Just a week before the start of this year’s fall semester, the interim president of Florida A&M University, Timothy Beard, has called on the FAMU leadership team to resign from their positions on account of troubles with fraud.
Although Beard is just one week into his tenure, he has begun making bold moves for the future of the HBCU.
“As you know, our University [FAMU] is at a critical juncture, where we must align our leadership, vision, and strategies to meet the evolving challenges and opportunities ahead,” Beard wrote in an open letter.
He continued, “After careful consideration and in consultation with the Board of Trustees, the past University President, and from my observations, I have concluded that a change in our senior leadership team is necessary to move forward more effectively.”Beard described the seemingly quick decision as being “part of the overall process of evaluating the leadership team.”
According to The Guardian, Beard still holds discretion for who of those on the leadership board resignations will be accepted, although he has called for all of them to submit a request.
Since Beard’s letter, five members of the leadership team have successfully resigned. At the beginning of this week, there were 20 members on the board, but now the FAMU website only lists 15 active members.
FAMU is missing a “communicators director, a chief legal officer for its board of trustees, an athletics director, and a government relations director.”
Issues began to stir at the HBCU after an allegedly fraudulent donation was made to the university in the amount of $237 million by a Texas hemp farmer.
A long and extensive investigation that included nearly 200 pages of evidence and inquiries
found that the donation was poorly vetted and the decision to accept it was rushed. The leadership board has been named by the board of trustees to be held accountable. Former FAMU president, Larry Robinson, even resigned following publication of the scandal.Beard, although taking advice from the board of trustees, has reiterated that the decision to call for resignations has been entirely his own.
He said, “They may speak broadly in terms of our strengths and weaknesses as a university, but when it comes to the senior leadership team and individual employees, that’s on me as the president.”
“I’ve been studying the team. I’ve also been looking at the bold and striking strategic plan. I want to make sure the personnel is appropriate to make sure those strategies are completed. We make decisions based on the plan and accountability.”
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