Marva Johnson accepted as FAMU’s next president by Board of Governors
Her official start date would be August 1
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) - Florida A&M University has a new president.
The Florida Board of Governors (BOG) accepted Marva Johnson as FAMU’s 13th president during a BOG meeting Wednesday.
The 17-member board’s vote Wednesday afternoon in Boca Raton comes amid a controversial and emotional presidential selection process.
During the BOG meeting, several FAMU alumni and students filled the room to express concerns regarding Johnson, with nearly a dozen delivering remarks about Johnson during public comment, just moments before the vote was announced.
“Today, we do not feel heard. Ms. Johnson did not earn this,” Kimberly Godwin said. “No one will stand for it and neither will we.”
Another speaker called Johnson a “lobbyist,” followed by a FAMU student calling Johnson’s proposed salary “disrespectful.”
During the BOT meeting, Johnson also delivered remarks, expressing gratitude to be selected as the university’s presidential pick.
While delivering her remarks, Johnson turned towards a crowd filled with FAMU students and alumni and said, “I hear your hopes and I hear your dreams and I hear your concerns, and my door will always be open, and I’m looking forward to full engagement on campus and in our communities.”
Chair Kristin Harper reiterated during the BOG meeting that she has concerns about the search process. She said she emailed the BOG on Tuesday about those concerns, but did not go into further detail.
BOG board member and former State House Speaker Paul Renner challenged Marva’s critics by pointing to John Thrasher, saying he received similar criticism when he became Florida State University’s president, but ultimately led FSU to great success.
Many Rattlers and members of the capital city community have voiced opposition, frustration and skepticism in the weeks since the FAMU Board of Trustees selected Johnson. Johnson has served as the chair of the Florida State Board of Education and as a member of the University of Florida’s advisory board.
But critics say they see Johnson as a political pick who is underqualified and doesn’t represent the Rattlers.
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As the BOG meeting unfolded in South Florida on Wednesday, FAMU students gathered on campus in the capital city to rally against Johnson. One student shared that they want a different person to lead FAMU.
“We wish for transparency, we want to know what’s going on in these rooms. Ultimately, we wish for another president besides Attorney Johnson,” one student said.
A FAMU senior shared that he hopes the new leadership will take FAMU to the next level, but he said he is shocked and wonders why this choice was made.
”Is this university focused on its main root, which is our students, or is it focused on, per se, looking good? Whoever steps into this responsibility, it’s your job to keep this university on a solid ground, keep this university in a solid field, we live by that principle,“ Xavier Woodley said.
And earlier this week, a group of students and alumni filed a lawsuit against the FAMU Board of Trustees and BOG.
In the 154-page civil lawsuit, filed by attorneys Mutaqee Akbar and Ennis Jacobs, the group claimed that Johnson’s selection as the program’s next president was “predetermined in violation of the state Constitution.”
The lawsuit also went on to request that a judge intervene ahead of the BOG’s presidential vote.
Despite public pushback, FAMU trustees approved a five-year contract for Johnson earlier this month. The contract, voted in favor of by eight trustees, also includes a salary of $650,000.
The contract lists Johnson’s salary as $100,000 less than her requested minimum, but it also includes retention bonuses and performance incentives.
Her official start date would be August 1, according to the contract.
Johnson’s presidential vote from the BOG comes just two weeks after the 17-member board convened and denied Dr. Santa Ono’s appointment as the University of Florida’s next president.
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to reflect Johnson’s correct proposed salary amount of $650,000.
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