FAMU President James H. Ammons announced Tuesday that he will temporarily suspend the induction, enrollment, initiation, membership intake and recruitment for all student clubs and organizations until fall 2012. Ammons also announced the cancellation of the 2012 Summer Band Camp.

“Our top priority is the health, safety and well-being of students,” said Ammons. “We are convening a panel of experts and outstanding thinkers to provide advice and recommendations on the operation of student organizations. Before we enter into a new student intake process, we should have the benefit of the work coming from the committees and the investigations.”

Ammons made the decision to suspend intake and other membership activities after discussions with student leaders, advisors and other university personnel.


“I totally support this effort,” said Breyon Love, president of FAMU Student Government Association. “This issue of hazing has had a far-reaching impact on the university and I believe that we need to pause for a moment to make sure that all of our students are ready to seriously move in a direction which will result in a complete culture change. We want to make sure every student knows about the personal responsibility they have in making sure we wipe out hazing on our campus.”

According to Ammons, the temporary suspension on initiation and membership intake is effective as of January 31, 2012. Ammons delivered the news at a mandatory campus wide forum on safety which included a panel discussion by a group of campus administrators who focused on the assistance available to the campus community when safety issues arise and what the reporting responsibilities are for students, faculty and staff.

FAMU officials say that any organization in violation of the temporary suspension will be suspended as a campus organization in accordance with university guidelines.

Ammons told the group he has decided to cancel the band camp in light of the on-going investigation and the plans to convene a FAMU Board of Trustees Anti-Hazing Committee that will review how FAMU will best govern band activities. Ammons said he would like to give this panel, the board and the administration the opportunity to do a thorough review before reinstating any marching band programs.

“In no way have we terminated our curriculum in music,” said Ammons. ‘We have a group of talented music faculty who prepare students for great careers in music and other pursuits. We will continue this very important academic program for the benefit of any current students or future students that might choose to pursue this degree. We have also continued our scholarship support of students who meet the appropriate criteria and will continue to do so, pending the availability of funds.”

An MIT-trained scholar who played a key role in building an engineering program at Clark Atlanta University will serve as the new dean of the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering.

Yaw D. Yeboah, an engineering professor at Pennsylvania State University, take the helm of the E-College on July 1, 2012. He will succeed Ching-Jen “Marty” Chen, who led the college from 1992 to 2011. Engineering Professor John R. Collier has served as interim dean since Chen stepped down in February 2011.

Yeboah will be the fifth leader of the jointly operated engineering college, which enrolls approximately 2,250 undergraduate and 300 graduate students annually.

“I look forward to joining the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering family, and to continuing the tradition of excellence by upholding the motto ‘Quality, Growth and Diversity,’” Yeboah said. “The potential of the college, through its uniqueness, advantages and the opportunities it offers, is incredible, and I anticipate us working together on a shared vision to move it to the next level.”


Yeboah began his career in industry, conducting research and development at the General Electric Corporate Research and Development Center in Schenectady, N.Y. He then joined Clark Atlanta University, building an engineering program as associate dean for science and engineering. In addition, he served as technical director of the Research Center for Science and Technology at Clark Atlanta University from 1995 to 2004.

At Penn State, Yeboah was the department head of the John and Willie Leone Family Department of Energy and Mineral Engineering, where he administered the engineering degree programs in energy, environmental systems, mining, and petroleum and natural gas. He also continued his research in catalysis, bioenergy, fuel cells and combustion, and emission control.

In 1975, Yeboah was the first Massachusetts Institute of Technology student to ever earn four degrees in four years — bachelor’s degrees in management, chemistry and chemical engineering, and a master’s degree in chemical engineering practice. He earned a doctorate in chemical engineering in 1979, also from MIT.

The search committee that selected Yeboah was headed by Bishop Holifield, retired FAMU general counsel, and Lawrence G. Abele, director of the FSU Institute for Academic Leadership and former FSU provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs. The committee consisted of representatives from both FAMU and Florida State.

During a teleconference with university trustees, FAMU President James H. Ammons confirmed that the institution’s Department of Public Safety is investigating a possible hazing incident involving the campus’ Kappa Kappa Psi chapter. Kappa Kappa Psi is a national band fraternity.

The alleged hazing occurred off-campus. Former Director of Bands Julian E. White learned about it on Nov. 21 and informed FAMU police the next day.

Kappa Kappa Psi is an official student organization at FAMU. The university has also launched probes into suspected hazing rituals within unauthorized band-related groups such as the Red Dawg Order and Clones that have led to arrests.

The Marching 100 remains on suspension following a Nov. 19 hazing incident that led to the death of drum major Robert D. Champion.

Jennifer Carroll, Florida’s 18th Lieutenant Governor, will keynote FAMU's Black History Month Convocation. Carroll is the first female elected as Lieutenant Governor in Florida and also the first African American elected statewide.

This year’s convocation theme is “Black Women in American Culture and History.”

