Florida A&M University Interim President Timothy Beard has called for the immediate resignation of the school’s senior leadership team; this team includes the Chief Operating Officer, Provost, General Counsel, Athletic Director, Chief of Staff and Communications director, among several other positions that report directly to Beard.
This letter was delivered to the designated staff members along with a response form, prompting them to fill in the blanks and return by end-of-day today.
The letter addressed to the senior leadership team begins by explaining that after consultation with FAMU’s Board of Trustees, it was then decided that a change in leadership is needed to advance the university forward. The letter goes on to state that while the request for resignation may not directly reflect the individual’s contributions to the university, new leadership is needed to help the university reach its long-term goals.
The resignations coincide with a period of low licensure exam pass rates among students in several of FAMU’s professional programs.
This news has provoked mixed-emotions within the FAMU community. Many are acknowledging that this request may have come off too harshly from Beard, but the main consensus has been that an interim president should have no right to make such decisions, being that he is not the university’s official president.
The FAMU community has made a multitude of statements on social media, spreading from X (formally known as twitter), to Facebook and even the popular anonymous social app Fizz.
“Doesn’t make sense for someone in a temporary position to be able to make such a detrimental decision,” one Fizz user said. Another user stated that this situation makes it seem as though Beard is “trying to secure his spot”, as a new leadership line-up would be left in his hands. As of today, it has been one week since Beards’s contract officially started.
Many other comments online state that this isn’t a good look for FAMU, especially with classes commencing in less than two weeks.
“So he’s requesting [people] to quit? Does he have replacements for them already? Was this a good decision?” Facebook user and FAMU alumna Briana Rose said.
Vaughn R. Wilson, HBCU Gameday writer, stated that FAMU VP and Director of Athletics Tiffani-Dawn Sykes is already out the door , as she officially informed friends that she is no longer employed with the university. She has since directed all future communication to go through Michael Smith, FAMU’s associate athletic director.
The Famuan has learned that along with Sykes, Director of Communications, Keith Miles, has stepped down since the request was sent out.