Rutgers gymnastics head coach Umme Salim-Beasley "lost control" of her program and at times "presided over a divided and dysfunctional organization," all while having an undisclosed relationship with former athletic director Pat Hobbs that violated University policy, according to the report of an external investigation obtained by NJ Advance Media.

The 50-page report, which followed a four-month investigation commissioned by Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway that cost the University $705,000, also found that Hobbs frequently attempted to meddle with an internal review last spring from the University's Ethics and Compliance office into formal allegations made against Salim-Beasley.

In a message to the school's Board of Governors and Trustees, Holloway says he was "troubled to hear of the frustration and pain that a number of gymnastics team members experienced" and noted it is "especially concerning that student-athletes reported that they 'never heard back after making a complaint, which contributed to the feeling that they were not being heard.'"

Lowenstein Sandler, the investigating law firm, interviewed 62 witnesses and obtained thousands of documents, emails, images, and text messages from the University, witnesses, online sources, and other third parties, some of which was unsolicited, according to the report.

The report found that several gymnasts alleged Salim-Beasley intimidated athletes into performing while physically injured, swept aside concerns for their mental well-being and played favorites with the starting lineup despite claiming to have an "equitable system based exclusively and mathematically on practice performance" -- all while often being distracted and on her phone during practices.

When asked about complaints by gymnasts -- first reported in an NJ Advance Media investigation last summer -- Salim-Beasley denied nearly all of the allegations, the report indicates. While the investigation "revealed widespread discord and conflict throughout the season," the report states that there was "striking disagreement ... regarding Salim-Beasley's role in and culpability for that environment."

In the report, an attorney for Salim-Beasley dismissed the allegations of the athletes as "largely petty, invalid, and bias-driven responses to a female coach."

"Gender bias easily gets infused into every claim, every complaint, every statement, every question, and every interpretation of the feelings of female athletes and has grave bearing on our decision regarding whether to hold a female coach responsible for those feelings, regardless of whether those feelings are justified by identifiably inappropriate conduct," the attorney wrote.

Salim-Beasley was interviewed for more than five hours, "engaging extensively ... on myriad issues," but when it came to discussing her relationship with Hobbs, "she refused to answer these particular questions, following the advice of her counsel," the report states. Salim-Beasley is required by her contract to cooperate fully with an investigation.

Hobbs declined to be interviewed by investigators, but he denied the existence of any relationship with Salim-Beasley to a high-ranking athletics employee who confronted him about it, according to the report.

Stonewalled by Hobbs and Salim-Beasley about their relationship, investigators -- led by former N.J. Comptroller Matthew Boxer -- "took additional investigative steps and gathered relevant evidence, extending the length of this investigation." Investigators concluded "based on the aggregate, available evidence that there was a relationship between Hobbs and Salim-Beasley" that required Hobbs to recuse himself from her supervision.

The report calls for a series of improvements to the program, from revamping of its complaints processes and improving its record-keeping to redefining the role of its sports administrators, but it stops short of calling for any disciplinary action against Salim-Beasley.

She led the team through its first three meets of the 2025 season in the past two weeks, signaling that she remains its head coach. Holloway's message to the boards did not indicate her job status would change, although it did note that "there are clear opportunities for improving the oversight, management, and culture of this program, which will be addressed directly with the coach."

The report found that "there were multiple stages where officials could have more closely reviewed, investigated, and addressed problems on the Team" and that "the history of problematic issues within sports teams over recent years demonstrates that the University needs to put greater effort into selecting sport administrators and ensuring that those selected have the time necessary to dedicate to this important role."

NJ Advance Media first uncovered allegations of a toxic environment with favoritism, bullying and revenge in Salim-Beasley's program in August after interviews with eight former and current gymnasts and a review of emails and documents. Gov. Phil Murphy called on Rutgers to investigate, calling the allegations "really ugly and very disturbing." Days later, Holloway announced the external probe.

Gymnasts said that when they met with Hobbs and made allegations against Salim-Beasley, they were rebuffed, and that Hobbs was quick to defend the coach, without giving consideration to their accusations.

That was not all Hobbs did, according to the report, which corroborated NJ Advance Media's reporting:

-- Hobbs called Danielle Washington, the school's Director of Institutional Compliance and lead investigator in the internal inquiry, "many times in the spring of 2024 to discuss the complaints against Salim-Beasley, including a call she remembered receiving one evening outside of normal working hours."

