Dana Hills’ Rich Skelton is Suspended : ‘Undue Influence’ With Student Costs Him One Season

Rich Skelton, who in his first year as boys’ basketball coach at Dana Hills High School led the Dolphins to the Southern Section 5-A playoffs last February, will not coach the team next season.

He has been suspended from his coaching duties for one year by the Capistrano Unified School District for using “undue influence” with a student-athlete.

Stan Thomas, Southern Section commissioner, ruled that Skelton violated Rule 510 of the California Interscholastic Federation’s bylaws by making contact with a parent and a student before the student’s enrollment at Dana Hills by temporarily housing the student at the coach’s home.

District officials agreed with Thomas’ ruling that Skelton violated the rule by responding to contacts made to him by the student’s father prior to the boy’s enrollment at Dana Hills. Skelton also provided temporary housing for the student for approximately three weeks during the family’s relocation to a permanent residence within the school’s attendance boundary.

Skelton will continue to teach history at Dana Hills next year, but will not be allowed to have contact with the school’s basketball program or its players until the 1990-91 season.

“Coach Skelton agrees he used poor judgement in this situation, but at the time, he felt he was within CIF (Southern Section) rules as he understood them when he was contacted by the parent of the student involved,” said John Smart, Dana Hills principal.

Before coming to Dana Hills, Skelton, 46, spent 12 years as a high school head coach, including four years at San Clemente.