In addition to her duties assisting the Governor with economic development, Carroll oversees the Florida Department of Military Affairs, Florida Department of Veterans Affairs, serves as the Governor’s Designee on the Florida Defense Support Task Force and as chairperson of Space Florida.


In her role as head of Military Affairs, Carroll has visited nearly every military installation in Florida. She travels to Washington, D.C. to meet with Congressional and Pentagon officials to advocate for Florida’s $65 billion military economy and defense industry. Carroll’s efforts resulted in increased military positions, military construction funding and increased defense contract opportunities for Florida’s businesses.

Born in Port of Spain, Trinidad West Indies, Carroll immigrated to the United States as a young child and served her adopted nation honorably and with distinction. Carroll enlisted in the United States Navy in 1979 rising from the ranks of an enlisted jet mechanic E-1 to retire as a Lieutenant Commander, Aviation Maintenance Officer after 20 years. During her time in the Navy, she was awarded numerous awards that include: the Meritorious Service Medal, two Navy Commendation Medals, two Navy Achievement Medals, Navy “E”, Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, two Sea Service Ribbons, two Coast Guard Special Operation Ribbons, and an Expert Pistol Medal.

As a legislator, Carroll worked to pass meaningful legislation that enhanced economic development, which includes procuring $2.9 million to fund the Florida Export Finance Corporation to help employers have access to short term loans in order to retain and create jobs. She sponsored the Entertainment Economic Development Legislation that created thousands of jobs for Floridians who were paid over $485 million in wages.

Carroll is married to Nolan Carroll of Miami and they have three children: Nolan II, Nyckie and Necho.

FAMU softball standout Amber Alford is slated for induction into the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference's (MEAC) Sports Hall of Fame.

Alford, a star pitcher, guided the FAMU Lady Rattler softball team to three straight MEAC titles from 1997-1999. She was named MEAC Rookie of the Year in 1997 and followed with MEAC Player of the Year accolades in 1998. Alford concluded her collegiate career with a 75-47 record and a 2.19 ERA while striking out 487 batters. Alford is atop the FAMU softball history books with 43 out of 49 complete games pitched in 1998. She also earned All-American honors and MEAC Tournament Outstanding Performer accolades twice during her career.


Head softball Coach Veronica Wiggins is elated about the induction. "I was ecstatic when I got the call last night. It's overwhelming seeing kids that come to you and they grow into maturity over the time you are associated with them. She graduated in 2000 and she should get recognition for actually putting FAMU softball on the map. The MEAC's level of overall play can be attributed to what she and her teammates brought to the table."

The Hall of Fame class will be honored on March 9th in Winston-Salem, N.C. during the 2012 MEAC Basketball Tournament.

FAMU alumnus Aaron Gray has joined Global Payments as director for Corporate Development and will help drive the company’s domestic and international corporate development and mergers and acquisitions initiatives for worldwide expansion and growth.

Global Payments is one of the world’s largest electronic transactions processing companies. Gray began his career as an investment-banking analyst for Goldman Sachs Group, Inc., where he evaluated strategic alternatives for clients across the technology, media and telecom sectors.

“It felt amazing when I received the job offer,” said Gray. “I was glad that my collective work experiences in investment banking at Goldman Sachs and my operating experience at a number of other firms positioned me well for the role.”


Prior to joining Global Payments, Gray served as manager, strategic business development/corporate strategy for The Home Depot. He executed extensive research on market trends to identify key issues and their impact on core business strategies and also provided analysis and recommendations on strategic business and operational initiatives to the executive leadership team.

Gray has also served as business development analyst for Fandango, Inc., where he performed detailed merger analyses and through his competitive intelligence and
identification of strong strategic partners, was responsible for the execution of major deals for the company.

Gray graduated with honors from FAMU’s School of Business and Industry (SBI) and has a master’s in business administration from Harvard Business School.

“FAMU and the School of Business and Industry prepared me for this job because I learned my core accounting and financial principles in class,” he said. “I was also exposed to great professors who encouraged me to read outside of class to gain an edge of my competition for jobs. Additionally, the professional development taught in SBI helped me become comfortable presenting to c-level executives. As we speak, I am in Asia with our senior vice president of mergers and acquisitions as well as the company’s international president and I feel totally at ease. I have a lot to be thankful for.”

Over a 10-day period, the FAMU Simply Marvelous Women’s Flag Football team posted an 11-0 record and won two national championships. That is a record-setting eight national championships in five years.

Simply Marvelous, managed and coached by FAMU alumni Marvin Green Jr. and Derrick Folson, won the National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association (NIRSA) National Campus Championship Series (NCCS) National Championship. FAMU previously won this tournament in 2007, 2009 and 2010. Simply Marvelous reached the championship rounds by first winning the NCCS Regional Flag Football Championship December 2-4, 2011 at the University of Southern Mississippi in Hattiesburg, Miss. In the Regional Championship game, FAMU defeated Southern University with a score of 13-0. The National Intramural-Recreational Sports Association of the National Campus Championship Series National Championship was hosted by Texas A&M University in College Station, Texas. FAMU went 5-0 and defeated the Texas State Blazers 7-0 to win the championship.

