Georgetown University to expel 2 students following admissions bribery scandal

WASHINGTON (FOX 5 DC) - Georgetown University says it will expel two students in the wake of an admissions bribery scandal that led to criminal charges for dozens of parents.

In a statement released on Wednesday, a Georgetown spokesperson says following the indictments in March 2019, the university "began conducting a process of thoroughly reviewing the newly available information related to the alleged scheme, contacting current students who may have been involved, and giving each individual student an opportunity to respond."

Georgetown says it informed two students of their intent to rescind their admissions and dismiss them from the university. The students have not been identified, but FOX 5 has confirmed one of them is Adam Semprevivo, a junior from California who's filed a lawsuit against the university claiming he knew nothing of his dad's scheme to get him in.

Last week, his father, Stephen Semprevivo, plead guilty, admitting to paying $400,000 to get Adam into Georgetown as a tennis recruit, even though Adam didn't play tennis.

In the suit, Adam says a fake essay was written and signed on his behalf without his knowledge.

Adam and the other student being expelled may lose the credits they've earned at Georgetown. A university spokesperson says there will be a permanent notation made on their transcripts and then it will be up to their next school to decide whether to accept the credits.

Georgetown University refused to make anyone available for an interview Wednesday.

The university says "each student case was addressed individually and each student was given multiple opportunities to respond and provide information to the University."

Georgetown says in 2017, they put former tennis coach Gordon Ernst on leave immediately after discovering "irregularities in the athletic credentials of two students who were being recruited to play tennis." Neither one of those students was admitted to the university, according to the school.

After initiating an internal investigation, Ernst was asked to resign and the university established a new policy concerning the recruitment of student-athletes, according to Georgetown.

Georgetown says "during the investigation at this time, we relied on available information and focused on actions taken by the coach that violated University policies."

Twenty of those who were charged in the scandal have pleaded guilty. Ernst, who is accused of accepting $2.7 million in bribes to designate 12 applicants as recruits, has not pleaded guilty.