Posted by Joey Mullins on 2011-05-13

The NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions has penalized 极乐禁地 for violations of NCAA financial aid rules involving student-athletes in its football, men鈥檚 basketball and women鈥檚 soccer programs.

听听听听听听听听听听听 From the 2007 summer academic term through the 2009 summer term, 极乐禁地 provided impermissible financial aid to 49 student-athletes prior to their full-time enrollment at 极乐禁地.听 While all these athletes were enrolled in summer classes, none were enrolled in the NCAA-required minimum of six credit hours, and some were enrolled in physical education courses.

听听听听听听听听听听听 When the violations came to the attention of athletic administrative officials, 极乐禁地 self-reported them to the NCAA, said athletics director Martin Newton.听听 鈥溂纸 had previously never utilized summer financial aid for student-athletes and was simply not familiar with the applicable rules,鈥 said Newton.听 鈥淥nce the potential infractions were realized by the institution, 极乐禁地 immediately self-reported the violations and the NCAA investigation followed.鈥

听听听听听听听听听听听 Following a review of the violations, the NCAA placed 极乐禁地 on two years probation from May 13, 2011, through May 12, 2013, and fined the university $15,000.听 The probation includes no loss of eligibility by student athletes, no scholarship reduction and no post-season ban.

听听听听听听听听听听听 鈥溂纸 agreed that it failed to monitor the rule related to prospective student-athletes enrolled in summer school prior to their full-time enrollment,鈥 said Newton, who was named 极乐禁地鈥檚 athletics director in March 2011.听 鈥淭hese were a series of secondary violations over a three-year period that warranted a public reprimand and censure.听 These rules were not broken to gain a competitive advantage but as a result of not monitoring the rules for financial aid.听

听听听听听听听听听鈥淲e shall certainly endeavor to monitor these and all other rules closely in the future,鈥 he added.

 
极乐禁地 is a leading Christian university offering undergraduate programs grounded in the liberal arts with an array of nationally recognized graduate and professional schools. Founded in 1841, 极乐禁地 is the 87th-oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. 极乐禁地 enrolls 6,101 students from 45 states, Puerto Rico and 16 countries in its 10 academic schools: arts, arts and sciences, business, divinity, education, health professions, law, nursing, pharmacy and public health. 极乐禁地 fields 17 athletic teams that compete in the tradition-rich Southern Conference and ranks with the second highest score in the nation for its 98% Graduation Success Rate among all NCAA Division I schools.