FAMU's Erika Collins was named most valuable player and named to the Women's All-Tournament Team, along with teammates Sharonta Williams and Tynequia Roberts.


On December 31, 2011, Simply Marvelous also won the American Collegiate Intramural Sports (ACIS) 32nd Annual National Flag Football Tournament in Pensacola, Fla. FAMU previously won this tournament in 2007, 2009 and 2010. ACIS Flag Football is a series of campus flag football regional and national championship tournaments that provide college student-athletes with the opportunity to compete in high-quality, nationally promoted intramural events.

FAMU's Simply Marvelous reached the National Championship round by winning the 2011 Swamp Bowl hosted by the University of Florida. FAMU's Simply Marvelous came out of this tournament, where some of the best teams in the Southeast were represented by defeating the University of South Florida in the championship game 19-0. Erika Collins was named tournament Offensive Most Valuable Player. Kimbryana Lewis was named tournament Defensive MVP.

Over the course of 11 games, FAMU scored 368 points and only allowed one touchdown -- a National Women's Flag Football record. Simply Marvelous will next participate in the ESPN Weekend Women's Flag Football Tournament held in Orlando, Fla., March 1-4 at the Disney Wide World of Sports Complex.

FAMU has expelled four students who are charged with Marching 100 members who attempted to join the unauthorized “Clones” group associated with the clarinet section.

Denise Bailey, Brandon Benson, Hakeem Birch and Anthony Mingo were all booked last Thursday and taken to the Leon County Jail. Officers released them after they all posted bond.

An arrest report states that pledges were slapped, punched, and paddled during a hazing process at Benson and Birch’s residence. The alleged incident is not connected to the Nov. 19 homicide of drum major Robert D. Champion.

Under university rules, the four dismissed students may appeal their expulsions to a judicial committee of the Division of Student Affairs.

“We encourage anyone who has been a victim of hazing to come forward. We will promptly and thoroughly investigate every complaint and seek prosecution for all cases to the fullest extent of the law,” Sharon P. Saunders, FAMU's chief communications officer, said in a statement.

Trudie Kibbe Reed is leaving the presidency of Bethune-Cookman University (B-CU). The school’s Board of Trustees accepted her resignation Jan. 20 by an overwhelming margin of 30 to three.

Larry Handfield, the trustees chairman and steadfast Reed supporter, is also stepping down from his leadership position on the board although he will remain a member.

Handfield told the Daytona Beach News-Journal that Reed’s exit has nothing to do with the approximately one dozen lawsuits against the school, including wrongful termination actions filed by former football coach Alvin Wyatt and former basketball coach Clifford Reed.


There were numerous other controversies during Reed’s seven and half year tenure. The American Association of University Professors (AAUP) accused her of violating academic freedom and formally censured her administration in June. The AAUP previously censured Reed trampling academic freedom when she was president of Philander Smith College in Arkansas.

In 2008, Reed also turned many heads by hiring former FAMU interim president Castell V. Bryant as her interim vice-president of academic affairs. Castell nearly cost FAMU its accreditation with the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools in 2007.

Alumni, faculty, and student anger against Reed surfaced in a very public fashion in 2009 with the launch of a website that called for her termination. It accused her of hiring incompetent administrators, unfairly dismissing employees who stood up to her, trying to dismantle the School of Social Sciences, and endangering the entire university’s accreditation.

Rufus Montgomery continues to brag nonstop about having Gov. Rick Scott’s ear. But his so-called “clout” has not helped FAMU gain anything from the Florida Governor’s Office.

Scott appointed Rufus to the FAMU Board of Trustees on March 23, 2011. Less than two months later, the governor line item vetoed all the funds that lawmakers appropriated for FAMU’s Public Education Capital Outlay (PECO) projects. Scott took away $2,014,769 for electrical and technology upgrades on FAMU’s campus and another $500,000 for FAMU’s Public Health Entomology Research and Education Lab in Panama City.

At the same time, Scott gave a thumbs-up for $35M in PECO dollars for a new construction on the campus of the University of South Florida Polytechnic.

If Rufus is really a big-time powerbroker with Scott, why couldn’t he save a mere $2.5M in PECO money from the governor’s veto pen? Why didn’t Scott show him the same respect that he showed his top political supporters in Lakeland?


Rufus is proving to be equally ineffective in the struggle to find enough money to complete Phase II of the College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences building. Scott’s 2012-2013 budget does not include any of the money FAMU needs to finish this project, which is essential for the program’s accreditation. FAMU needs $6,049,000 to finish up Pharmacy Phase II. The university has received $25,000,000 toward the total $31,049,000 required for the project.

