Yale student has admission rescinded
NEW HAVEN — Yale University has rescinded one student’s place at the university after the recent scandal into college admission and athlete-recruitment practices, a university spokesman said Monday.
Yale Press Secretary Tom Conroy sent a statement to the New Haven Register that “Yale has rescinded the admission of one student as a result of this matter.” He would not comment further. The Yale Daily News first reported the withdrawal of the student’s admission.
Dozens of people, including former Yale soccer coach Rudy Meredith, were charged earlier this month in connection with an alleged scheme to cheat on standardized tests and designate prospective students as purported student-athletes in exchange for bribes, thus enabling them to be admitted at prestigious colleges across the country, including Yale.
Meredith has been charged with two counts of wire fraud in connection with the case. He is scheduled to appear in U.S. District Court in Boston on Thursday.
According to a March 4 plea agreement, Meredith has agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud and one count of honest services wire fraud. He faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, a $250,000 fine or “twice the gross gain/loss, whichever is greater,” a $100 special assessment, restitution and forfeiture of $866,000, which “represents proceeds the Defendant obtained (directly or indirectly), and/or facilitating property and/or property involved in, the crimes to which Defendant is pleading guilty,” the document states.
According to the plea agreement, “Based on Defendant’s prompt acceptance of personal responsibility for the offenses of conviction in this case, and information known to the U.S. Attorney at this time, the U.S. Attorney agrees to recommend” a reduction in Meredith’s sentence. The judge is not bound by the agreement, however.
U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling and Meredith, who is represented by Paul Thomas of Duffy Law in New Haven, also agreed to a cooperation agreement in return for a reduced sentence for Meredith. “Defendant agrees to cooperate fully with law enforcement agents and government attorneys,” the agreement states. “Defendant must provide complete and truthful information to all law enforcement personnel. If Defendant’s testimony is requested, Defendant must testify truthfully and completely before any grand jury, and at any hearing and trial. Defendant must answer all questions posed by any law enforcement agents and government attorneys and must not withhold any information.”
Meredith also waived his right to prompt sentencing until his cooperation is complete. A message was left for Thomas on Monday.
On March 15, Yale President Peter Salovey announced in a letter to the Yale community that the university will hire external advisers to “conduct our own searching review in order to learn whether others have been involved in activities that have corrupted the athletic recruitment and admissions process.”