Meek submits 140,000 petitions

A historic and yearlong grassroots mobilizing effort wrapped up on Monday as Kendrick Meek's U.S. Senate campaign submitted over 140,000 petitions to Supervisor of Elections offices throughout Florida to place Meek's name on the ballot.

Florida law allows candidates for office to qualify for the ballot in one of two ways. Candidates can pay a roughly $10,000 filing fee, or collect 112,476 valid petitions from registered Florida voters, regardless of party affiliation or non-affiliation. Meek aims to be be the first statewide candidate to qualify for the ballot by petition.

"Whenever anyone signs their name on a dotted line, it means something. Florida voters from every one of our 67 counties have signed this petition to put my name on the ballot. Traveling to every corner of Florida has taken me into people's homes and introduced me to their lives. People are concerned with the direction of our state, and they want leaders to focus on bringing new, long-term jobs home to Florida. Status quo politicians helped create this economic mess, and Floridians want leaders to transform our economy from recession to recovery," Meek said. "Our campaign is about putting people ahead of the powerful, and we stand today on a mountain of petitions from Floridians who are saying yes to progress and no to the status quo."

Since April 2009, field staff, organizers and volunteers have worked to collect petitions from Florida voters. Meek-for-U.S. Senate field offices are open in Jacksonville, Miami Gardens, Orlando, Tallahassee, and Tampa.

Kendrick signed his petition Monday morning and submitted petitions to the Miami-Dade County Supervisor of Elections Office. He then traveled to Jacksonville to thank supporters for their work.

In Tallahassee, Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Karen Thurman and State Representative Alan Williams submitted petitions to the Leon County Supervisor of Elections Office. In Tampa, former Mayor Sandra Freedman, State Representative Janet Cruz and members of the city commission submitted petitions to the Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections Office. In Orlando, Sheriff Jerry Demings and members of the city commission submitted petitions to the Orange County Supervisor of Elections Office.

“USF” pharmacy school will go to budding Florida Polytech

All the hard work the University of South Florida did to plan a College of Pharmacy is about to benefit an institution that will soon become one of its competitors.

Florida Senate budget chief J.D. Alexander (R-Lake Wales) has earmarked $10M to create a pharmacy school at USF Polytechnic in Lakeland. That’s about 45 minutes away from Tampa, the location where USF’s top officials actually wanted the program placed.

There’s little secret about Lakeland’s long-term ambition to have its own state university. The buzz is that the city’s legislative delegation will eventually introduce a bill to turn USF Polytechnic into a free-standing university named “Florida Polytechnic.”

Florida Polytech’s pharmacy school would be a flagship program that would help the new university recruit top performing high school seniors and pump millions of research dollars into its budget.

USF leaders wanted the pharmacy program to be part of the medical school on the Tampa campus. Some USF-Tampa supporters are already voicing opposition.

“We have the medical school in Tampa. Why do we need a pharmacy school in Lakeland?” Rep. Ed Homan (R-Tampa) asked in the St. Petersburg Times. Homan teaches orthopedics at USF’s med school.

Kevin Sneed, a former FAMU professor USF hired to build its planned Tampa pharmacy school, looks like he’s ready to jump ship and go to the future Florida Polytech. The Times reports that Sneed loves the proposal to locate the school in Lakeland and says it’s “basically a done deal.”

Some members of the State Conference of Black Legislators, including Rep. Betty Reed (D-Tampa), voted against the House bill to establish a USF pharmacy school due to concerns about how it will affect FAMU’s pharmacy satellite campus in Tampa.

Rattlers must continue to ask: If Florida has enough money to fund two new med schools at UCF and FIU and a new pharmacy school at USF Polytech, then why can’t FAMU get $1.5M to plan a dental school to address the state's severe dentist shortage?

Holmes, Jennings leveling knives for Ammons’ back

Back when Ronald Holmes was hired as the superintendent of FAMU DRS, public outrage swept throughout Rattler Country. The university’s two longest serving trustees immediately made President James Ammons the scapegoat for all the blame.

Trustee R.B. Holmes, Ronald Holmes’ brother, was quick to point his finger at Ammons. In an interview with St. Petersburg Times reporter Ron Matus, he said he had no role in the hiring and actually discouraged his brother from applying for the job.

R.B. Holmes’ claims were met with laughter all across the FAMU family. There was no doubt that as one of the seven critical votes that Ammons needed to become FAMU’s president, Holmes had the power to twist Ammons’ arm and make personal demands during the selection process.

This negative public perception doesn’t seem to matter to Holmes. His Times comments showed that he has no intention of taking any responsibility for any of the problems his brother has caused.

Board chairman Bill Jennings has joined Holmes in setting Ammons up to be the fall guy for any and all management snafus Ronald Holmes creates.

Matus reported that Jennings said “he asked Ammons if the Rev. Holmes or other trustees had talked to him about the selection, and Ammons assured him they had not.”

Ever since R.B. Holmes threw his support behind Jennings’ 2009 reelection bid for the board chairmanship, word has spread on campus that there’s an understanding that Holmes’ brother will not be summoned before the BOT to answer tough questions about the increasingly bad situation at DRS.

Rattler Nation has learned that some high-ranking employees in the Ammons administration are happy Ronald Holmes is being shielded from public scrutiny in front of the BOT. However, these individuals should know that this is not a tactic to protect Ammons. It’s a tactic to help the trustees plead ignorance about the crisis situation at DRS and eventually blame Ammons for not informing them.

It's easy to see why Holmes, Jennings, and other trustees are sticking with their "blame Ammons for everything at DRS" strategy. Morale is plummeting at the school. Teachers have complained about the lack support they received from the administration as they worked to prepare students for this year’s Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test.

Faculty members previously blamed Holmes for not heeding their suggestions to help DRS maintain the progress that improved the school’s FCAT grade from an “F” in 2007 to a “C” in 2008. DRS dropped to a “D” in 2009.

FAMU QB race heats up

Not every question that coach Joe Taylor might have had about his Florida A&M football team was answered, but he came away from Saturday's scrimmage satisfied with the execution in all three phases.

Quarterbacks Eddie Battle, Austin Trainor and Martin Ukpai each took turns directing the offense, which had quite a challenge moving the ball on the ground as the defense repeatedly made huge stops.

Ukpai (pictured), you may recall, lead the Rattlers to victory in the 2009 Florida Classic.

"I was really excited about some things that I saw," Taylor said. "I think some things that we are doing are really going to help us with the offense. The only thing I was concerned with was after we finished the kicking game, I thought we just had too much noise. I thought we lost some discipline at the end. When you lose your discipline your performance level automatically goes down."

The competition for starting quarterback got off in earnest as all three players worked with the first team. Battle was hurried on his passes, as were Ukpai and Trainor. But Ukpai might have created a bit of separation with his ability to carry the ball as he did on two running plays for about 30 yards.

"All three of them brought something to the table," Taylor said. "We just have to figure out what kind of order to put them in."

However that shakes out, Taylor said he isn't considering alternating quarterbacks because it wouldn't give the offense the consistency that it needs to be effective.

"At some point, once we start to solidify and have gone with the guy in the huddle," he said, "then you'll see the consistency."

Battle said he was pleased with his performance, but acknowledged that Trainor and Ukpai made his day tough.