Scott clearly has a one-sided relationship with Rufus. Rufus just does what he is told with no questions asked. FAMU has gotten absolutely nothing out of this deal.

The governor has shown that protecting FAMU’s flagship health sciences school is not one of his priorities. His priority is attempting to call the shots concerning who will serve as FAMU’s president with Rufus’ help.

Rufus has been the go-to trustee in Scott’s efforts to get rid of President James H. Ammons. Even though Rufus failed to deliver on the task of suspending Ammons, Rattler Nation has learned that the fight to help Scott take control of FAMU’s presidency is just beginning. Steps are already being taken to make sure that the results of Ammons’ performance evaluation will please Scott.

For a trustee who boasts about being the FAMUan with the best relationship with the governor, Rufus is obviously useless in bringing the money home.

The 2012 FAMU National Alumni Association (NAA) Annual Convention is scheduled for May 17-20 in Charlotte, N.C. The theme for this event is “Renew the FAMU in You.”

“It’s imperative that we get recharged and renew our commitment to FAMU as we celebrate the university’s 125th anniversary,” said FAMU’s National Alumni Association President Thomas L. Mitchell Sr.

The three-day event will be filled with workshops and activities that will re-ignite, renew and re-energize the “Ole Rattler” Spirit.

There will be multiple opportunities for alumni to interact, have fun and get training to help strengthen the alumni association, its chapters and the university.


FAMU President James H. Ammons is scheduled to speak May 18. A town hall meeting has also been planned to discuss the university’s future. An array of functions are scheduled to ensure that guests have an opportunity to reconnect with friends, classmates, fraternity brothers and sorority sisters while taking pleasure in the many offerings of “The Queen City” called Charlotte.

“In May, we want to see thousands of Rattlers converging on Charlotte to make a difference at Florida A&M year-round,” said Gregory Clark, FAMU NAA Convention Committee chairman and first vice president. “We will be reminded of our time on ‘The Hill’ and inspired to rededicate ourselves to serving our beloved university.”

FAMU police arrested four Marching 100 members for an alleged hazing incident that occurred around September 1, 2011. Denise Bailey, Brandon Benson, Hakeem Birch and Anthony Mingo were booked for misdemeanor hazing and taken to the Leon County Jail on Thursday.

Bailey, Benson, and Birch left custody after posting $500 bonds. Mingo posted a bond of $1,500 due to the fact that he also faces charges for possessing marijuana and paraphernalia.

Officers charged the students with hazing five Marching 100 members who attempted to join the unauthorized “Clones” group associated with the clarinet section. The arrest report states that the pledges were slapped, punched, and paddled at Benson and Birch’s residence.

FAMU police launched their investigation into this alleged hazing incident on November 15 after receiving a report from former Director of Bands Julian E. White. It is not connected with Robert Champion homicide that took place on November 19 in Orlando, Florida.

Photo credit: WFTV Eyewitness News (ABC) in Orlando.

FAMU President James H. Ammons joined two other State University System of Florida (SUS) campus leaders in discouraging an across-the-board tuition hike for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) programs. He, along with the presidents of Florida Atlantic University (FAU) and Florida International University (FIU), says that such a move would make it harder for low-income minorities to obtain STEM degrees.

"I think the one way that you don't get people into areas where you need them is to charge them more," Ammons told the House Education Committee. "I think what we need to be doing, on the other hand, is to find ways to encourage and support students, especially those from under-represented groups, to go into STEM."

Fewer than 20 percent of SUS students are pursuing majors in STEM fields.

Last week, the presidents of the University of Florida and Florida State University urged lawmakers to consider charging students more for STEM degrees, which are in high demand in today’s job market. STEM programs are typically more expensive than social science or liberals programs.


“A STEM degree person should pay more for that than they would, say, an education degree,” UF President Bernie Machen told the education committee. “If you look at return on investment after graduation, look at the pent-up demand for STEM hires, you can make a good case that since that program costs more you ought to have a (higher) tuition for those programs.”

Ammons, FAU President Mary Jane Saunders, and FIU President Mark Rosenburg all disagree with an across-the-board mandate for higher STEM tuition.

"If anything, tuition should be lower," Saunders said. "If you want to bring people into these programs, you should incentivize them, maybe with more scholarship money."

Ammons said that he supports a tuition bump for certain graduate and professional programs. Students in those schools are college graduates who have an opportunity to get jobs with their baccalaureate degrees and save money before returning to school.

Lawmakers consistently point to Florida’s low tuition as a justification for cutting the SUS budget and requiring students to pay more their education. Even though Florida’s tuition is lower than most other states, the lack of on-campus housing forces students to face a very expensive cost-of-living. The legislature constantly requires universities to expand their enrollments but does not pay for housing construction.

Gov. Rick Scott has announced plans to save tens of millions of dollars by shutting down seven prisons and four work camps in Florida on July 1, 2012.

