On Monday, University of Southern California athletic director Lynn Swann tendered his resignation, effective immediately.
In a letter to the university community, president Carol L. Folt remarked on the academic successes the department saw under Swann’s leadership — including cumulative GPA and graduation rates that were all-time highs for the department. However, as the Orange County Register points out, Folt’s letter did not address some of the scandal that took place in the department under Swann’s leadership.
The school was implicated in the college admissions scandal, where coaches were alleged to have accepted bribes in order to help students of wealthy parents gain acceptance into USC. Likewise, a former assistant basketball coach pleaded guilty to felony charges in connection to the nationwide college basketball corruption scandal.
USC announced that Dave Roberts, the school’s vice president of athletics compliance, would take over the AD role on an interim basis. Roberts was named the winner of the 2017 National Association for Athletics Compliance’s Frank Kara Leadership Award, and has served as the vice chair of the NCAA committee on infractions.
Folt announced that a committee comprised of USC officials — including two student-athletes — would begin a national search to find Swann’s permanent successor.
