PITTSBURGH — Mayor Luke Ravenstahl wants former Steelers and Penn State running back Franco Harris to step down as chairman of the Pittsburgh Promise scholarship program because Harris has questioned Joe Paterno’s firing as part of the Penn State child sex scandal.

Ravenstahl’s press secretary and Harris did not immediately return calls from The Associated Press.

Ravenstahl sent a letter to other board members calling Harris’ support of Paterno “tragically insensitive.”

Harris said that he felt Penn State trustees erred in firing Paterno, who fulfilled a legal requirement by alerting his superiors but has been criticized for not doing more when he learned of a sex abuse allegation against former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky in 2002.

The scholarship fund benefits students who graduate from Pittsburgh Public Schools.