But Rep. Alan Williams (D-Tallahassee) is expressing concern about the employees who will be displaced as a result of the closures. A total of 1,300 filled and vacant positions will be eliminated as a result of the changes.

"I am saddened and disappointed with Governor Rick Scott's decision to close several correctional institutions that are economically vital to our rural communities,” Williams said. “I care about and have great concern for the people who work at these facilities, their families, and the small businesses that have relied upon the employment and economic opportunity that these prisons have brought to these fiscally constrained areas of our state.”


Two of closures are slated to occur in Williams’ district. They are the River Junction Work Camp in Chattahoochee and the Jefferson Correctional Institution.

Florida Department of Corrections Secretary Ken Tucker said that the closures are justified by the declining number of prisoners. Florida’s crime rate is currently at its lowest level in 40 years.

“Declining prison admissions has led to a surplus of prison beds, allowing us to pare down our budget shortfall by consolidating and closing our older, less efficient facilities,” said Corrections Secretary Ken Tucker. “We are committed to placing as many affected staff as possible in vacant positions for which they are qualified.”

Williams is asking the governor’s office to rework its plans for the state’s correctional institutions.

“I believe the governor's staff should reconsider the manner in which it is handling all these prison closings,” Williams said. “Rather than fully closing all seven of these facilities, I wonder if it wouldn't be more appropriate to consider restructuring the facilities, or even taking a closer look at the state's privatized prisons.

For the second time this year, the Rattlers and Lady Rattlers scored conference wins on the same evening. This time the Rattlers beat South Carolina State 86-69 in the night cap, as the Lady Rattlers beat the Lady Bulldogs 70-62.

The Rattlers improved to 4-15 overall, 2-2 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference. Amin Stevens scored 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds to lead the Rattlers. FAMU also got 18 points from Reggie Lewis. Lewis was 7 of 15 from the field, with all of his baskets coming from behind the 3-point arc. Lewis made all of Florida A&M's 3-pointers, as the Rattlers shot 50 percent from long range.

Nathaniel Drayton chipped in 10 points for Florida A&M, which snapped a two-game skid and won for just the second time in 10 games.

The Rattlers attempted 17 more shots than South Carolina State (75-58), making nine more (37-28).

Lady Rattlers
The Lady Rattlers completely dominated SC State in the first half, stretching its lead to 15, 34-19 with a little over four minutes remaining. The Lady Rattlers maintained a double-digit lead for the remainder of the half and enjoyed a 14 point lead heading into the half up 38-24.

FAMU remained aggressive to start the second half and used a 12-4 run to increase its lead to 22, 50-28 by the 15:54 mark. The Lady Rattlers continued to press extending its lead to 23, before going on to capture the17 point victory (79-62).

Antonia Bennett scored a game-high 27 points including 11-of-14 from the field to lead Florida A&M. Tameka McKelton scored 12 and Jamie Foreman scored 10 as the Lady Rattlers improved to 12-5 overall and 5-0 in the MEAC. Regina Smiley pulled in nine rebounds and Kimberly Sparkman scored nine points in the victory.

Tameka McKelton was honored after a recent matchup against North Carolina A&T for being the top three-point leader in Lady Rattler history. During the contest, she surpassed previous title-holder Q'Vanda Curry.

In honor of Black History Month and in celebration of FAMU’s 125th anniversary, the university's Lyceum Series, Office of Student Activities, Tallahassee Film Festival (TFF), Tallahassee Film Society (TFS) will present "A Tribute to African-American Film" beginning February 3 through February 29, 2012.

"We have been working in conjunction with several local groups to not only pay tribute to a segment of African-American culture, but to highlight FAMU alumni and staff contributions to the entertainment field as we celebrate FAMU’s 125th anniversary," said Sharon Saunders, executive assistant for Communications at FAMU and the Tribute to African-American Films Planning Committee Chair. “We believe that we have movies and events the entire community will enjoy.”

One of the most anticipated events will be the red-carpet, advance screening of FAMU alumni Will Packer and Rob Hardy's upcoming film “Think Like a Man.”


Other scheduled events include a lecture titled “African-Americans and the Oscars: Decades of Struggle and Achievement” by noted author and professor Edward Mapp and screenings at All Saints Cinema of Alley Pat and Dare Not Walk Alone, with Producer/Editor Tom Roche in attendance for Q & A.

Additionally, there is a panel discussion February 8 at Turner Auditorium on the Tallahassee Community College campus titled “Succeeding in the Film Industry.” The panelists include Anthony B. Major, former director/stage manager/actor and current director of the Zora Neale Hurston Institute for Documentary Studies at the University of Central Florida; Lewis "Jiggs" Walker, props manager; Melvin Johnson, film and television casting director; Valerie Scoon, professor, former producer with Harpo Studios and current Florida State University College of Motion Picture Arts faculty member; Akil DuPont, a student Emmy-winning short film director/co-writer; Rosalind Stephenson, long-time, award-winning publicist; and Robert Stephenson, hair stylist for major motion pictures and personal stylist to Samuel L. Jackson.

