The Special Committee was authorized by Senate Resolution 127 to examine the Commonwealth’s system of interscholastic athletics and ensure that the organization of interscholastic athletics is in the interests of Pennsylvania’s student athletes and citizens. Under this broad mandate, the Special Committee is empowered to make a report to the Senate, the Governor and the Department of Education by November 30, 1998.

• January, 1998 - Discussion of the proposed resolution with members and in Caucus meetings.
• February 5, 1998 - Final draft of the resolution is circulated to members for co-sponsorship.
• February 9, 1998 - Senate Resolution 127 is introduced with thirty-four co-sponsors.
• February 10, 1998 - Senate Resolution 127 is adopted unanimously by the Senate.
• February 13, 1998 - The Senate President pro Tempore and the Senate Minority Leader appoint members to the Special Committee. Members include:

The Special Committee’s fact-finding process has revolved around seven public hearings, documents requested from the PIAA, and a thorough in-control services review of the PIAA conducted by the auditing firm of PricewaterhouseCoopers.

As a result, the Special Committee’s fact-finding process has yielded a comprehensive factual record that has been essential in formulating well-reasoned, constructive recommendations for change at the PIAA.

• May 5, 1998 - Special Committee holds its first public hearing in Harrisburg, focusing on issues related to PIAA eligibility rules and appeals procedures and PIAA policies for media access to PIAA events.
• June 8, 1998 - Special Committee delivers its first voluntary document request to PIAA, requesting sixteen categories of documents.
• June 10, 1998 - Special Committee holds its second public hearing in Harrisburg, focusing on issues related to due process in the taking of appeals to PIAA, and organizational relationships between PIAA and its eleven constituent districts. The Special Committee retains the auditing firm Price WaterhouseCoopers and the law firm Shumaker Williams.
• June 25, July 6, July 7, July 8, 1998 - Special Committee staff are dispatched to PIAA to copy documents requested in the Special Committee’s letter of June 8.
• July 7, 1998 - Special Committee holds its third public hearing in Altoona, focusing on issues related to the process through which PIAA selects sites for championship games. The Special Committee expresses its intention to pursue from HERCO all documents related to its bids and contracts for PIAA championship games.
• July 12, 1998 - Auditors from PricewaterhouseCoopers begin an in-control services review of the PIAA by collecting documents from and conducting interviews with PIAA staff members.
• July 15, 1998 - Special Committee receives HERCO documents related to its bids and contracts for PIAA championship games.
• July 17, 1998 - Special Committee places all documents collected from the PIAA and HERCO on public file in the Office of the Secretary of the Senate.
• July 25, 1998 - Special Committee holds its fourth public hearing in Mercer, focusing on issues related to eligibility appeals, officials and due process in the PIAA’s constituent districts.
• August 10, 1998 - Special Committee delivers its second voluntary document request to PIAA, requesting thirty-two categories of documents.
• August 20, 1998 - PIAA Board of Control convenes a special meeting and adopts a resolution directing Board members to conduct an internal review of PIAA operations that have been reviewed during the Special Committee’s public hearings.
• August 25, 1998 - Special Committee holds its fifth public hearing in Lionville, focusing on issues related to game officials and media access to PIAA-sponsored events.
• August 27 and 28, 1998 - Special Committee staff are dispatched to PIAA to copy documents requested in the Special Committee’s letter of August 10.
• September 3, 1998 - Special Committee places all documents collected from the PIAA on public file in the Office of the Secretary of the Senate.

With the fact-finding process complete, the Special Committee refocused its efforts on constructing recommendations for change at the PIAA. This process included gathering recommendations from the Special Committee’s eight advisory committees, reviewing the in-control services review conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers, and providing PIAA Board members and staff with an opportunity to respond to issues raised during the Special Committee’s public hearings, by the documents the Special Committee has collected, and by the review conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

• September 23, 1998 - Special Committee convenes a day-long advisory committee workshop with eighty advisory committee members. The eight advisory committees, representing athletic directors, coaches, fans and boosters, officials, media, principals, school boards and superintendents proposed a total of seventy-nine substantive recommendations for change on organizational and policy issues at the PIAA.
• October 1, 1998 - Special Committee mails copies of the advisory committee recommendations to all advisory committee members and provides copies to Special Committee members.
• November 18, 1998 - Special Committee convenes a public hearing to take testimony from its eight advisory committees and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
• November 19, 1998 - Special Committee convenes a public hearing to take testimony from PIAA executive staff members and PIAA Board of Control members.

As part of the Special Committee’s mandate under Senate Resolution 127, the Special Committee produced a final report on November 30, 1998.

• October 15, 1998 - November 15, 1998 - Special Committee discussions of recommendations and reactions to draft reports composed by Special Committee staff.
• November 30, 1998 - Special Committee delivers its final report to the Senate.