The Glenn Cyprien File ...

[RaginRash]

Glad to see former UL greats back in the mix.

[Turbine]

Here is Graylin Warners ranking in the UL 1000 POINT CLUB

[NewsCopy]

Coach lacks requisite degree

Newly hired University of Louisiana Lafayette basketball coach Glynn Cyprien did not graduate from the University of Texas at San Antonio as he claimed on his résumé, according to the university registrar's office. Cyprien, a New Orleans native, was hired in May to coach the Ragin' Cajuns but does not appear to hold the necessary degree from a university with accreditation recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

original newsbreaking location
TOMORROW'S NEWS TONIGHT
7/15/2004, 09:59 PM

[NewsCopy]

New UL coach lacks requisite degree
N.O. native graduated from unaccredited online university

Newly hired University of Louisiana Lafayette basketball coach Glynn Cyprien did not graduate from the University of Texas at San Antonio as he claimed on his résumé, according to the university registrar's office.

Cyprien, a New Orleans native, was hired in May to coach the Ragin' Cajuns but does not appear to hold the necessary degree from a university with accreditation recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. An employee in the Texas-San Antonio registrar's office said Cyprien attended UTSA from 1987 to '90 but did not earn a diploma. That information was confirmed by the National Student Clearinghouse, which verifies college enrollment and degrees for U.S. students.

A New Orleans native and Jesuit High School graduate, Cyprien holds bachelor's and master's degrees from Lacrosse University, an online school based in Bay St. Louis, Miss., that is not recognized by the major accreditation agencies. Lacrosse moved its operation to Mississippi from Louisiana in 2002 after the state Board of Regents voted unanimously not to renew its license. According to the Lacrosse Web site, a student can earn a bachelor's degree in 12 months, and up to 105 of the 120 semester hours required to earn a degree can be earned through work experience and what the school calls experimental learning.

The Lacrosse degrees may not have any bearing on Cyprien's status. ULL Athletic Director Nelson Schexnayder said Thursday that a bachelor's degree from an accredited school is needed to hold the head coaching job.

"That's a university requirement," he said.

When reached Tuesday by The Times-Picayune and asked about the discrepancy over his UTSA career, Cyprien, 37, said he graduated.

"I have the transcripts to prove it," he said. He said he was not concerned about the matter.

Cyprien was boarding a plane for a recruiting trip and said he would call back. He made an unsuccessful attempt to reach a reporter Tuesday night and did not return phone calls Wednesday and Thursday.

ULL officials said they were looking into Cyprien's background but would not discuss it further until meeting with the coach. Schexnayder said Cyprien's education was not discussed during his job interview, but he said he was certain a bachelor's degree from UTSA was listed on Cyprien's résumé. The athletic director said he did not look into the Lacrosse degrees because Cyprien appeared to have a degree from UTSA.

In a statement released Wednesday, ULL President Raymond Authement said, "We were made aware of the potential problem a day and a half ago, and we are investigating the situation. In fairness to coach Cyprien, we do need to speak to him in person about this matter, and we will do that when he returns."

The rest of the story


Staff writer Jeff Eisenberg can be reached at
jeisenberg@timespicayune.com
(504) 826-3405.

[Jason]

I really couldn't wait until we could talk some good ole basketball smack, but this is not what I had in mind... This really looks bad because we already have problems graduating or even having basketball players attend class, and it turns out the person we hired to fix it never finished school himself... I just hope its not true!!!

[ChanceEncounter]

No doubt about it, the precedent is set. The Times Picayune writes a scathing UL story and the UL administration calls a massive get to the bottom of the story press conference. My guess is 2pm

[Turbine]

I thought this was an interesting tidbit as far as checking into the background of highly experienced hires

. . . Stanford and San Diego State University, don't check degrees for professor candidates. Some say they confirm degrees for entry-level teaching positions and postdoctoral fellowships, but don't find it necessary for tenured professor positions. LINK

[Turbine]

HERE IS HIS COACHING EXPERIENCE:

2000-2004: Oklahoma State, assistant coach

1998-2000 Associate Head Coach UNLV

1995-98 Assistant Coach, UNLV

1994-95: Assistant Coach, Western Kentucky

1991-94: Associate Head Coach, Jacksonville University

1990-91: Assistant Coach, Lamar University

1987-90: Assistant Coach, Texas-San Antonio (men's eam)

1988-89: Assistant Coach, Texas-San Antonio (women's team)

1987: Head Coach, Louisiana AAU Junior Olympics

1985-86: Head Coach, Holy Ghost Elementary (New Orleans)

[CajunKahouna]

If this turns out to be true, somebody (including the man) should be fired in Nelson's admin organization for not doing their job and following hiring procedures and protocol.

Harm to the University's basketball program will be immeasureable in the short term.

In a word, this is unacceptable!!!!!!

[El Sidonio]

words truly can't describe how I might feel about this situation if it turns out badly. Why don't we verify these things before we hire a coach? What I'm curious about is that Cyprien is sure he earned a degree from UTSA but they say no. What gives? If this is true, and the hire is void and Cyprien is no more, who are our options? Furthermore, how will this affect the assistant coaches he's already hired, and the players he's already recruited?

[California Cajun]

Press conference 11 AM. Terminated effective immediately. His only degrees are from an unaccredited school and did not graduate from Texas San Antonio. The university got a call a few days ago questioning his UTSA degree.

Schexnayder blames himself for making a poor assumption. He relied on a UTSA degree and not the others. He was provided a resume saying he graduated from UTSA. Cyprien told Schexnayder a corrected resume had been made and he never saw it. The resume he received and relied upon was given to him by Oklahoma State. Had Schexnayder gotten the corrected resume to begin with, he would have not considered Cyprien as a candidate because his lack of an accredited degree disqualified him. He was very close to a UTSA degree, and a degree was erroneously included on the resume Schexnayder received.

Schexnayder said he is working out the details for making Robert Lee the head coach. It will be a permanent and not an interim appointment. Coach Lee will have the say so on who is on the staff, but has been told to take into account that two assistants hired left other jobs to come here.

[Diapason]

Sad sad sad Schexnayder won't fund softball and he won't do his simple homework. This Cyprien guy is nothing but bad news.