For married couple Richard B. Johnson II and Tiffany T. Johnson, completing the FAMU Masters of Business Administration (MBA) Distance Learning Program is going to be about setting goals and teamwork.

The couple, who met as undergraduates at FAMU, were on campus January 5-8, 2012 as part of the School of Business and Industry’s (SBI) distance education orientation.

“I researched the program first,” said Tiffany Johnson, who received her bachelor’s degree in agribusiness in 2005. “We had both set goals to attain our MBA. With us doing the program together, I realized, ‘How awesome it is to have that support behind you.’ Right now it’s all about teamwork.”

Launched in 2011 as part of the FAMU partnership with Tom Joyner Online Education (TJOE), the MBA online program is one of three online programs that FAMU offers. The other two programs, nursing and public health as well as the MBA, were selected as the pilot programs because of their high demands.


“We are truly elated with our second online MBA cohort that consists of new and returning Rattlers,” said SBI Dean Shawnta Friday-Stroud. “Just like our inaugural cohort, all 33 students have impressive resumes. But more importantly, they are excited about embarking upon the journey of enhancing their academic and professional opportunities by obtaining an MBA from FAMU’s SBI. We are thankful that they have been selected to be a part of FAMU’s and SBI’s rich legacies and traditions.”

This semester’s incoming MBA class consists of 33 students in careers in cities all around the nation. Some of those students include: Antonius G. Barnes, an educator and politician from Panama City, Fla.; Natasha Moody, who works for the National Basketball Association Team New Orleans Hornets in New Orleans, La.; and Tylana Hill, an accountant in Orlando, Fla.

“You are going to be giants with very strong shoulders for others to stand on,” Vice President for Academic Affairs Cynthia Hughes Harris said to the students during a welcome reception. “You are going to be the hallmarks of our online MBA program.”

Hill, who received her bachelor’s degree in accounting in 1995, currently co-owns a Certified Public Accountant with her husband. She said it was important for her to enroll in the program so that she would have the opportunity to broaden her skill set and the program’s convenience.

“This online program is very convenient because I don’t have to be in one place on a set schedule,” said Hill, a native of Los Angeles, Calif. “That was very important for me in picking an MBA program.”

During the orientation, Florida Rep. Alan Williams, D-Tallahassee, reminded the students that they are now ambassadors for the university.

“You are now coming into a program that is deep in tradition,” said Williams, a graduate of the SBI five-year program. “We want this program to grow.”

Director for Instructional Technology Franzetta D. Fitz said the incoming students’ stories speak to why the online MBA Program is needed.

“It was a lot of work to put this program into fruition,” she said.

The National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) is right to encourage the federal government to ask tough questions about whether Robert D. Champion’s civil rights were violated despite his family’s insistence that his homicide was not a hate crime. Federal officials are the only authorities who are actually qualified to make such a determination.

At a news conference, Champion family attorney Christopher Chestnut admitted that some of the witnesses he has interviewed said Champion was beaten worse than the other FAMU Marching 100 members who were hazed on November 19 because he was gay.

But despite that evidence, he insists that the homicide cannot be classified as an act of anti-gay hate.

“This is not a hate crime. This is a hazing crime,” Chestnut said.


If witnesses have come forward to say that Champion was singled out for an ultimately deadly beating because of his homosexuality, how can Chestnut be so sure that it wasn’t a hate crime?

NABJ has asked the U.S. Department of Justice’s Community Relations Service and Civil Rights Division as well as the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights to launch probes into Champion’s death. Even if those agencies decline that request pending the outcome the criminal investigation led by Florida officials, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida should review all of the witness accounts claiming that Champion was brutalized because of his sexual orientation and file any appropriate federal charges.

The individuals who killed Robert D. Champion should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. If they committed a federal hate crime, then they must pay the price.

FAMU alumna Sharon Lettman-Hicks, executive director of the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC), is requesting a federal investigation into the homicide of FAMU drum major Robert D. Champion. Champion parents say the hazing incident that took their son's life might have been motivated by the fact he was gay.

The NBJC, a civil rights organization dedicated to fighting racism and homophobia, has responded with a petition drive that urges “the U.S. Department of Justice’s Community Relations Service (CRS) and Civil Rights Division, in addition to the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights, to launch an immediate investigation into Mr. Champion’s death as a potential anti-gay hate crime.”

“Anti-gay violence is not only a civil rights issue; it is a Black issue. It is a Black issue because violence against gay and transgender individuals is disproportionately affecting our Black youth. The civil rights community can no longer stand on the sidelines while our sons and daughters continue to suffer in silence. Mr. Champion is one of our own and his death will not be in vain,” Lettman-Hicks said.


Christopher Chestnutt, who is representing Champion’s parents in their planned civil lawsuit against FAMU, insists that anti-gay sentiments were not the main reason behind the assault.

