IMAGE: Penn State
A national search will begin immediately to identify Hanes’ successor.
“The Commonwealth Campuses are critical to Penn State’s land-grant mission to serve the educational needs of Pennsylvanians, and they play a vital role in the economic strength of the communities they serve,” said Penn State President Eric Barron. “Under Madlyn’s leadership, our Commonwealth Campuses have expanded their four-year degree programs, developed and implemented successful innovation hubs that are advancing entrepreneurship and generating economic activity in communities across the state, and continued to deliver an exceptional educational experience close to home for a large and diverse student body. While Madlyn’s leadership will be hard to match, I am thrilled for her and wish her the very best in this next stage in her life.”
IMAGE: Provided
A native of Pennsylvania and 1983 graduate of the College of Agricultural Sciences, Conrad said his gift to the Center for Sexual and Gender Diversity was inspired by his lifetime journey as a gay man and by his dedication to supporting the LGBTQ+ community. As a first-generation student coming from a small, rural community, Conrad faced many challenges in his undergraduate experience, compounded by his experiences struggling with his sexuality and negative stigmas about the LGBTQ+ community in the early 1980s. Conrad endured a lack of support and resources for the LGBTQ+ community, as well as sometimes outright hostility, while earning his degree in agricultural business. Those same experiences persisted as he began a career in business where, if revealed, disclosure of his sexuality at that time could have resulted in a loss of employment or derail his career.