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SHOMPER |
Matt Shomper, a former athletic director at Tippecanoe, was ordered to pay a fine and perform community service after he was found guilty Thursday of having a conflict of interest.
“It’s improper — and illegal — for school administrators to lobby for the hiring of family members,” Ohio Auditor of State Dave Yost said in a press release.
“There always needs to be a level playing field, free of nepotism, in the employment process.”
Shomper, who had been investigated for two years, pleaded no contest to a firstdegree misdemeanor count of conflict of interest before Judge Gary Nasal of the Miami County Municipal Court. Shomper, 47, received a suspended 90-day jail sentence and was ordered to pay a $500 fine and perform 35 hours of community service.
An investigation by Auditor Yost’s Public Integrity Assurance Team found that Shomper advocated the hiring of three relatives to work at district sporting events. The three individuals were paid a combined $1,700 in a little more than a year.
Search warrants for Shomper’s home, car and school office were executed in February, 2016. According to a report in the Dayton Daily News, Shomper was placed on paid leave during the investigation and eventually resigned his position.