FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
INDIANAPOLIS---The NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions has penalized Indiana University of Pennsylvania for major violations in its men’s basketball and men’s and women’s swimming program. The violations include two charges of unethical conduct, a failure to monitor and impermissible benefits.Penalties for the violations include placing the university on probation for two years; reducing the number of scholarships for both programs; a vacation of select swimming records; and placing the former head swimming coach on a two-year show cause order. . . .
Regarding the infractions in the swimming program, the former head swimming coach impermissibly hired one of his student-athletes, forged signatures so the student-athlete could be paid, and arranged for her to be paid for work she did not perform during the 2005-06 academic year. It was determined that this student-athlete was paid an hourly wage of $13.90, which was far above the usual $5.15 rate paid to students employed on campus.
The former head swimming coach also supplied three student-athletes with impermissible extra benefits totaling $1,365 during the 2004-05 academic year. These funds were provided to pay for personal expenses, as well as the student-athletes’ lodging, transportation and pool rental during an annual trip to Florida. The university typically requires student-athletes to cover these costs, except for meals.
In addition, during the fall of 2005, the former head swimming coach failed to withhold two student-athletes from athletics competition even though the former head coach was previously informed by the university’s compliance office that the young men were ineligible to compete. He allowed the student-athletes to represent the university in a swimming meet on October 29, 2005. . . .
In the men’s basketball program, the former head men’s basketball coach engaged in a scheme from the 2000-01 academic year through 2005-06 designed to stretch his scholarship dollars. During that time, he had 14 men’s basketball prospects complete their admission applications using Pennsylvania addresses, including that of the former head coach, so that the student-athletes could qualify for in-state tuition rather than the more expensive out-of-state rate. In some instances, the former head basketball coach completed the applications for the young men. His deceit caused inaccurate information regarding financial aid to be recorded on the men’s basketball squad list and, although neither team nor individual equivalency limits were exceeded, the actions of the former head men’s basketball coach caused the university to grant a men’s basketball student-athlete impermissible state aid in the amount of $6,450.
Further, during the summer of 2005, the former head men’s basketball coach arranged for the textbooks for two student-athletes to be paid for out of an account the former head men’s basketball coach established at the campus bookstore.
IUP President Tony Atwater has released the following statement:
The university has been fully cooperative in the NCAA investigations relating to our basketball and swimming programs. Swift and decisive action has been taken to address the compliance and personnel issues relating to this matter. We continue to pursue strategies and practices to strengthen our system of oversight to ensure that our athletic program is in compliance with NCAA regulations and is operated in accordance with the university’s high ethical standards.
In this case the statement appears to be more than lip service, given that both coaches in question, Gary Edwards and Dave Caldwell resigned over a year ago, and that the NCAA declined to impose institutional sanctions beyond IUP's self implemented penalties.
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