STATE COLLEGE — Penn State has hired two public relations firms to help it deal with the continuing fallout from the Jerry Sandusky child sex abuse scandal.

The university announced today that it has retained Edelman and La Torre Communications. The firms will be paid about $2.5 million over the next 12 months.

Penn State says the firms will communicate with current and prospective students, alumni, faculty and staff, parents and media as well as “support the university throughout upcoming litigation.”

Penn State has already incurred about $7.5 million in expenses through the end of February as it deals with the scandal’s aftermath.

Most of that tab, about $5.3 million, was spent on crisis communications and on an internal probe being conducted by former FBI director Louis Freeh.