April 01, 2003

Senate confirms Erie executive to third term on Board of Governors

Contact: Kevin Hensil, khensil@passhe.edu

The state Senate has confirmed the reappointment of R. Benjamin Wiley of Erie to a third four-year term on the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education’s Board of Governors.

Mr.Wiley is chief executive officer of the Greater Erie Community Action Committee (GECAC), a position he has held for more than 30 years. GECAC is a non-profit corporation that provides a variety of community service activities involving child and youth development, transportation, housing, food and nutrition, education, employment and training, drug and alcohol abuse treatment and services for the elderly. It manages an annual budget of approximately $35 million.

The 20-member Board of Governors has overall responsibility for planning and coordinating the development and operation of the State System, which comprises Pennsylvania’s 14 public universities. The governors establish broad fiscal, personnel and educational policies under which the System universities operate.

The Board is made up of 11 members who are appointed by the governor and confirmed by the Senate, four legislators, three students, the governor or his designee and the secretary of education or her designee.

Mr. Wiley was first appointed to the Board of Governors in July 1995 and has served as vice chairman since 1996. He also chairs the Board’s Human Resources Committee.

“It is my pleasure to serve on the Board of Governors,” Mr. Wiley said. “I look forward to another four years of service to the State System, and especially to the students who attend the 14 universities. It is the Board’s goal to have the State System be a leader among public higher education systems in the country. The System and our universities are committed to providing students with access to a high quality, affordable education, serving the needs of the Commonwealth and acting as good stewards of the taxpayer and student tuition dollars we receive.”

Mr. Wiley is active in the Erie community and has received numerous awards from civic organizations, including both the AFL-CIO’s Community Service Award presented by the Erie Central Labor Council and the President’s Leadership Award for Business and Community Service presented by the Erie Chamber of Commerce. Most recently, he was the recipient of the Alexis de Tocqueville Society Award.

Mr. Wiley is a graduate of Gannon University. He has been a member of Edinboro University of Pennsylvania’s Council of Trustees since 1983, serving as its chair from 1994 to 1999.

Other members of the Board of Governors are Charles A. Gomulka of Pittsburgh, chair; Kim E. Lyttle of Pittsburgh, vice chair; Rep. Matthew E. Baker, Wellsboro; Marie Conley Lammando, Steelton; Rep. Jeffrey W. Coy, Shippensburg; Brandon W. Danz, Millersville University of Pennsylvania; Daniel P. Elby, York; David P. Holveck, Malvern; Sen. Vincent Hughes, Philadelphia; C.R. “Chuck” Pennoni, Bryn Mawr; Secretary of Education Vicki L. Phillips; Gov. Edward G. Rendell; Sen. James J. Rhoades, Mahanoy City; David M. Sanko, Harrisburg; B. Michael Schaul, Mechanicsburg; Ronald L. Strickler Jr., Lock Haven University of Pennsylvania; John K. Thornburgh, Pittsburgh; Christine J. Toretti, Indiana; and Kara L. Wealand, Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania.