The NCAA Division II Committee on Infractions (“COI” or “Committee”) is an independent administrative body comprised of individuals from the NCAA Division II membership and the public charged with deciding infractions cases involving member institutions and their staffs. This case involved financial aid violations within the women’s soccer program at Clarion University of Pennsylvania (“Clarion” or “CU” or “institution”), as well as a head coach responsibility violation by the former head women’s soccer coach (“head coach”). COI considered this case through the cooperative summary disposition process in which Clarion, the head coach and the NCAA enforcement staff agreed to the primary facts and violations as fully set forth in the summary disposition report (“SDR”). COI proposed additional penalties for Clarion and a show-cause order for the head coach. Clarion and the head coach accepted the additional penalties. Therefore, neither party has the opportunity to appeal.

The head coach agreed that between March 2017 and August 2018, he violated financial aid legislation by providing impermissible financial aid agreements to 19 prospective and current women’s soccer student-athletes. Specifically, in March 2017, the head coach created and distributed letters to nine prospects that promised multiple years of athletics aid, contrary to legislation which limits financial aid agreements to one-year terms. In addition, between April and August 2018, the head coach signed and issued athletics aid agreements to a total of 10 incoming and current women’s soccer student-athletes without first obtaining the required signature of Clarion’s director of financial aid, or Clarion’s official designee. The head coach agreed that his direct involvement in the violations demonstrated that he failed to promote an atmosphere for compliance and violated head coach responsibility legislation. His actions disregarded fundamental membership requirements surrounding the administration of financial aid and violated the trust of his student-athletes. Clarion and the head coach agreed that the violations occurred and that they are major.

The Committee concluded that CU committed the following violations:

Violations of NCAA Division II Manual Bylaws 15.6.2.3, 15.6.3.1 and 15.6.3.1.1 (2016-17) and 15.5.2.3 (2017-18 and 2018-19)

Clarion, the head coach and the NCAA enforcement staff agreed that in March 2017, the head coach provided impermissible written offers of athletics aid to nine women’s soccer prospective student-athletes. Additionally, between April and August 2018, the head coach signed and issued impermissible athletics aid agreements to 10 women’s soccer student-athletes.

In March 2017, the head coach sent letters promising multiple years of athletics aid to nine women’s soccer prospective student-athletes. All nine women’s soccer prospective student-athletes enrolled at the institution in the fall of 2017. NCAA Bylaws 15.6.2.3, 15.6.3.1 and 15.6.3.1.1 (2016-17).

Between April and August 2018, the head coach signed and issued written offers of athletics aid to 10 student-athletes without the signature of the chair of the regular committee or other agency for the awarding of financial aid to students generally, or the chair’s official designee. NCAA Bylaw 15.5.2.3 (2017-18 and 2018-19).

Violations of NCAA Division II Manual Bylaws 11.1.2.1 (2016-17 through 2018-19)

 Clarion, the head coach and the NCAA enforcement staff agreed that in 2017 and 2018, the head coach is presumed responsible for the violations detailed above and did not rebut the presumption of responsibility. Specifically, the head coach did not demonstrate that he promoted an atmosphere for compliance due to his personal involvement in the violations.

As a result of the foregoing, the Committee penalized CU as follows:

1. Public reprimand and censure through the release of the public infractions decision.
2. Probation: Two years of probation from March 11, 2021, through March 10, 2023.
3. Clarion shall pay a $1,000 fine.
4. Clarion shall undergo a Compliance Blueprint Review of its athletics policies and procedures during the term of probation. Clarion shall implement all recommendations made by the reviewers and shall provide a copy of the reviewer’s report in its annual report.
5. In addition to the Compliance Blueprint Review, Clarion will also be required to undergo a comprehensive review of its certification and eligibility by a qualified outside entity during the term of probation. The comprehensive review by the outside entity must specifically review all certification and eligibility decisions which took place during the following academic years: 2017-18, 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21. Clarion shall implement all recommendations made by the reviewers and self-report any violations of NCAA legislation which are discovered.
6. Show-cause order: The head coach violated the principles of ethical conduct when he knowingly provided prospective and current women’s soccer student-athletes with impermissible financial aid agreements. In addition, he violated head coach responsibility legislation when he could not demonstrate that he promoted an atmosphere for compliance due to his personal involvement in the violations. Therefore, the head coach shall be subject to a three-year show-cause order from March 11, 2021, through March 10, 2024 In accordance with Bylaw 19.5.2.2.1 and COI IOP 5-16-1-1, any employing member institution shall restrict the head coach from all athletically related activity during the show-cause period. If the head coach becomes employed by a member institution in an athletically related position during the three-year show-cause period, the employing institution shall abide by the terms of the show-cause order unless it contacts the OCOI to make arrangements to show cause why the terms of the order should not apply.  Although each case is unique, the duration of the show-cause order is consistent with those prescribed in prior cases involving ethical conduct, head coach responsibility violations. See Saint Leo (prescribing a two-year show-cause order for the head women’s volleyball coach who did not promote compliance and engaged in unethical conduct when he knowingly provided impermissible benefits); West Liberty (prescribing a two-year show-cause order for the head men’s soccer coach who did not promote compliance and engaged in unethical conduct when he knowingly provided impermissible tuition payments for student-athletes and gave false information during an investigation); Lane College (2019) (prescribing a five-year show-cause order for the head cross country and track and field coach who did not promote compliance and engaged in unethical conduct when he told an ineligible student-athlete to compete and permitted the student-athlete to receive expenses during this ineligible competition); and Lynn University (2019) (prescribing a five-year show-cause order for a compliance officer who engaged in unethical conduct when she gave false information regarding student-athletes’ eligibility and failed to cooperate). Taking into account the decisions rendered in these cases, the head coach’s conduct warrants a three-year show-cause order.
7. During each year of the term of probation, the associate athletic director for compliance shall attend an NCAA Regional Rules Seminar. The institution shall provide in its annual compliance reports a list of the sessions the associate athletic director for compliance attends at these seminars.

For any questions, feel free to contact Christian Dennie at cdennie@bgsfirm.com.