NFA trustees discuss investigation
Former coach to be arraigned on Thursday
Norwich — The Norwich Free Academy board of trustees met for 90 minutes behind closed doors Tuesday to discuss for the first time the recent arrest of a former assistant coach on sexual assault charges and resignation of the three-year athletic director.
Board of trustees Chairwoman Sarette Williams declined to comment on specifics of the board’s discussion, but she and attorney Kyle McClain said in general that the executive session included “formally advising the board in the presence of legal counsel about the facts surrounding the arrest” of the “ex-seasonal coach.” Head of School David Klein also attended the closed-door session.
Former assistant coach Anthony Facchini was charged on Sept. 12 with two counts of second-degree sexual assault. Police said the investigation, launched in June 2018, revealed Facchini allegedly had sexual relations with two NFA students beginning in 2017 while he was on staff as an athletic coach.
He was released on a $75,000 bond and is scheduled to be arraigned Thursday in Norwich Superior Court. Also on Sept. 12, Norwich police, with assistance from the FBI Computer Analysis Response Team and the state Police Computer Crimes Unit executed a search and seizure warrant at NFA.
Both the Facchini warrant and the search and seizure warrant have been sealed, as the investigation is ongoing.
Two days before the arrest, Athletic Director Eric Swallow resigned abruptly but school officials have not said whether his resignation was in connection with the police investigation.
NFA fired Facchini July 12 amid the police investigation into allega-
tions that he had sexual relations with two NFA students. The one-sentence termination letter did not reveal the reason for the firing.
Williams said the board did not discuss the Facchini firing at the August meeting because no arrests had been made at that time.
Williams said NFA “cooperated fully” with the police investigation and the search warrant. She said NFA advised parents that the police were on campus, and school officials are not aware of any parents’ concerns about the investigation.
“Our chief responsibility has been to ensure that things run smoothly on campus,” Williams said. “Students are still being educated and they are participating in the activities as you expect them to.”
Documents released by NFA to The Day, including Facchini’s termination letter, showed that Facchini was paid a total of $11,708 for his roles as assistant track coach for spring 2017, as strength and conditioning coach for the 201718 school year with specific sports not listed, as assistant football coach in fall 2017, winter indoor track for 2017-18 and spring track in 2018.
Documents provided included a certificate that Facchini had completed a coaching competency certificate course for concussions and head injury training and two American Red Cross CPR/AED first aid courses.
State Department of Education spokesman Peter Yazbak said those certifications are only part of the requirements for high school coaches, and Facchini did not possess the state-required five-year coaching permit or a one-year emergency permit.
The five-year coaching certificate requires a three-credit semester course or 45 hours of instruction in a program approved by the state Department of Education that includes instruction in legal, safety and medical aspects of coaching adolescents, and “Principles and practices of coaching adolescents and adolescent sports psychology,” the regulation states.
Yazbak said unless Facchini was working at all times under direct supervision of a head coach — “within sight and earshot” — he at least should have had a one-year temporary emergency permit when he was hired.
“Our first responsibility is to ensure things run smoothly on campus. Students are still being educated and they are participating in the activities as you expect them to.” SARETTE WILLIAMS, CHAIRWOMAN, NFA BOARD OF TRUSTEES