HAMDEN–Quinnipiac University’s former women’s ice hockey coach is suing the school for wrongful termination.
Richard Seeley was hired in 2008 as Quinnipiac’s head women’s ice hockey coach for the Division I team. He had a contract, which expired in 2014. On January 9, 2015, QU offered to renew Seeley’s contract retroactively for five years, though June 30, 2019. Seeley accepted the renewed contract on February 5.
Seeley’ renewed contract stated his salary would be $165,000 for the first year, with merit increases allowed in the following years. He also got a $900 per month car allowance, and would be paid $11,500 each year to run a summer youth hockey camp.
On April 8, three weeks after the hockey season ended, officials from the school approached Seeley with several allegations, including that he had yelled at a student on the hockey team and grabbed her by her helmet chin strap.
The next day he was fired.
Seeley claims his firing was unfounded.
One reason he gives is that he completed his duties successfully; the 2014-2015 season was the women’s hockey team’s most successful season in program history, and Seeley is ranked as the 15th all time winningest NCAA women’s ice hockey coach.
He also denied the assault claims.
The suit also names an individual, David Bills, accusing him of defamation.
The defamation claim comes from an article published on the school’s official student-run Q 30 Television, a television and multimedia news station, and its website.
David Bills is the parent of a student who played on the Clarkson University women’s ice hockey team when Seeley was the team’s coach, prior to his tenure at Quinnipiac.
The suit claims that Bills sent Q30 handwritten notes about allegations that he had abused students on the Clarkson team. It also says that Clarkson had investigated the claims, and dismissed them as unfounded, and the suit adds that Bills was aware of this.
The publication released the notes as part of the reporting on Seeley’s termination. An article published by one of the student reporters was titled “Former Clarkson players accuse ex-Quinnipiac coach Rick Seeley of abuse.” The student then republished the article on his personal website.
Seeley claims this damaged his reputation and caused him emotional distress, which he says was Bill’s purpose in sending the notes to the publication.
