Central Pa. sports camp to pay $8M to settle sexual abuse case

WILLIAMSPORT — A Centre County sports camp organization has agreed to pay $8 million to settle a federal civil suit arising from the sexual abuse of a teenage female gymnast from Illinois.

Notice of the settlement with Woodward Camp was filed Monday in U.S. Middle District Court. Terms were not included but the attorneys for the girl revealed the amount.

The settlement was reached without Woodward admitting any liability.

“Both parties worked collaboratively toward a resolution that we believe is in the best interests of all involved,” a camp spokesperson said.

The abuse occurred in the summer of 2018 and 2019 when the girl, who is now an adult, attended the Woodward Gymnastics Camp.

She identified the perpetrator as coach Nathaniel Singer who is serving a state prison sentence of 2½ to 5 years followed by three years’ probation.

He was found guilty in January 2023 in Centre County on charges of aggravated indecent and indecent assault.

Singer, who must register as a lifetime sex offender, denied the allegations and claimed he was never alone with the girl he was accused of groping in 2019.

Singer, 28, began working at Woodward in 2016 as a coach and disc jockey and was rehired the following three years.

Brittany J. Shulman, the gymnastics camp administrator and his supervisor, was accused of rehiring him despite knowing of his alleged propensity to abuse minor female campers.

Allegations against Singer contained in the complaint included he sexually abused a junior counselor he snuck out of her cabin in the middle of the night.

He also broke rules by taking female campers on golf car rides and being alone with them in the D.J. booth, the document stated.

In her suit, the girl claimed when she reported Singer’s inappropriate touching that her credibility was challenged. She was also advised not to ruin his reputation and told if she continued to talk about his conduct it would wreck her chance of being a gymnast in college.

The mandated reporters on the camp staff failed to report the abuse to police or law enforcement, her complaint states.

Singer was terminated in 2020, the same year he was suspended for sexual misconduct by USA Gymnastics and/or the U.S. Center for SafeSport in July of 2020.

“This settlement holds Camp Woodward responsible for failing to protect the children under its care,” said David Inscho and Lorraine Donnelly, attorneys at Kline & Specter who represented S.C.

“It is unacceptable that Camp Woodward repeatedly rehired a predator as a coach at its camp and then attempted to silence a child when she tried to speak up about what he did to her.

“It is unconscionable that this occurred in the sport of gymnastics where so many victims of child sexual abuse have been ignored.

The family is grateful that Woodward has been held accountable for failing to protect its campers and ignoring a gymnast when she tried to come forward for help, the attorneys said.

“Our client is a brave survivor who showed remarkable resilience in pursuing justice over the last four years,” Inscho and Donnelly said.

“She withstood repeated attempts to attack her credibility through questioning at the criminal trial and seven hours of cross-examination by the attorneys in the civil action.”

Woodward says it is committed to providing a safe and positive environment for all our participants and staff and employs several policies and procedures designed to promote an atmosphere of safety and support.

“This settlement reflects our dedication to upholding these values and our ongoing commitment to excellence,” it says.