"These guys are hungry," he said. "I wouldn't take that from them at all, but everybody has different motivators. My motivators are different from their motivators. They came out willing to compete today and they all did well. Those guys left me no room for error."

Read the full story here.

Dentist MaKeba Earst will keynote honors convocation

FAMU will host its annual Honors Convocation Thursday, April 1, at 10:10 a.m. in Perry-Paige Auditorium. Dr. Maeba S. Earst, owner and operator of All About Smiles Dental Center, will serve as the keynote speaker.

Earst, who has been practicing general dentistry in Tallahassee for more than 10 years, is the only African-American female practitioner in Tallahassee who owns and operates her own dental practice.

The Tallahassee native graduated as valedictorian of her senior class from Florida A&M University Developmental Research School (FAMU-DRS). She enrolled at FAMU where she earned a bachelor of science in chemistry. She later attended Meharry Medical College, School of Dentistry and was conferred with the Doctor of Dental Surgery Degree, which opened the door for her to pursue her lifelong dream of becoming a dentist.

Earst currently serves as vice president of the Sunshine State Dental Association of which she is the immediate past president. She holds membership in the National Dental Association, American Dental Association, Florida Dental Association, Leon County Dental Society and Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

A dental dynasty in the making

Dr. Leroy R. Polite and his wife of 40 years, Helen Poe Polite, are two FAMU sweethearts who’ve dedicated their careers to putting smiles on people’s faces.

The Polites formed a bond "on the hill" at FAMU. Leroy earned a degree in Pharmacy and later a Doctor of Medical Dentistry from the Medical College of Georgia. Helen earned a Nursing degree from Georgia State University and a degree in Health Education from Edward Waters College. They are the owners of Economy Dentures of Jacksonville and South Daytona Beach as well as the Dunn Dental Laboratory.

The three Polite children have all followed in the footsteps of their parents by placing education first in their lives. All three children graduated from Jean Ribault Senior High School. Lorraine Polite-Clark graduated from FAMU with a degree in Pharmacy and the University of Florida with a Doctor of Medical Dentistry degree.

Dr. Polite-Clark's husband, Bennie Clark graduated from Central High School of Ft. Pierce, Florida. He also graduated from FAMU School of Pharmacy and The University of Florida School of Dentistry with a Doctor of Medical Dentistry degree. They are the owners of "Todays Dentistry by Clark and Polite," which is located in the Dames Point Professional Complex and Soutel Dental Center in Jacksonville. They have two daughters, Sydney and Lyndsey.

Lorette Polite-Young graduated from FAMU School of Pharmacy. She attended the Howard University College of Dentistry and received her Doctor of Dental Surgery degree and her pediatric training. After completing her pediatric training, she became a full time pediatrics instructor at Howard.

Dr. Polite-Young's husband Robert L. Young, earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry from North Carolina Central University. He also attended the Howard Universitys School of Dentistry earning his Doctor of Dental Surgery degree and additional two years of pediatric dental training. The Youngs are the owners of "Young and Polite Children's Dentistry" in Charlotte, North Carolina. They have two children: Ryan and Lauren.

Harold Gregory graduated from Edward Waters College with a Bachelors of Science Degree in Biology. He also earned a Masters Degree in Public Policy from The University of Northern Iowa. He is highly skilled dental technician and is presently working as a political fundraiser in Washington D.C.

Between the Polites, their children and two son-in laws, there is one nurse, one Masters degree, four pharmacists, five dentists and two dental specialists. With five dentists in the family, Dr. Leroy Polite and Helen Polite believe they have been an inspiration to their children as their parents were to them.

Photo: Seated: Mrs. Helen Polite and Dr. Leroy Polite; Standing: Dr. Bennie Clark, Dr. Lorraine Polite Clark, Harold Gregory Polite, Dr. Lorette Polite Young, and Dr. Robert Young.

BOG raises white flag on tuition lawsuit

The Florida Board of Governors has officially backed out of a lawsuit that led state lawmakers to treat it like a public enemy.

Under the “leadership” of former members Carolyn Roberts and Sheila McDevitt, the BOG made the politically suicidal decision to sue the Florida Legislature for control of tuition. Legislators went from treating to BOG as if it didn’t exist to being openly hostile against its members.

In the wake of the new “differential tuition” law, the BOG no longer needs to win the lawsuit to achieve its goal of taking the SUS tuition rate sky high.

The differential law permits every public university to hike tuition by an up to 15 percent "differential" that goes beyond the rates set by the legislature in the annual appropriations bill. The differential is not be covered by Bright Futures.

FAMU’s Board of Trustees jumped to implement the differential despite ample evidence that it will probably force students to take smaller course loads.

FAMU’s housing shortage makes college very expensive for the student body. Most students come from families that make $30,000 or less per year. But FAMU trustees simply ignore that fact and continue to approve big tuition and fee hikes that students can’t afford. That has led FAMU students to simply take smaller course loads, which hurts tuition revenue and slows students down student progress toward graduation.

The differential also threatens to put a hole in FAMU’s recruitment budget by making it much more expensive to provide full tuition scholarships for in-state National Achievement Scholars and other top-performing high school students who are being aggressively recruited by wealthier universities.

The threat of the BOG implementing big tuition increases that FAMU students can’t afford is over. That harm is being done by FAMU trustees who ignore how the tuition hikes are hurting the university’s graduation rate and budget.

Meek, Boyd request big earmarks for FAMU

Congressmen Kendrick Meek (D-Miami) and Allen Boyd (D-Monticello) are both requesting multi-million dollar earmarks for FAMU this session. The two representatives have posted the details of these proposed line items on their respective House websites, as required by disclosure rules recently adopted by the Democratic-run Congress.

Jointly Sponsored Requests (Meek and Boyd)

Self-Organized High Assurance Wireless Networks
$250,000
The testbed and prototype developed in this research could provide a secure communication infrastructure for large-scale wireless networks, with both commercial and military applications.

Fusion Energy Spheromak Turbulent Plasma Experiment
$3,000,000
Funding will be used to research, build and experiment with a spheromak-type reactor. By accelerating scientific progress towards fusion power, the project seeks to develop and diversify clean energy sources. In addition, the project involves students from groups traditionally underrepresented in the nation's scientific workforce, and thus would help diversify the scientific field as well.

Center on Minority Children
$2,000,000
The Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities would promote interdisciplinary collaborations among Florida A & M's programs in social work, environmental science, journalism and computer information systems and other historically black universities to create new approaches to address the health concerns of this population. This program will help to close the gap in health disparities between whites and minority groups that have higher incidences of chronic diseases such as HIV/AIDS, infant mortality, diabetes, cancer and cardiovascular diseases.

Standoff Improvised Explosive Device Detection Project
$6,000,000
Funding will be used to produce real-time standoff detection of IEDs utilizing state of the art sensor technologies to better anticipate and possibly prevent deadly threat to U.S. and Allied military forces

Meek-only

Center for Sustainable Energy Solutions
$2,500,000
Funding will allow the University to develop new ways to utilize biomass for fuel production. This will reduce dependence on foreign fuels and reduce carbon emissions.

Future Affordable Multi-Utility Materials for the Army Future Combat Systems
$9,000,000
This project will help to develop and test low cost composite and other materials for soldier protection, creating lightweight effective materials to save the lives of active service men and women.

