban wrote in his resignation letter to board chairwoman Karen Peetz . `` It is clear to me that my presence on the Board has become a distraction and an impediment to your efforts to move forward and continue the Board 's most important work . '' Garban served as chairman of the Board of Trustees when the scandal broke and stepped down following Sandusky 's arrest . In a letter posted on the university 's website , Peetz said she accepted the resignation . Garban worked at the university for 33 years . He was re-elected to his fifth term on the board in 2010 , according to a biography posted online . Freeh 's report cast a wide net of blame , from the late famed football coach Joe Paterno to the university trustees , in the scandal . Garban 's resignation is the latest fallout for the university , which is still under scrutiny by the Department of Education and the National Collegiate Athletic Association ( NCAA ) , inquiries that could further tarnish its reputation and that of its storied football program . Two former university administrators are awaiting trial for their role in the scandal , and more charges are possible as the state 's Attorney General 's Office investigates what Penn State may have known about Sandusky 's behavior . Sandusky , 68 , was convicted in late June of 45 of the 48 sexual abuse counts he faced , involving 10 victims . He will be sentenced in September . Sandusky 's legal team has said it will appeal the convictions .
Steve Garban was serving as chairman of the Board of Trustees when the scandal broke . He stepped down as chairman following the arrest of Jerry Sandusky in November 2011 . Comment: