Vice President and General Counsel
Tabitha Oman assumed the role of Vice President and General Counsel of The Pennsylvania State University in August 2023. Prior to her appointment by President Bendapudi and the Penn State Board of Trustees, she served as Penn State’s Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer.
As General Counsel, Oman will serve as Penn State’s chief legal officer, providing legal expertise and counsel covering all facets of University business, including the research enterprise, education and service activities, and athletics and health care operations, across all campuses.
Oman, an attorney who specializes in compliance, ethics, anti-corruption, risk, sustainability and governance, has served in a variety of roles over her 28-year career spanning corporate and criminal law, government and foreign affairs. Prior to joining the University, she was vice president, deputy general counsel and chief compliance officer at Axalta Coating Systems, a Philadelphia-based global chemicals company traded on the New York Stock Exchange. She also has worked at the U.S. Department of State, the U.S. House of Representatives, and the law firm of WilmerHale.
In her prior role at Penn State, Oman oversaw the Office of Ethics and Compliance and was responsible for the coordination of Penn State’s comprehensive portfolio of compliance efforts. These efforts include export control, youth programs, the Penn State Hotline, athletics integrity and NCAA compliance, and University ethics initiatives, among others.
Oman earned a bachelor of arts degree in political science from the University of Colorado at Boulder and a juris doctor, with honors, from George Washington University Law School.