Boyd-only

Gaines and FAMU Revitalization – $1,500,000
This funding will assist the City of Tallahassee’s Gaines Street and FAMU District revitalization project.

Health care, HBCU funding bill signed

Yesterday, U.S. President Barack Obama put his signature on a bill that made sweeping changes to the nation’s health care system and pumped millions into historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs).

“Our presence here today is remarkable and improbable,” the president said. “With all the punditry, all of the lobbying, all of the game-playing that passes for governing in Washington, it’s been easy at times to doubt our ability to do such a big thing, such a complicated thing; to wonder if there are limits to what we, as a people, can still achieve. It’s easy to succumb to the sense of cynicism about what’s possible in this country.”

The Affordable Health Care for America Act mandates a long list of reforms, which include: outlawing the practice of denying health insurance to children with pre-existing conditions, permitting young people to remain on their parents’ insurance policy, banning insurance companies from dropping people from coverage when they get sick, eliminating lifetime caps on coverage, and creating temporarily subsidized affordable insurance pools for men and women with pre-existing conditions.

“If you like your current insurance, you will keep your current insurance,” Obama added. “No government takeover; nobody is changing what you’ve got if you’re happy with it. If you like your doctor, you will be able to keep your doctor. In fact, more people will keep their doctors because your coverage will be more secure and more stable than it was before I signed this legislation.”

The health reform act also included Obama’s new spending package for HBCUs. It includes a boost in Title III money, Strengthening HBCUs program, Strengthening Historically Black Graduate Institution program, HBCU Capital Financing Program, and other grants.

Fla. Senate proposes $128M increase for SUS

This year, FAMU has two priorities on its legislative agenda: lobbying against any further budget cuts and requesting $1.5M to advance its dental school planning process. If the Florida Senate budget remains in its current state and passes through the House, FAMU could achieve both goals.

Last week, the state Senate Higher Education Appropriations Committee voted to increase the State University System budget by $128M (or 3.8 percent) over last year to a total of $3.54B.

Senators used nonrecurring federal stimulus dollars, sweeps from the Education Enhancement Trust Fund, and increases in student tuition and fees to create the budget boost.

While the numbers are reason for cautious optimism, the tuition and fee hike revenue projections utilize “fuzzy math.”

As FAMU President James Ammons noted last year, the legislature bases its tuition and fee projections on the assumption that every student will take a full course load. This is a serious problem because most of FAMU’s students take smaller course loads as college gets more expensive. That directly slices into overall tuition revenue.

Despite that shortcoming, the Senate budget is still preferable to the House version, which calls for a decrease in higher education spending. The Senate has proposed a $7B appropriation for public and private colleges. The House wants to spend $340M less, which would take the state down below last year’s $6.7B number.

Any further cuts to FAMU's legislative appropriations are likely to result in layoffs. In his 2010 State of the University Address, Ammons noted that 78 percent of the university's budget supports personnel. FAMU is curently using $8M in stimulus funds to help save 347 full- and part-time jobs, including adjunct faculty and overloads for regular full-time faculty.

SBI developing B.S., M.S. in entrepreneurship

FAMU’s School of Business and Industry has a storied reputation for producing top-rate students who soar up the corporate ladder. New Dean Shawnta Friday-Stroud wants to build upon that legacy by making SBI America’s premier training ground for black small business owners.

The FAMU Board of Trustees recently approved SBI’s plans to develop a bachelor of science and master of science in entrepreneurship.

“There is a dearth of viable small and minority businesses,” SBI officials wrote in the university’s Strategic Plan. “An emphasis in entrepreneurship can prepare aspiring business owners and promote job creation and wealth accumulation in the local, state and national environments, particularly in minority communities.”

A small business is an independent company that consists of fewer than 500 employees. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, small businesses represent 99.7 percent of all employer firms, employ just over half of all private sector workers, and pay 44 percent of the country’s total payroll.

Small businesses are also responsible for most of America’s new jobs. They accounted for 64 percent (or 14.5 million) of the 22.5 million net new jobs (gains minus losses) between 1993 and the third quarter of 2008.

Florida’s three biggest public research universities already offer entrepreneurial instruction. FSU offers an undergraduate major in entrepreneurship. UF and USF offer a minor in entrepreneurship as well as a master of science degree in the field.

Lawson declares triumph as Boyd switches health care vote

Congressional candidate Al Lawson declared a campaign triumph as incumbent Allen Boyd switched his vote on the health care reform act from “no” to “yes.”

Lawson rallied hundreds of his supporters to sign an online petition called “Blue Dog Obedience School,” which called for Boyd to support the White House-backed health care bill.

“Our Blue Dog Obedience School was a huge success,” Lawson wrote in an email. “But I don’t deserve the credit – you do. I simply hosted a website; it was your activism that forced Allen Boyd to abandon his special interest friends in the insurance and health care industries and instead vote for the people of his district. You deserve the credit!”

Boyd said he changed his vote because the original legislation was modified to align with his “four principles of responsible reform.”

“Throughout this entire debate, I have consistently said that responsible healthcare reform will embody four key principles,” Boyd said. “It will reduce costs, increase access, ensure patient choice, and not add to the federal deficit. This bill is not perfect, but I believe it meets these four principles of responsible reform by providing the largest middle class tax credits for health care in our nation’s history and preserving a patient’s ability to choose their own doctor.”

The health care legislation is now one step closer to getting to U.S. President Barack Obama, who is expected to sign it into law. In a statement delivered after the House passed the bill, Obama thanked all the men and women who lobbied their Congressional representatives to support the act.

“Today’s vote answers the dreams of so many who have fought for this reform,” the president said. “To every unsung American who took the time to sit down and write a letter or type out an e-mail hoping your voice would be heard -- it has been heard tonight. To the untold numbers who knocked on doors and made phone calls, who organized and mobilized out of a firm conviction that change in this country comes not from the top down, but from the bottom up -- let me reaffirm that conviction: This moment is possible because of you.”

Alum appointed National Guard group commander

Col. Michael A. Calhoun, R.Ph., a FAMU College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences (COPPS) graduate of the class of 1976 with a bachelor of science degree in pharmacy, has been selected to command the 50th Area Support Group (ASG) of the Florida National Guard, headquartered in Homestead, Fla. Calhoun will assume the command from Col. Richard Bedard in a ceremony at Homestead Air Reserve Base on Sunday, April 25, 2010.

“Col. Calhoun is a proven leader, well qualified to lead one of the Florida Guard’s largest and most diverse commands,” said Maj. Gen. Douglas Burnett, Adjutant General of Florida and Commander of the Florida National Guard. “He is a superb officer and the right leader for this demanding assignment.”

Calhoun enlisted in the 1st Battalion, 265th Air Defense Artillery in August 1977 shortly after graduating from FAMU’s then, School of Pharmacy. He attended Basic Training at Ft. Leonard Wood, Miss. and received advance training as a medic at Ft. Sam Houston, Texas. He received a direct appointment as a Medical Service Corps Officer in the Florida National Guard in July 1989 as a Pharmacy Officer with the 131st Mobile Army Surgical Hospital (MASH). He later became executive officer of the 131st MASH; Commander, A Company, 161st Area Support Medical Battalion; Logistics Officer, 50th ASG; Director, Host Nations Support, 50th ASG; and Director, Support Operations 50th ASG. Col. Calhoun currently serves as Commander, 211th Regiment, Regional Training Institute-Florida.