“This is not a hate crime. This is a hazing crime,” Chestnut said.

But despite Chestnut’s statement, the NBJC is standing behind its call for a federal inquiry. The NBJC request is steadily picking up support among other advocacy groups that battle intolerance based upon sexual orientation, including the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Community Center of Central Florida.

“Even if his sexual orientation was not the sole factor in the hazing incident, the fact that is was even a partial factor makes this a hate crime and we fully expect the State Attorney to treat it as such,” said Randy Stephens, executive director of the community center.

Weeks after investigators announced that FAMU drum major Robert D. Champion’s homicide was caused by hazing, the exact motive for the hazing remains unknown. This lingering question has led to a war-of-words between the Champion family’s attorney and the legal team for FAMU’s former director of bands.

On the CBS Morning News, Champion family attorney Christopher Chestnut said that it was possible that the assault was motivated by the fact that Champion was gay.

Charles Hobbs, an attorney for former band director Julian E. White, said this new information could prove that his client bears no fault for what happened to Champion.


“Assuming that the assertions of the Champion family and their attorney Chris Chestnut are true, then it is entirely possible that Champion's tragic death was less about any ritualistic hazing and more tantamount to a hateful and fully conscious attempt to batter a young man because of his sexual orientation,” Hobbs said. “As such, the efforts Dr. White expended to root out and report hazing could not have predicted or prevented such deliberate barbarity.”

Chestnut fired back with a statement that said White is trying to excuse his negligence.

“It’s an attempt to exonerate the band and the band administration for their negligence, for their part in Robert’s hazing by saying because of sexual orientation, this is a hate crime,” Chestnut said in a quote published by the Washington Post. “This is not a hate crime. This is a hazing crime.”

“Robert’s being gay may have been a reason for his hazing, but it wasn’t the main reason,” Chestnut said in a statement to the New York Times.

At a news conference, Chestnut admitted that some of the witnesses he has interviewed said Champion was beaten worse than the other band members who were hazed on November 19 because he was gay. But he says the Champion family believes their son was beaten mainly in retaliation for his commitment to the university’s anti-hazing rules. They also think November 19 was the first time he was ever a victim of hazing.

Detectives and prosecutors have not stated whether they believe Champion voluntarily submitted himself to hazing or was hazed against his will. Last month, The FAMUan newspaper reported that more than one dozen Marching 100 members said they saw Champion being forced onto a bus in the hotel parking lot.

According to the New York Times: "If the death is tried as a hate crime, it could carry harsher criminal sentences. But in a civil lawsuit, it could undermine the family’s argument, allowing the university to distinguish a hate crime from a longer tradition of hazing, Mr. Chestnut said."

The dispute over the motive in the Champion case could pit Chestnut against Willie Gary, the man he calls his mentor. Gary is the co-counsel on White’s legal team. The biography Chestnut posted on his law firm website says: “Mr. Chestnut has had the rare experience of participating in multi-million dollar civil trials with his mentor, famed civil litigator, Willie Gary. At his mentor’s encouragement and following his example, at the age of 26, Christopher formed The Chestnut Law Firm, LLC, a civil litigation firm based in Florida.”

Congresswoman Maxine Waters will serve as the keynote speaker for FAMU's 2012 Martin Luther King Jr. Convocation.

Currently, Waters is a senior member of the House Committee on Financial Services, serving as the ranking member of the Subcommittee on Capital Markets and Government Sponsored Enterprises. She also serves on the subcommittee on Insurance, Housing and Community Opportunity, and the subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations. In addition,

Waters serves on the House Committee on the Judiciary, where she sits on the Intellectual Property, Competition and the Internet Subcommittee, and the Immigration Policy and Enforcement Subcommittee. An integral member of Congressional Democratic Leadership, Waters serves as a chief deputy whip and as a member of the Steering and Policy Committee.


Waters is considered by many to be one of the most powerful women in American politics today. She has gained a reputation as a fearless and outspoken advocate for women, children, people of color and the poor. Elected in November 2010 to her 11th term in the House of Representatives with almost 80 percent of the vote in the 35th District of California, Waters represents a large part of South Central Los Angeles, the communities of Westchester and Playa Del Rey, and the diverse cities of Gardena, Hawthorne, Inglewood and Lawndale — all in California.

A native of St. Louis, Mo., Waters was the fifth of 13 children raised by a single mother. She began working at age 13 in factories and segregated restaurants. After moving to Los Angeles, she worked in garment factories and at the telephone company. She attended California State University at Los Angeles, where she earned a bachelor of arts degree.

Waters is married to Sidney Williams, the former U.S. Ambassador to the Commonwealth of the Bahamas. She is the mother of two adult children, Edward and Karen, and has two grandchildren.

The FAMU Developmental Research School (DRS) earned another “C” grade on its Florida School Accountability Report for the 2010-2011 year. During those 12 months, the institution was led by Interim Superintendent W.E. “Bill” Johnson.