Cellphone call logs from that time period confirm at least six calls from Hobbs to Washington, the report said. Washington recalled noting to her husband at the time, 'Wow, he's calling me so much. He's really interested in this."

Washington said that she tried to give Hobbs as little detail as possible, recognizing the calls were unusual. She said this was the most Hobbs had ever contacted her about a particular matter.

Washington also provided a thread of approximately 20 text messages between Hobbs and her that show a pattern of meddling. Hobbs also emailed to Washington a positive and supportive letter from one of the gymnasts about Salim-Beasley, adding the comment, "Quite telling." Washington could not recall previously receiving a letter of support for a coach from Hobbs during an active investigation.

Washington told investigators that she "did not allow herself to feel influenced by Hobbs, and her findings ultimately were consistent with proper investigative processes."

-- Gymnasts told investigators that there were many incidents that left them "weirded out," and they recited instances first reported by NJ Advance Media: Hobbs appeared at practices and meets "far more often than he had in previous years"; he participated with the team and the coaches in a yoga session in Nashville; Hobbs and Salim-Beasley interacted and made comments "seemingly directed toward each other at a tarot card reading event."

In other instances, Hobbs went out of his way to praise Salim-Beasley, including at a pizza party during which Hobbs made a toast in front of the Team and reportedly spent most of it lauding her.

"These instances sent conflicting messages to the Team about their environment and fueled a perception that Salim-Beasley was distracted, which affected the Team dynamic and morale. Based on the accounts of the student-athletes, it also undermined Salim-Beasley's intention to lead a disciplined program," the report said.

-- Hobbs was not discreet about his involvement with Salim-Beasley, with "multiple Athletics officials and other University staff" perceiving that there "appeared to be a relationship of some kind between Salim-Beasley and Hobbs."

Hobbs denied the existence of any relationship to a high-ranking athletics employee who confronted him about it, calling the situation "optically concerning." Hobbs thanked the official for raising it, acknowledging that it was a "tough thing to tell your boss" before denying it existed.

"Ultimately, Hobbs' involvement in the Gymnastics program and perceptions of the close relationship seemed to dissuade Athletics officials from getting more involved in trying to address the worsening issues in the program," the report said.

-- Hobbs became intimately involved in the program's day-to-day operations.

"Rather than recuse himself as required by University policy, Hobbs did the opposite, with involvement that was unusual and disproportionate relative to other sports that do not produce revenue for the University. ... Hobbs engaged in issues like scholarships, academics, and medical retirements for the Team, which were 'beneath' the Athletic Director and which typically the sport administrator would handle. He further observed that Hobbs and Salim-Beasley had multiple meetings on topics like these without the sport administrator (Mike Szul) present, which was unusual."

-- Hobbs did not protect the privacy of athletes and parents making complaints against Salim-Beasley to him, instead revealing their identities on multiple occasions. Salim-Beasley confirmed to investigators that Hobbs told her there were gymnasts who wanted to meet with him.

In addition, when Hobbs asked a Rutgers official whether he should address the Team directly concerning the complaints against Salim-Beasley, he was told no. "Hobbs nonetheless did the Zoom meeting after discussing it with UEC," the report said.

When a parent emailed Hobbs about Salim-Beasley, she asked that her name not be revealed, but Hobbs forwarded the message to Salim-Beasley, adding 'Confidential' to his email," the report said.

"Several" gymnasts left a suggestion for Hobbs in their end-of-year survey following the 2023-24 season along the lines of the following response:

"Listen to the athletes when they express concerns about the coaching staff. Take it seriously because it takes a lot of strength and bravery to actually speak up. ... Do not get too personally involved with the head coaches because it can cloud your judgment and leave room for bias in decision making."

The report found that Salim-Beasley's "conduct clearly wounded many of (the gymnasts) in significant ways" and that there was "no reasonable doubt that the gymnasts responses were sincere."

The misconduct ranged from frequent phone use and the presence of children at practice to a system for playing time that "at the least, genuinely confused about how the system operated" and impacting the mental health of multiple athletes.

"For a series of student-athletes to seek meetings with the University's Athletic Director personally, contact the NCAA's national office, and hire attorneys, as occurred here, highlights the impact felt by these students," the report said.

"In multiple ways, Salim-Beasley lost control over the Team and, at times, presided over a divided and dysfunctional organization. More broadly, Salim-Beasley did not seem to fully grasp the effect that her words and actions were having on many of the gymnasts."