“Col. Calhoun is a proven leader, well qualified to lead one of the Florida Guard’s largest and most diverse commands,” Burnett said. “He is a superb officer and the right leader for this demanding assignment.”

Henry Lewis III, dean and professor of the FAMU College Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences said, “Col. Calhoun’s service to our nation has been exemplary. Within the College we strive every day to make noticeable differences in the communities that we serve like Col. Calhoun has done in the National Guard. His example typifies what we seek to instill in all graduates from the College.”

Robinson talks up FAMU on Capitol Hill

Larry Robinson, FAMU’s top research administrator, used his recent appearance on Capitol Hill to praise A&M’s strong academic division and presidential leadership.

In a story Rattler Nation broke last month, Robinson was nominated by U.S. President Barack Obama for assistant secretary of commerce for conservation and management at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Speaking before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science & Transportation, Robinson had glowing words for the university he’s served for years.

“I must thank the entire Florida A&M University family for adopting me into its wonderful community of scholars and leaders dedicated to the principle of ‘Excellence with Caring’,” Robinson told the panel of senators.

He continued: “In particular I must thank President James H. Ammons, former Presidents Fred Gainous, and Frederick S. Humphries for allowing me to serve in key leadership positions at the University including Director of the Environmental Sciences Institute, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs and currently Vice President for Research.”

Ammons and members of Robinson’s family attended the hearing to support him.

Read Robinson’s written testimony here. Watch video from his hearing here.

FAMU Student Journalists are Best of South

Journalism students at FAMU have received five “Best of South” awards at the Southeast Journalism Conference (SEJC) held in Hammond, La. The purpose of the conference is two-fold: to encourage greater interest in student journalism and to create closer ties among journalism schools in the southeast United States. FAMU represented the only HBCU out of 22 participating schools.

Antonio Rosado, a third year magazine journalism/pre-law student from Gainesville, Fla., won first place for Best Magazine Writer. He also placed first in the Media Law category, in which he was required to complete a 100-question, multiple-choice test on-site.

“The administrators, professors and students in the School of Journalism and Graphic Communication have done a wonderful job of providing a competitive and nurturing learning environment,” said Rosado. “I was thoroughly prepared for intellectual intercollegiate competition.”

The complete list of winners includes:

1st Place, Best Magazine Writer – Antonio Rosado
1st Place, Media Law – Antonio Rosado
1st Place, Best Magazine Page Layout Designer – Joram Clervius
3rd Place, Best College Magazine – Journey Magazine
4th Place, Best Television Journalist – Alicia Mitchell
7th Place, Best Press Photographer – Taylar A. Barrington

“SJGC has great reason to be proud,” said Laura Downey, visiting professor and Journey Magazine advisor.

Singletary visits FAMU Pro Day

San Francisco 49ers head coach Mike Singletary visited FAMU’s campus yesterday to get an up-close-and-personal look at the university’s Pro Day talent. The NFL Hall-of-Famer’s presence brought excitement and nervousness to FAMU’s pro-football hopefuls.

“That's crazy. That's crazy in itself,” former defensive back Jason Beach told WCTV-6. “You see him all the time and heard so much about him just being around football your whole life. For a legend...He's a legend, a living legend walking the hallway. Legends have to start somewhere, and for these NFL hopefuls, they want this to be the start of that journey.”

Beach, Curtis Pulley, Robert Okeafor, and Vernon Wilder were among the FAMU seniors who displayed their skills before the audience filled with NFL scouts. However, LeRoy Vann’s performance generated the most headlines.

According to the National Football Post, the following teams observed Vann’s workout: the reigning Super Bowl Champion New Orleans Saints, San Francisco 49ers, Oakland Raiders, Tennessee Titans, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Pittsburgh Steelers, Indianapolis Colts, Minnesota Vikings, New York Giants, Chicago Bears, Seattle Seahawks and the New England Patriots.

Post reporter Aaron Wilson says: “NFL teams are evaluating Vann as a cornerback, slot receiver and as a return specialist.”

Vann is scheduled to work out for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on April 8.

Gray to coach Jackson High football team

Quinn Gray, a former FAMU football standout, is the new head football coach at Jackson High School in Jacksonville.

“It’s truly a privilege and an honor to be part of such a great tradition here at Jackson," Gray told the Jacksonville Times-Union. “Jackson reminds me of my old high school [Dillard] with its great tradition. The student-athletes here measure up and being able to coach at a school with such a great tradition is a great opportunity for me.”

In his new position, Gray proudly continues a proud family tradition. His father, the Otis Gray Jr., won two 4A state championships (1986, 1989) as Dillard High School’s head coach.

Gray entered the NFL in 2002 as an undrafted free agent. He played as a quarterback for the Jacksonville Jaguars for five seasons. He also had brief stints with the Indianapolis Colts, Houston Texans, and Kansas City Chiefs.

Jackson to keynote law school hooding ceremony

The Reverend Jesse Louis Jackson, Sr., founder and president of the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, will serve as the keynote speaker for the FAMU College of Law’s Sixth Annual Hooding Ceremony on May 15, 2010.

Jackson will address the Spring 2010 candidates, who will have the Juris Doctor degree conferred in Tallahassee, Fla. at the University’s Commencement Exercises on May 1, 2010. The Hooding Ceremony will recognize more than 150 candidates, including the fall 2009 and summer 2010 classes. These are the first classes to be recognized since the College of Law achieved full accreditation from the American Bar Association.

The FAMU College of Law’s Hooding Ceremony will take place at the Hilton Orlando, 6001 Destination Parkway near International Drive. The ceremony will begin promptly at 10 a.m.

Jackson is one of America’s foremost civil rights, religious and political figures. Over the past 40 years he has played a pivotal role in virtually every movement for empowerment, peace, civil rights, gender equality, and economic and social justice. He has been called the “conscience of the nation” and “the great unifier,” challenging America to be inclusive and to establish just and humane priorities for the benefit of all. He is known for bringing people together on common ground across lines of race, culture, class, gender and creed.

“We’re honored to have Reverend Jackson address our Hooding candidates and believe it is fitting given the history of the FAMU College of Law,” said LeRoy Pernell, dean of the FAMU College of Law. “Reverend Jackson’s stance on social justice speaks directly to the injustice that led to the closing of the original College of Law.”

Jackson participated in the 1965 Selma to Montgomery marches organized by James Bevel, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and other civil rights leaders in Alabama. In 1966, King and Bevel selected Jackson to head the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC) Operation Breadbasket in Chicago, and SCLC promoted him to national director in 1967. When King was assassinated on April 4, 1968, in Memphis, Tenn., Jackson was in the parking lot one floor below. He resigned from the SCLC in 1971 and formed Operation PUSH.

The reverend eventually organized the Rainbow Coalition in 1984, which later merged with Operation PUSH to form the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition in 1986. He was a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1984 and 1988 and served as Shadow Senator for the District of Columbia from 1991 to 1997. On August 9, 2000, President William “Bill” Clinton awarded Jackson the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian honor. He is a graduate of North Carolina A&T University and has a Master of Divinity from the Chicago Theological Seminary.

FAMU to slap lawsuit on sex tape distributor

When Rattler Nation exposed the alleged FAMU "dormitory sex tape" as a hoax weeks ago, readers on this blog urged the university administration to sue the website that distributed it. It looks as if FAMU officials agree with that advice.

