Few things are too big to fail.

If the allegations are true that former Pennsylvania State University defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky molested at least eight boys, he acted on the misconception his connections and position of power rendered him too big to fail.

When Head Coach Joe Paterno attempted to wait until the end of the football season to retire, he exposed that he believed the Penn State football team to be too big to fail.

When a scared team of janitors decided to not report what they had seen and heard because they thought it would jeopardize their jobs, they acted on the belief the Penn State athletic department was too big to fail.

When Graduate Assistant Mike McQeary failed to report what he had seen to the police, he displayed he believed his superiors were too big to fail.

When Paterno, University President Graham Spanier, Athletic Director Tim Curley and Senior Vice President Gary Schultz failed to take further action upon hearing reports of inappropriate acts by Sandusky, they acted on their conviction Penn State was too big to fail.

When students took to the streets of Happy Valley, leaving shouts and broken glass in their wake, they showed they thought the old definition of a Nittany Lion was too big to fail.

They were all wrong.

The Penn State Board of Trustees recognized each of the parties’ failures when it stepped in Wednesday to fire Paterno and Spanier and express its outrage over the sexual assault allegations. The board’s members recognized one of the few things that must be considered too big to fail is respect for your fellow human. No one is too small to matter.

On Wednesday night, Paterno left his house to greet the throngs of people occupying his yard. As he moved to walk back inside, “We are Penn State!” rang out from one of the students in the crowd, according to The New York Times.

Paterno turned and said: “That’s right. We are Penn State. Don’t ever forget it.”

Everyone involved in the Sandusky scandal lost sight of what it means to be Penn State and recognize what principles are too important to forget. From that very first inkling of drifting away, they set themselves up for failure.

Halfway across the country, we are the University of Wisconsin. Like at Penn State, part of who we are is taking action when something is not right. We must not make the same mistake of believing the status quo is too big to fail. No one is too small to recognize that.

Signe Brewster ([email protected]) is a senior majoring in life science communication.