INDIANAPOLIS—The NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions has placed Lewis University on probation until October 2008, and the institution faces limits on recruiting, scholarships and official visits because of numerous NCAA violations.
The Lewis University infractions case involved a variety of allegations, including unethical conduct by the former head men's volleyball coach and a lack of institutional control in its athletics program between the 1999-00 and 2003-04 academic years.
"The committee was most troubled by the complete lack of attention through a period of years, from the president of the institution on down, to providing a system of compliance, even at times when indications were given there were problems within the athletics department," the committee said in its public report. The committee noted one example from 1992 when no action was taken after the head baseball coach expressed concerns over how scholarships were calculated.
The case involved numerous instances of ineligible student-athletes competing, practicing and receiving financial aid. It also involved violations of recruiting, amateurism and travel rules.
In multiple cases, student-athletes were allowed to practice and compete and were granted athletic scholarships, even though they were ineligible for failing to meet initial eligibility requirements, satisfactory-progress requirements, or two-year and four-year transfer requirements. In addition, the institution failed to complete any International Student-Athlete Forms for a period of four years, thereby failing to certify the student-athletes' eligibility.
In other cases, the university failed to ensure that student-athletes had designated degree programs by the beginning of their fifth semester, a requirement for eligibility.
The committee also found that the baseball, men's volleyball and men's soccer teams granted more athletic scholarships than allowed. In addition, the track and field program provided cash for books, which violates institutional policy for financial aid distribution. One track and field student-athlete also received a temporary loan from an assistant coach.
"These violations were indicative of the lack of an oversight system at the institution and took place over a period of years," the committee said.
The committee's report outlined a number of recruiting violations committed during the 1999-00 to 2001-02 academic years that were also symptomatic of the institution's failure to implement an adequate compliance and education system.
Those violations included off-campus recruiting by nine different coaches who had not taken the NCAA recruiting certification exam, coaches using personal funds for recruiting expenses, one coach who conducted impermissible tryouts, and coaches contacting student-athletes and recruits from other institutions without written permission.
The institution also allowed two men's volleyball student-athletes to compete and receive financial aid even though they were no longer considered amateurs. One competed for a professional team in the Swiss Volleyball Federation and the other for a team in the French Volleyball Federation.
The former French Volleyball Federation athlete was also allowed to travel with the team to the Division I Men’s Volleyball Championship in Hawaii, even though the institution's athletics director said the ineligible student-athlete could not attend. The committee said the former head volleyball coach told the athletics director that other players had paid for the student-athlete's travel expenses, an account the committee said was not credible.
"He provided false and misleading information to the director of athletics," the committee said. "As a result, the institution permitted an ineligible student-athlete to travel with the men's volleyball team to a championship event at no cost."
The former head volleyball coach's actions led to a finding by the committee of unethical conduct. The former head volleyball coach did not respond to repeated attempts by the committee to contact him and therefore did not respond to the allegations.
The committee commended the institution for the corrective action it has taken recently, and pointed out that many of the sanctions the institution faces were self-imposed.
The institution shall be placed on four years probation, effective October 15, 2004, the date of the hearing. The institution had suggested two years of probation.
During the probationary period, the university shall continue to develop and implement a comprehensive educational program on NCAA legislation, including seminars and testing designed for coaches, the faculty athletics representative, athletics department personnel, and university staff responsible for certification of student-athletes for admission, retention, financial aid or competition.
The university must submit a preliminary report to the NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions by January 15, 2005, that includes a schedule for establishing the compliance and educational program. It must also file annual compliance reports indicating progress made with this program.
Other penalties include:
* Lewis University shall be publicly reprimanded and censured.
* The men's volleyball team is barred from postseason competition through the 2005-06 academic year. The institution had self-imposed a ban through 2004-05, but the committee felt an extra year was warranted due to the competitive advantage gained by the team. The committee agreed with the institution's self-imposed ban on postseason competition for the baseball team through 2004-05.
* The institution forfeited its 2003 national championship and 2001, 2002 and 2003 conference championships in men’s volleyball; 2001, 2002 and 2003 conference championships in women’s indoor track; and 2001 and 2002 conference championships in women’s outdoor track.
* The institution reduced its available scholarships in men’s volleyball from 4.5 to three from the 2005-06 academic year through 2007-08.
* The institution will reduce by 20 its total baseball scholarships between the 2005-06 and 2011-12 academic years.
* The institution reduced soccer scholarships by 2.2 during the 2003-04 academic year.
* The university self-imposed a ban on the awarding of any athletically related financial aid in track and field for student-athletes who first enter the university during the 2005-06 academic year.
* The institution shall eliminate all official paid visits for men’s volleyball, men’s and women’s track and field, and baseball through the 2005-06 academic year. The university had self-imposed a ban through the 2004-05 academic year. Unofficial visits are still available.
* The institution's self-imposed moratorium on international recruiting in men’s volleyball and track and field shall continue until the university adopts adequate safeguards against repeat violations. The university president and compliance team shall re-examine this penalty in summer 2005.
* The institution forfeited the $14,000 NCAA enhancement fee it was to receive from the Great Lakes Valley Conference.
* If the former men’s volleyball coach, who resigned in May 2004, seeks athletically-related employment with any NCAA member institution, both the coach and the employing institution must appear before the NCAA Committee on Infractions. The committee will consider whether the institution is subject to the show-cause procedures contained in Division II Bylaw 19.5.2.2 (k), which could limit the coach's athletically-related duties at the new institution. This penalty expires May 17, 2009.
As required for any institution involved in a major infractions case, Lewis University is subject to the repeat violator bylaw for a five-year period beginning December 2, 2004, the effective date of the penalties in this case.
The members of the NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions who heard the case are Larry Blumberg, committee chair and chair of the math department, Washburn University of Topeka; Robertha Abney, associate director of athletics and senior woman administrator, Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania; Mike Marcil, commissioner, Sunshine State Conference; and James Park Jr., attorney, Lexington, Kentucky.
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