Johnson replaced ex-Superintendent Ronald Holmes on July 1, 2010. Under Holmes, DRS received a “D” in 2008-2009 and a “C” in 2009-2010.

New Superintendent Patricia Hodge will receive her first school grade at DRS after the current 2011-2012 year. Before coming to FAMU, Hodge served as director of Florida Atlantic University Schools (FAU) for three years. FAU’s K-12 program received straight “As” during her tenure.

Hodge says the DRS family is making progress in its mission to improve the school grade.

“Congratulations to the students, faculty, parents and the community of FAMU DRS for maintaining their school grade of C,” Hodge said in a message to the DRS community. “This is a result of your wonderful efforts and enduring support. With your continuing hard work, we are expecting even greater results on next year’s grades.”

The “Prof” is back.

Roosevelt Wilson, former owner and publisher of the Capital Outlook newspaper, has revived his “Against the Grain” column. It now appears as part of his new blogging site, The Grain Online.

Wilson is a native of Bunnell, Florida. He earned his bachelor’s degree in English from Bethune-Cookman and a master’s degree in Mass Communications from Florida State. He served as FAMU’s sports information director from 1969 to 1977, directed university publications from 1977 to 1980, and then succeeded the late Hansel Tookes as FAMU’s athletic director from 1980 to 1985. Wilson also taught in FAMU’s School of Journalism and Graphic Communication.

He started his “Against the Grain” column while working as a T. Thomas Fortune Fellow at the Winston-Salem Chronicle during the summer of 1989. He then began syndicating it to other newspapers, including the Capital Outlook. When Wilson purchased the Outlook in 1991, the column became the newspaper’s most popular feature. The column also ran in the Tallahassee Democrat from 1992 to 1997.

Wilson has come out swinging once again in his latest column entitled: “FAMU BOT should be applauded.”

Read it here.

The presidents of the Tallahassee Chapter and Florida State Conference of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) jumped to support a one-sided probe into ex-FAMU band director Julian E. White’s recent allegations against FAMU's senior administration. But they have given Gov. Rick Scott a pass for jeopardizing FAMU’s accreditation and talking down to FAMU’s students.

Dale Landry, president of Tallahassee NAACP said that he and the president of the NAACP’s state conference asked the Florida Board of Governors (BOG) to investigate White’s claims that the FAMU administration did not do enough to help him fight hazing.

An opinion column Landry submitted to the Tallahassee Democrat said that he reached out “to Adora Obi Nweze, president of the Florida State Conference of the NAACP, and ask[ed] her to request that Chancellor Frank Brogan and the Board of Governors intercede and conduct an independent investigation of the allegations by Dr. White. I want to thank President Nweze for her efforts, and Chancellor Brogan and Chairwoman Ava Parker of the Board of Governors for interceding and bringing objectivity in discerning the allegations by Dr. White.”

Landry’s description of the BOG probe as objective is a joke. If the BOG had any intention of being objective, it would be looking at both sides of the story. Ammons has said that White did not show competence in reporting incidents of alleged hazing within the band. The BOG has not announced any plans to investigate whether White did anything wrong.


Landry and Nweze both remained quiet when the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) warned the Florida governor that his actions against the FAMU administration might cost the university its accreditation. Scott tried to publicly pressure FAMU trustees to suspend Ammons. SACS reminded him of its rule against political interference.

The Tallahassee and State Conference of the NAACP also sat back and did nothing after Scott spoke in an offensive manner to the FAMU students when they marched in protest of his attempt to get rid of Ammons.

“FAMU students marched on the governor’s mansion to protest his attempt to suspend Mr. Ammons,” the Miami Herald’s editorial board wrote. “That led the governor in his usual tone-deaf manner in dealing with black people to tell them that he grew up poor in housing projects as if all students at this majority black campus define themselves as poor and products of the projects.”

It is also apparent that Landry and Nweze are not interested in pointing out the unfairness in Scott’s decision to ask for Ammons’ suspension while state officials investigate Champion’s death when the presidents of the University of Miami and University of Central Florida were not forced to step aside during investigations into student deaths on their respective campuses.

“Scott's intervention had critics noting that serious hazing incidents at largely white Florida universities — including the University of Miami, where Chad Meredith's death in 2002 inspired a 2005 hazing law — never drew such gubernatorial intervention from Tallahassee…,” the Orlando Sentinel’s editorial board wrote. ‘We can't help but point out that while hazing wasn't at issue in the death of Ereck Plancher, no state leaders called on University of Central Florida President John Hitt to step aside in 2008 amid serious allegations of negligence by the football staff. Neither should they have.”

The editorial staffs at the Orlando Sentinel and Miami Herald are actually doing more to speak out against what Scott has tried to do to FAMU than the NAACP has.

The Tallahassee and State Conference of the NAACP have both shown that they are not serious about fighting to make sure FAMU is treated fairly or respectfully by the governor’s office.