Yesterday, FAMU’s Board of Trustees gave President James Ammons the green light to file a lawsuit against Reality Kings. The company owns "Dare Dorm," a sexually explicit site which shows what it purports to be dormitory-made sex movies for a fee.

About two weeks ago, "Dare Dorm" displayed an amateur pornographic video entitled "Big Rattler 77." It falsely claimed to show FAMU students having sex in a university-owned housing facility.

Upon investigating, FAMU officials confirmed that the video was not filmed on the university’s campus and the performers were not FAMU students.

In an interview with the Tallahassee Democrat, attorney Rick Mitchell of Orlando’s Gray-Robinson law firm estimated that the lawsuit would cost FAMU about $50,000.

Website value reports differ in their estimates as to how much the "Dare Dorm" makes each year. "Website Shadow" estimates $546,029. "StatInternet" believes the number is actually $1,998,840.

UPDATE: FAMU is asking the U.S. District Court in Tallahassee to issue a restraining order that will permanently bar Reality Kings from distributing the video online or via DVD. The university also wants its attorney fees reimbursed.

FAU’s ambition undeterred by 39% grad rate

FAMU has yet another reason to tell the critics of its dental school proposal (both inside and outside the university) to shut the hell up: Florida Atlantic University is on track to receive a medical school this legislative session.

FAU’s request for a College of Medicine received a thumbs-up from a Board of Governors subcommittee last week and is expected to easily win the full body’s approval. Fla. House Majority Leader Adam Hasner (R-Delray Beach) believes the legislature will also vote to authorize the program.

Many FAMU opponents say that the university should be not able to add any new graduate or professional programs, like a dental school, until it raises its six-year graduation rate. However, FAU has firmly rejected such arguments against its own academic ambitions. FAU’s six-year graduation rate (39 percent) is actually lower than FAMU’s (41 percent). Despite that fact, state leaders have still given FAU more graduate programs than FAMU.

In January, FAU’s Board of Trustees voted to end its six-year partnership with the Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine at the University of Miami. The agreement began as a two-year program and eventually expanded into a four-year program that permitted FAU students to earn UM medical degrees without leaving their Bacon Raton home campus. Boca Raton Community Hospital serves as FAU’s teaching hospital.

According to the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, “FAU will support [its stand-alone medical school] through tuition plus the $12 million in annual state funding it already receives [from the legislature] as part of its UM partnership. FAU plans to charge $21,752 a year for in-state students, down from the $30,000 a year UM charges.” FAU is also preparing to launch a joint M.D./Ph.D. program with the Scripps Kellogg School of Science.

By 2014, the FAU College of Medicine will serve 246 students.

FAU’s progress in building an independent medical school shows that the “raise your six-year graduation rate first” argument is a lame excuse that does not get in the way of universities which want the very best.

Pictured: Boca Raton Community Hospital.

FIU leads SUS in operational audit findings

After being cited for permitting multi-million dollar problems to fester at the State University System office, former Chancellor Mark Rosenburg is now the public university president with the largest number of 2010 operational audit findings.

Florida International University, led by Rosenberg since last year, had 13 findings. That’s more than twice the number of the state’s largest SUS institution, the University of Central Florida, which had five. It’s also more than the number of findings at the University of Florida (seven), Florida State (five), or the University of South Florida (six). FAMU had seven findings in its most recent operational audit, released last year.

Some of the issues that the auditors found at FIU included following:

-"Tangible personal property records were not always complete and accurate."

-"Payments to vendors were not always pursuant to written contractual agreements or detailed purchase orders."

-"The University needed to improve controls over collections received at the School of Hospitality and Tourism Management."

Between 2007 and 2008, while the BOG was running a “Task Force on FAMU Finance and Operational Control Issues,” Rosenberg let a number of problems in the SUS office go uncorrected.

A 2009 state operational audit faulted Rosenberg and the BOG for failing to properly document the decision-making process they used when they reviewed proposals for the 21st Century World Class Scholars Program, a $20 million legislatively-funded initiative that provides matching grants to help universities lure science and technology professors.

Additionally, auditors frowned upon the way the BOG administered the Research and Economic Development Investment Program, another matching grant fund. According to the report, the BOG did not fulfill all the required statutory obligations before it disbursed two grants, totaling $23.25 million, to UF.

Some Florida senators also raked Rosenberg over the coals for “requesting” money from public university foundations to pad his $231,750 chancellorship salary and provide perks such as a car allowance.

See the full list of public university operational audit findings here.

Jags head pack in Vann draft buzz

Amid reports that a growing number of NFL teams are strongly interested in Rattler standout Leroy Vann, the Jacksonville Jaguars have now made a bold move to show they want the first dibs on an exclusive workout with him. An NFL source informed the Florida Times-Union that the Jags will hold a private session with him today in Tallahassee instead of waiting until Thursday, as originally planned.

“Originally scheduled to work out for Tampa Bay later this week (with Jacksonville set to help guide the session), Vann had also planned to perform for the Jaguars shortly after the session with the Buccaneers,” said Times-Union reporter Michael C. Wright. “But the plans quickly changed thanks, in part, to a buzz beginning to build concerning Vann, who holds the NCAA record for career returns for touchdowns (eight punts – including five last season – and three kickoffs for TDs).”

Wright added that Vann, a kick return specialist, would make a logical addition to the Jags’ roster.

“For a value-conscious squad such as Jacksonville, Vann might make sense in the later rounds, or possibly as an undrafted free agent because the Jaguars weren’t particularly elusive last season in the return game,” Wright said. “Using mostly a combination of Mike Thomas and Brian Witherspoon on punts and kickoffs, the Jags put up mediocre numbers, averaging 8.6 yards on punts and 22.7 on kicks. Vann averaged 20.5 yards on kickoff returns last season and 19.6 on punts.”

Lawson: Boyd robbed on Oscar night

Last week, many Americans were glued to their televisions to watch Hollywood stars such as Zoe Saldana (pictured) and Monique compete for Academy Awards.

Congressional candidate Al Lawson says his opponent, incumbent Allen Boyd, deserved an Oscar for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for his portrayal as a Democrat in Congress.”

“Blue Dog Allen Boyd is not a real Democrat,” Lawson said. “But he has played one in Congress for the past 14 years.”

According to Lawson, Boyd has taken some “extreme right-wing positions” while serving in Congress which include:

• Being the only “Democrat” to side with former U.S. President George W. Bush in his failed push to privatize Social Security.
• Voting against the stimulus bill that was needed to create jobs and turn around our failing economy.
• Taking $127,000 from the health care industry in the two months before the Health Care Reform vote and then voted NO.

The St. Petersburg Times’ The Buzz blog reports that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is still trying to woo Boyd’s vote to send the revamped health care reform act to Senate. President Barack Obama also recently invited Boyd to a private White House reception to ask him to support the bill.

While Boyd continues to defend his vote against the health care reform act, he touts his support for the Health Insurance Industry Fair Competition Act, which calls for a repeal of health insurance companies’ exemption from federal antitrust laws. If approved by Congress and signed into law by the president, the act would ensure that health insurers are no longer shielded from legal accountability for practices such as price fixing, dividing up territories among themselves, sabotaging their competitors in order to gain monopoly power, and other such anti-competitive activities.

