Topeka ? The Kansas Board of Regents on Wednesday told the leaders of the state’s public universities to put together proposed policies on mandatory reporting of sexual abuse to law authorities.

The directive was in response to allegations of long-running sexual abuse against a former assistant football coach at Penn State University.

Regents Chair Ed McKechnie said he would like the six public universities in Kansas to work on policies and possibly combine them all into one statewide standard.

After the allegations of abuse were made public at Penn State, Kansas University Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little put out a message to the “KU Community,” saying, “Beyond any legal responsibilities, we each have a moral obligation to look out for the safety of the other members of our community, especially when they are children.

“The state’s mandatory reporting law does not cover institutions of higher education, but we are examining changes to KU’s own policies, which would codify that responsibility for our employees.”

The schools are supposed to report back to the regents in January.

Former Penn State assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky has been charged with more than 50 counts of sexually abusing 10 boys over 12 years. Sandusky has denied the allegations.

Critics said Penn State officials failed for years to do anything about Sandusky.

The scandal led to the recent firing of longtime Penn State football coach Joe Paterno and university President Graham Spanier.

Athletic director Tim Curley and former university vice president Gary Schultz have been charged with perjury and failure to report suspected abuse.