FSU PUNISHES ITSELF: A football squad with a history of off-field problems will join other Florida State teams on self-imposed probation for two years, and some teams will lose scholarships because of an academic cheating scandal, the university said in a report released Thursday.
About 60 athletes have lost or will lose some eligibility. Two staffers -- a tutor and a learning specialist -- had been fired. No additional dismissals were listed.
The cheating occurred mainly in online testing for one course in the fall of 2006 and the 2007 spring and summer semesters.
FSU officials conducted the investigation with assistance from the NCAA, Atlantic Coast Conference and a consulting firm.
The NCAA still can conduct its own investigation and impose additional penalties.
(The Associated Press)
[url]http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/colleges/fsu/story/420190. html[/url]
<H1>FSU imposes 2 years probation in cheating scandal</H1>
<H2>FSU placed its sports programs on probation, and some will lose scholarships in response to a cheating scandal.</H2>
<DIV =cf id=storyDate-Links style="BORDER-TOP: #ddd 1px solid; MARGIN: 10px 0px; PADDING-TOP: 2px; BORDER-BOTTOM: #ddd 1px solid">
<H5>Posted on Fri, Feb. 15, 2008</H5>
<H3 =byline>BY JEFF SHAIN</H3>
<H3 =credit_line>
jshain@MiamiHerald.com </H3>
Scholarship cuts loom for as many as nine Florida State sports as penalty for an academic cheating scandal involving 61 athletes during three semesters, including perhaps two dozen in football.
The Seminoles also have volunteered for two years of NCAA probation and revamped oversight of their academic support services, including the dismissal of five senior administrators deemed to be negligent.
The self-sanctions were outlined in a 30-page report sent to the NCAA on Thursday, capping an 11-month internal investigation. NCAA officials will review the findings and decide whether any additional action is needed.
''We believe that our investigation has been thorough and exhaustive,'' FSU provost Larry Abele, who chaired the school's investigation, said in a statement.
``This university and its athletics department have accepted responsibility, made changes in the processes and systems and imposed penalties as warranted.''
The probe centered on an academic advisor and a tutor who supplied athletes with answers to an online test. The advisor, Brenda Monk, also was found to have encouraged one athlete to punch in answers for another player.
Monk and the tutor, a graduate student not identified in the report, left their jobs last summer.
FSU's report did not identify how many scholarships would be lost, nor which sports would be sanctioned. An initial letter to the NCAA last September indicated nine sports were affected.
Thursday's final draft, though, said only that FSU would trim scholarships ``in several sports depending up the number of involved student-athletes in those sports and in proportion to reduction imposed by the NCAA.''
A phone call to FSU general counsel Betty Steffens, another committee member, seeking clarification was not returned.
With the approval of NCAA officials, FSU athletes involved in misconduct face suspensions equivalent to 30 percent of their sport's regular season.
Perhaps two dozen football players were suspended for FSU's Music City Bowl appearance against Kentucky, leaving the Seminoles to use a handful of walk-ons to complete their bowl roster.
Suspended players returning next season will have to sit out three more games. In anticipation, the Seminoles' schedule opens with games against lower-tier opponents Western Carolina and Chattanooga.
The men's and women's basketball teams also have felt the impact of nine-game suspensions. Other sports involved are less clear.
FSU officials began looking into misconduct last spring, centering on a music history course given online.
The university eventually declared the course ''compromised'' for the fall 2006, spring 2007 and summer 2007 semesters.
In one case, Monk admitted logging into one athlete's account during spring 2007 and asking a nearby athlete to punch in answers to a test. The second athlete did so, then reported the incident to his academic advisor a few days later.
Monk also acknowledged compiling a course ''study guide'' for athletes that contained answers to the exams, which never changed from one semester to the next.
Investigators also learned Monk steered several athletes to the tutor, who would supply answers as students took the test.
Both Monk and the tutor told investigators they believed the exams were of the ''open book'' variety. FSU officials acknowledged the confusion, saying a previous teacher had allowed open-book exams in the course but the current one did not.
FSU officials also have initiated an overhaul of the online testing procedure, requiring exams to be taken only in certain locations and supervised by a proctor. Computer security also has been tightened to give tutors nothing more than ''read-only'' access to a student's account.
Miami Herald writer Ira Schoffel contributed.
