Penn State Launches Know The Odds Gambling Awareness Program

Penn State has launched a new responsible gaming campaign as gambling becomes more visible around college campuses and across Pennsylvania.

Good to Know

• Penn State Collegiate Recovery Community is running the “Know the Odds” campaign.
• The program focuses on early help, awareness, and less stigma around gambling addiction.
• Happy Valley Casino opened in State College last week with slots, table games, restaurants, and a bar.

Campus Recovery Team Puts Gambling Risks In Focus

Penn State is adding gambling harm prevention to a wider college recovery conversation through the university Collegiate Recovery Community, known as CRC.

The group, which supports students and staff recovering from addiction, is running “Know the Odds” to help people spot gambling problems earlier and feel less shame about asking for help.

The launch arrived just after Happy Valley Casino opened in State College. The casino sits inside the former Macy department store at the Nittany Mall and includes 600 slot machines, 30 live table games, two restaurants, and a bar.

CRC also hosted an online seminar last week to discuss problem gambling and addiction risks. Jason Whitney, director of CRC, said:

“Gambling triggers many sorts of different biochemical processes that mimic severe drug addiction.

“Even if you are not taking drugs, it’s almost as though gambling is an addiction to the drugs your own body makes.”

Pennsylvania remains one of the largest regulated gambling markets in the US. In March, the state reported $602.4 million in total gaming revenue across all verticals, up 4.9% from 2025.

However, college gambling concerns have grown alongside legal sports betting. Online sportsbooks have made wagering easier to access, and experts have warned that more students now see betting as part of campus life.

Whitney said recovery requires more than a short pause from gambling. He said:

“The name of the game in recovery is not necessarily just stopping.

“It’s about staying stopped and maintaining that lifestyle change, treating it seriously as something that can ruin their lives and/or kill them. The main way this disease kills people is suicide.”

Penn State is not alone. Carnegie Mellon University has added a course that covers wagering through statistics and cognitive science while also addressing gambling addiction.

College sports also keep dealing with betting issues. Last week, reports said Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby was under NCAA investigation over alleged wagers placed while he played for Indiana University, including bets on his own team.

It is not the first time that Penn State is stepping up and takes responsibility to informing its students of potential gambling harm. In February of 2025, Penn State’s Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) already warned students about the dangers of sports betting as it has become more widely available.

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