Boyd says he backed the bill because it will increase competition in the health insurance market and reduce insurance costs for North Floridians.

FAMU awards $981K in scholarships in Orlando and Tampa

FAMU President James H. Ammons wrapped up his “Up Close and Personal Tour” on Tuesday evening awarding scholarships totaling $421,000 in Tampa. Earlier in the day, students received $560,000 in scholarships at Jones High School in Orlando. All together, prospective Rattlers received more than $3.6M in financial aid offers from the university.

Quesly Daniel, a senior at King High School in Tampa, was awarded FAMU’s top scholarship, the Life-Gets-Better (LGB) Scholarship. He said he has received scholarship offers from Florida State University, the University of Florida and University of South Florida, but none topped what he was offered by FAMU.

“I think it is the best offer in the country,” said Daniel, who plans to major in mathematics or engineering.

“As a product from a single parent household, I know the transformation that can take place at FAMU,” Ammons said. “FAMU is the shining light on the hill, the place that takes you and molds you into the person that you want to become.”

Wright: Media made granddaughter’s entry to FAMU difficult

Jeremiah Wright, the retired pastor of Chicago’s Trinity United Church of Christ, says Election 2008’s media coverage surrounding inflammatory comments he made from his pulpit made his granddaughter’s first day at FAMU very difficult.

“The day I took Jamila to campus, FOX News was on the sidewalk taking my picture,” Wright said in a recent Washington Post interview. “My granddaughter got into a fistfight at FAMU because people only know the press narrative about Jeremiah Wright," he said. "The press didn't care what they did to my family. They ruined their senior year in high school. They were at the senior prom, the graduation, waiting on something to try to destroy [then Democratic nomination candidate Barack Obama].”

The relationship between Wright and Obama, a former member of his church, strained and broke during the campaign. After newscasts aired out-of-context statements Wright had made during his sermons and Obama accused him of having “a profoundly distorted view of this country,” the minister went on the offensive.

In trying to explain the cultural differences between the forms of preaching in black and white churches, Wright compared band performances at predominantly white universities versus those at HBCUs such as FAMU and Grambling State (two of the bands that were later invited to perform in the Inaugural Parade along with Howard's).

Obama was not happy with Wright’s response to the media-generated controversy and eventually cut his ties with the minister. A Rasmussen survey later found that 58 percent of Americas believed Obama denounced Wright for “political convenience.” Nonetheless, Wright continued to publicly support Obama’s candidacy.

Wright expressed sadness that much of the country is impatient with Obama’s efforts to lift America out of the rocky situation he inherited.

"It is unrealistic to think that one person can change the mess that this country has gotten into, but to pick on him is like picking on one of my kids," Wright said. "I have been knowing him for 20 years.”

“I have not stopped loving him because of what the press did, and to see him beat up on because of things he is not responsible for is painful.”

39 Jax students receive $1.2M in FAMU scholarships

FAMU awarded nearly $1.2 million in scholarships to 39 students at the Wyndham Hotel in Jacksonville, including three who received the top award — the Life-Gets Better (LGB) Scholarship valued at $85,000.

"I am grateful," said Terica Slaughter, a senior at Paxon School for Advanced Studies, who received the LGB Scholarship. "I really wasn’t expecting it."

Slaughter said without the scholarship she would not be able to attend a four-year college. In addition to covering tuition, room and board, the LGB scholarship provides a laptop computer, stipend and an summer internship.

Godfrey Jenkins, president of the J. R. E. Lee Chapter of the FAMU National Alumni Association, welcomed more than 300 students and parents to the reception.

"It is an honor to introduce you to my alma mater," said Jenkins. "We are proud to offer this opportunity to you today."

FAMU President James H. Ammons is traveling across north and central Florida this week offering scholarships to some of the state’s best and brightest students through his Presidential Scholars Program.

"It is an honor to be here tonight to tell this university’s story," said Ammons to those who traveled to the reception. "As the son of a single parent, I know the transformation that can take place at FAMU. This University is the shining light on the hill, the place that takes you and molds you into the person that you want to become."

Accompanying Ammons on the tour were university recruiters, administrators, student leaders and members of the FAMU Connection, a group of talented students who tell the university’s story through song and dance.

"These students have given up a great portion of their spring break to be here," Ammons said. "Their participation shows a great level of commitment to the university."

ESPN exec slapped with lawsuit by unofficial FAMU alumni group

The NY Daily News reports, that a renegade faction of Florida A&M University's alumni association claims in a lawsuit it was hoodwinked by ESPN senior vice president Keith Clinkscales. The suit alleges that Clinkscales promised to use his corporate connections to help launch the Hip-Hop Grub Spot.

So the alumni group's investment committee lined up big-names to back the project - from NFL stars to music celebrities - only to have Clinkscales yank support last year, the suit charges.

The committee "continues to suffer irreparable economic losses," the suit claimed without specifying a dollar figure.

It also claimed its "reputation and credibility" were hurt.

The lawsuit itself, however, highlights a division within the alumni organization.

"The group that filed this lawsuit does not speak for or represent FAMU's alumni organization.

They, in fact, are no longer part of the association and have no right to file a lawsuit on its behalf," said Reginald Mitchell general council for the alumni organization.

A Jan. 26 letter from the association's new president said the alumni association would not support any civil lawsuit.

Clinkscales is a 1986 magna cum laude graduate of the school, a co-founder of Vibe magazine and an adviser to Pepsi.

Update FAMU professor listed as contact for Hip Hop Grub Spot
(click photo to enlarge)
The website for the Hip-Hop Grub Spot includes the name, campus phone and campus email address of FAMU Hip-Hop Institute Director Kawachi Clemons. Clemons was listed as a contact for franchising, brand, and licensing inquiries for the company.

Check out the Hip-Hop Grub Spot's Myspace page

FAMU law to accept Haitian TPS requests

The FAMU College of Law Legal Clinic and Pro Bono Programs hosted a Temporary Protected Status (TPS) for the Haitian Community Training session in February and will begin accepting applications for TPS beginning Monday, March 15, 2010. The February training event was presented in conjunction with Fla. Sen. Gary Siplin’s Orlando-based office.

According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Janet Napolitano has determined an 18-month designation of TPS for Haiti is warranted due to the January 12, 2010 devastating earthquake. As a result, Haitians who live in the U.S. are unable to return safely to the country. TPS is granted by the Secretary and will allow beneficiaries to remain in the United States and legally work for a set period of time until safe return is possible.

“The FAMU College of Law Legal Clinic Program was developed to provide practical education for our students and assist in meeting the legal needs of the traditionally underserved in our area,” said LeRoy Pernell, dean of the FAMU College of Law. “Our students continually provide services to diverse communities, which addresses part of our overall mission.”

Attorney David Stoller, founding partner of Stoller & Moreno, served as the trainer for more than 85 FAMU College of Law students and faculty who will work with the Haitian community in administering the TPS documents. Stoller concentrates his practice on U.S. Immigration and Nationality Law. He is Board Certified by the Florida Bar in Immigration and Nationality Law and practices before the Department of Homeland Security, Department of State, Immigration Court and the Board of Immigration Appeals.

Joining Stoller at the February training were Mark Russelburg, Court Administrator in charge of Orlando Immigration Court and Krome Detention Court in Miami; Evans Mitchell, administrator of the Philadelphia Haitian Baptist Church, the largest local Haitian church in Central Florida; and Rev. Randolph Bracy, pastor of New Covenant Baptist Church, and member of the FAMU College of Law Board of Visitors.

