Westchester Community College Cancels Basketball Season Amid Transcript Scandal
VALHALLA, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- There's something missing from the late autumn mood at Westchester Community College: the sound of basketballs. The gym has been locked and the season silenced over deepening grade scandal among student athletes.
"I couldn't believe it. It's really disappointing," one student said.
As CBS2's Lou Young reported Friday, the season began to unravel in October when Westchester Community College abruptly fired an assistant basketball coach accused of fabricating a transcript for a former player.
Jamell Walker, of Mount Vernon, allegedly used the phony transcript from the two-year school to transfer and get a scholarship to finish up and graduate from Florida A&M.
Walker ultimately lost his scholarship.
Two other former Westchester students lost their scholarships as well, Young reported.
"If they didn't earn the grades I don't think it was right for them to go to those schools and get those scholarships," student Michelle Salvo said.
A spokesman for Westchester Community College said Friday the lengthening investigation prompted the school to scuttle the entire season.
Canceling the season "allows the kids on the team to transfer to other schools without losing a year of eligibility," the spokesman said.
Students think the whole episode has a bad smell.
"As a student, you don't know at this point when you hear this kind of thing, if you really have the grade you deserve," student Samantha Rodriguez said.
The school has had some success in recent years in placing players at NCAA Division I schools. The question is how did they do it?
The inspector general is investigating and criminal charges are a possibility, Young reported.
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