An ethics investigation has been opened into a central Oregon high school administrator who used his school's wrestling room for years while avoiding paying fees.
On Friday, the Oregon Government Ethics Commission opened an investigation into Crook County High School Principal Jake Huffman for violating Oregon statutes regarding a public official utilizing their position for financial gain and for failing to acknowledge a conflict of interest.
Commission staff has 180 days to complete the investigation and prepare the report on the matter.
Investigator Andrew McIntyre told the commission during the meeting that Huffman was utilizing school district resources to benefit Central Oregon Wrestling Academy, a for-profit operation that Huffman started in 2018.
McIntyre said that Central Oregon Wrestling Academy has used Crook County facilities under times originally slotted for the Cowboy Mat Club. As a nonprofit organization, the Cowboy Mat Club is able to practice in school district facilities without being charged a fee except for custodial services.
The preliminary review put together by the investigator states that the Central Oregon Wrestling Academy would normally be charged $20 per hour to use the facilities due to being a for-profit business. Central Oregon Wrestling Academy did not pay any fees to use the school district facilities between April 2022 and Dec. 21, 2024, the report states.
Huffman was candid with the commission during Friday's meeting, saying that he made sure to follow the correct protocol once he was made aware of the issue with how the club was scheduling practice time.
"A lot of this is probably my own fault because I didn't do the necessary research to figure out what I needed to do," he said to the commission over the phone. "At the end of the day, all we want to do is provide an opportunity for students to be better at wrestling."
Crook County School District has also conducted its own internal investigation, according to a statement sent out by interim superintendent Joel Hoff.
"As the district became aware of a gym scheduling issue last winter, the HR department conducted a thorough internal investigation. Mr. Huffman accepted full responsibility for not properly scheduling the gym and implemented corrective measures to ensure he followed the correct process moving forward," Hoff wrote. "The district remains committed to working collaboratively with OGEC to ensure this matter is fully resolved."
According to the preliminary review, the district did have an official facility use agreement with Central Oregon Wrestling Academy for Dec. 22, 2024 through April 1, 2025.
Huffman was previously the head wrestling coach at Crook County High School. He led the Cowboys to Class 4A team state championships in 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2018. Huffman started the Central Oregon Wrestling Academy in 2018 after stepping down as head coach at the high school. He was the school's assistant principal from 2019 to 2023 and became the principal at the start of the 2023-24 school year.
Huffman did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Oregonian/OregonLive.
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