“I am extremely pleased that we, the College of Law, have mounted an effort to provide TPS services to the Haitian people,” said Regent Professor and former FAMU President Frederick Humphries. “I am delighted to learn that members of the local Bar are providing training to our young bright prospective lawyers to execute appropriately the immigration requirements.”

To ensure the process is administered correctly, an advisory panel consisting of faculty members, law school alumnae, and board certified immigration attorneys has been created. Stoller will aid in the panel as well as provide additional training as deemed necessary. FAMU law faculty members Eunice Caussade-Garcia, Nicky Boothe-Perry, Linda Rohrbaugh, and Ka’Juel Washington will supervise law students who administer the TPS documents May.

Ammons awards nearly $1.5M in scholarships

FAMU kicked off its third annual “Up Close and Personal” state tour in Tallahassee Sunday, awarding scholarships totaling nearly $1.5 million.

Bethel Missionary Baptist Church in Tallahassee was the first stop of the tour, and was followed by a reception later in the day i in the FAMU Grand Ballroom where nearly 250 area students attended.

“We are in the process of providing hope during these tough economic times,” Ammons said. “We are pleased with the number of students who qualify for our presidential scholarships.”

In Tallahassee, Ammons awarded $879,000 in scholarships to 33 potential students, including three Life Gets Better (LBG) Scholarships worth $85,000 each. LGB scholarships were awarded to Megan E.D. Treadwell, of Lawton Chiles High School; Lindsay P. Baker, of Leon High School and Carissa G. Redmon. The LGB scholarship also includes a laptop computer, annual stipend and a summer internship.

The tour then traveled to Thomasville, Ga. on Sunday evening. Shinequa Revills of Westover High School in Albany said she was shocked when awarded the LGB scholarship. She was one of 12 students awarded scholarships totaling $578,000 during the reception at Thomas County Central High School.

“I wasn’t expecting it,” said Revills. “It’s great!”

Her mother Andrea Revills said the family had purchased a condominium in Florida, hoping to claim residency because her daughter had a strong desire to be a part of the Marching “100.” She only applied to Georgia Southern University and Albany State University, noted her father Apostle Felix Revills, who is a graduate of Albany State University, along with his wife. Shinequa said she was interested in enrolling there also.

“If Shinequa worked hard and prepared herself for this opportunity, we would not hold her back because of a family tradition,” said Felix Revills.

FAMU’s tour also includes receptions in Jacksonville on Monday and Tampa on Tuesday, in addition to a visit to Jones High School in Orlando. About 50 students accompanied Ammons on the tour including members of the FAMU Connection, a group of students who tell FAMU’s story through song and dance.

FAMU budgeted about $35,000 for the tour, which will come from private funds.

Henderson wins Miss MEAC title

Demetria Henderson, the reigning Miss FAMU, will soon receive a new crown with the inscription “Miss Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference.”

In the online voting competition, Henderson received 42 percent of the total count, edging out Miss Hampton University by 6 percentage points.

“Being the first person in my family to attend an institution of higher learning puts more value on my title then most people will ever care to know,” Henderson said in her MEAC biography. “I want to be a beacon of hope for high school students who grew up in similar situations.”

BET’s 106 & Park Hosts Terrance J & Rosci will bestow the Miss MEAC crown upon Henderson on Friday, March 12, 2010 during halftime of the 8 PM game of the annual Men's and Women's Basketball Tournament at Joel Coliseum in Winston-Salem, N.C.

Henderson is a psychology student from Fort Lauderdale.

Teaching pool scheduled to be fixed by fall

During a recent university forum, CFO Teresa Hardee said FAMU expects to refurbish the Gaither Gymnasium Teaching Pool by fall 2010. As Rattler Nation reported last summer, the teaching pool needs to be completely reconstructed. The project will cost $2.6M.

At a past Board of Trustees meeting, President James Ammons said he plans to use Public Education Capital Outlay (PECO) dollars to rebuild the teaching pool. As part of the Department of Health, Physical Education, and Recreation, it qualifies for PECO funds appropriated for the Gore Educational Complex’s remodeling.

Both of the Rattler Aquatic Center’s pools are in disrepair. For more than two years, FAMU’s swimming and diving teams have had to practice at off-campus locations owned by Florida State University and the City of Tallahassee.

Ammons kicks off "Up Close and Personal" tour

FAMU President James H. Ammons will kick off his Third Annual President’s Tour beginning March 7 through March 9 in an effort to increase university enrollment.

The President’s Up Close and Personal Tour receptions are scheduled as follows:

Ammons will meet with students, parents, business executives and alumni in Tallahassee, Jacksonville, Tampa and Thomasville, Ga. and award scholarships on the spot to students who meet presidential scholarship requirements.

“This tour provides an opportunity for FAMU to reassure students and their parents that we are here to help make their dreams a reality,” Ammons said. “We are excited about traveling to these cities to offer students an opportunity to be a part of the FAMU family.”.

High school seniors and their parents are invited to attend all receptions. To qualify, a student must be a National Achievement semifinalist majoring in one of the following STEM programs: biology, chemistry, physics, environmental science, or mathematics, who has an 1800 (R&M&W) SAT score or 27 ACT. Other students who have at least a 3.5 GPA and scores of 1900 (R&M&W) SAT score or 29 ACT are also eligible.

FAMU will also offer the Distinguished Scholar Award, a full scholarship, to students who have 1800 on the SAT or 27 on the ACT and a 3.5 GPA or better. Partial scholarships will be offered to incoming freshmen who have at least 1650 on the (R&M&W) SAT or 23 on the ACT and a minimum GPA of 3.0.

The FAMU Connection, the University’s recruitment/performing group, will provide entertainment. Several FAMU administrators, Presidential Ambassadors, members of the FAMU Royal Court, colleges and schools representatives and alumni will accompany President Ammons.

Last year, Ammons and a team of administrators, recruitment advisors, and students hosted two receptions in Fort Lauderdale and Gainesville. This year’s President’s Up Close and Personal Tour will give more students the opportunity to receive scholarships from the University.

FAMU's curriculum gets high marks

FAMU is one of five universities in the State of Florida receiving high marks for ensuring students graduate with the skills and knowledge they need according to a new assessment by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni (ACTA). FAMU also set itself apart by being the only university to have an American history or government requirement.

The ACTA, a national higher ed non-profit, graded the State University System of Florida and leading private colleges based on how many of the following key core subjects they require: composition, mathematics, foreign language, science, economics, literature and American government or history. Many studies have shown that employers are dissatisfied with the basic skills and knowledge of recent college graduates. The website noted that its unique information determines whether colleges make sure their students learn the things they need to know.

FAMU received a grade of “B” along with Florida State University, the University of Miami, the University of West Florida and the University of North Florida. Those schools with a “B” had four to five core subjects required.

Harry R. Lewis, former dean of Harvard College, who had a letter on the site, WhatWillTheyLearn.com, said, “many studies have shown that our college graduates are ignorant of the basic principles on which government run.” “This is especially dangerous in America, where nothing holds us together except our democratic principles.”

According to an article by WCTV-6, four of Florida’s 11 public universities received a “B” for requiring a majority of subjects and so did the University of Miami. Nationally, the TV station reported, less than 5 percent of universities have been awarded “A”s on ACTA’s WhatWillTheyLearn.com initiative. Many of the most prestigious universities received a failing grade including Yale, Cornell, Brown and Berkeley. Harvard received a “D.”

Overhead by the Alicia Keys paparazzi

Girl, can you believe some nasty smut peddler went and ripped off my boo Big Rattler’s name to post a phony “college sex video” on the internet? Yeah, that jackass used the name “Big Rattler 77” to post a porno on “Dare Dorm” and then lied about it being filmed on FAMU’s campus.

My other friends have been teasing me all day saying things like: “I guess the FAMU women don’t call him Biggie for nothing.” I’m so mad!

And you know what? Big was cussing all over Rattler Nation after this thing blew up. I thought Ben Davis was the only one on that blog who swore like that.

I saw that the whole mess really brought some heavy traffic to RN, though. Check this out: At 10:00 p.m. on Wednesday there were actually 65 people visiting RN to check out the "sex tape" story. Isn't that crazy?

Oh here's my sweetie Big -- finally calling me back! Catch you later…

Dr. Boyce: Don’t jump to conclusions on alleged FAMU sex tape

Nationally syndicated columnist Boyce Watkins, an assistant professor of finance at Syracuse University, says that the controversy surrounding the alleged FAMU sex tape should be put into perspective. While Dr. Boyce (like many people following the story) didn’t catch the Rattler Nation article exposing the tape as a hoax, he brings a good dose of common sense to the discussion about this ongoing spectacle.

From Dr. Boyce’s News One column, “The FAMU Sex Tape May Be a Big Ol’ Lie”:

The Internet was blowing up the other day over an alleged group sex tape made by students at Florida A&M University.

As a college professor for the past 17 years, let me give you some quick thoughts:

1) If the video is real, then so what? An alleged pornographic tape made at FAMU says nothing about the quality of the institution. All it says is that (surprise) college students have sex. The fact that this tape may or may not be out there is a result of the poor decisions of a small group of students, not the entire university itself. So, even if the FAMU sex tape is real, the university has no reason to be ashamed.

2) The FAMU sex tape may not actually be real in the first place: A tape isn’t real just because some black people made a porno and said, “Hey, we’re FAMU students!” So, don’t believe the hype until you know that you have more than hype on your hands. Anyone can make a tape and claim to be students at FAMU.

When it comes to the crazy story about the FAMU sex tape, it is important that we remember to not overreact. Sex is not a dirty, freaky, forbidden thing that only a few people do. It is a natural, pervasive and (sometimes) beautiful process that is essential to the foundation of human life. Sex is why we exist, so perhaps we should not pretend that it is so terribly taboo. In fact, you wouldn’t be here reading this article were it not for someone else’s decision to have sex at some point in the past. I recommend being educated and intelligent about sex, but getting over the fear of talking about sex in public. So, while the FAMU situation is interesting, let’s not get freaked out about it.

FAMU dorm “sex tape” claims are false

Contrary to internet rumors, an alleged “FAMU sex tape” was not filmed in a campus dormitory, university officials confirmed today.

Claims that a group of FAMU students made a pornographic video in a university-owned housing facility swept through cyberspace yesterday. The actual footage was posted on a sexually explicit site called “Dare Dorm” which shows what it purports to be dormitory-made sex movies to its viewers for a fee. While the video in question clearly depicts sexual acts, the setting is not in any dormitory or apartment on FAMU’s campus.

“The residential facility featured is not a FAMU dormitory,” President James Ammons stated in a memo to the FAMU community. “The Division of Student Affairs is further investigating whether this involves any other FAMU facility or FAMU students.”

Ammons added that “regardless of the video title and status of the persons appearing in the video, FAMU does not endorse the website, video or behavior of its participants. We are encouraging the owners of the site to remove the word ‘Rattler’ from the video title.”

A blogger named “Bee Michelle,” who identifies herself as a student at Spelman College, investigated the tape’s origins and believes she has discovered the identity of the men and women in the video. According to her: “They are paid actor's who are competing to win $10,000 from dormdare.com. This is actual porn. Real. Authentic. Just NOT from FAMU or in a FAMU dorm nor does it involve FAMU students.”

“Bee Michelle” has posted her report on the video and the false claims surrounding it here.

1987: FAMU-USF architecture school opens in Tampa

The University of South Florida loves to use FAMU's professional schools as a model for building its own.

In 2007, USF hired Kevin Snead, a FAMU professor, to lead its newly created Division of Clinical Pharmacy. The university also announced that Snead will serve as dean of its proposed pharmacy school. USF plans to build a College of Pharmacy that will match FAMU’s in size, operational funding, and research dollars.

This isn’t the first time USF has needed FAMU’s help to launch a new academic program. Back in 1987, FAMU actually launched USF’s architecture school.

The Board of Regents voted to establish an architecture school at FAMU in 1974 as part of Florida’s desegregation settlement with the U.S. Department of Education. It began as a cooperative program between FAMU and the University of Florida’s College of Architecture until it earned accreditation.

The BOR originally tried to put FAMU’s architecture school at USF. That way, it would be a HBCU school in name but a USF school in effect. However, President Benjamin L. Perry, Jr. fought to have the school built on FAMU’s campus in Tallahassee.

In 1986, the BOR went ahead with its plans to give USF an architecture school under FAMU’s name by ordering FAMU to start a second “joint” program with USF in Tampa. The "joint" program enrolled its first students in fall 1987.

The “joint” collaboration quickly ran into trouble with the National Architectural Accreditation Board. The board hinted that it might not accredit the Tampa program because the "joint" management structure was "hazy" and it wasn't clear which university did what. President Frederick S. Humphries and Provost Richard Hogg told the St. Petersburg Times that FAMU was fully capable of running the Tampa architecture school all by itself.

A group of Tampa architects threatened to yank $110,000 they’d raised for endowed professorships at the school unless the BOR agreed to kick FAMU out of the shared program.

USF eventually got its wish for an independent architecture school, thanks to FAMU’s help in getting the program started.

Pictured: FAMU School of Architecture building in Tallahassee, 1986.

Obama's HBCU budget carries great possibilities for FAMU

Last week, U.S. President Barack Obama formally announced his plan for a new multi-million dollar spending package for historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs). If approved by Congress, the money could help ease some financial pain at FAMU and boost the university’s construction goals.

“Like all colleges and universities, HBCUs face tough challenges today,” Obama said. “Endowments and state budgets are shrinking. Too many facilities are deteriorating. Enrollment is falling. And the cost of education is going up. These schools feel the pain more acutely. They do more with less and they enroll higher proportions of low and middle income students.

The president’s plans for increasing HBCU funding include the follow items:

-$98 million in new money for HBCUs at the U.S. Department of Education. Most of the new baseline funding will go to Title III programs which operate under the Higher Education Act of 1965, Part B. Title III is the largest source of federal support specifically designated for HBCUs.

The appropriations bump includes a five percent or $13 million increase for the Strengthening HBCUs program. FAMU currently uses this funding source to help pay for important programs such as the Undergraduate Experience, which provides student advising to support an increase in retention and graduation rates. These dollars are also being used to purchase new book volumes for FAMU's libraries, develop new distance learning courses, and hire tutors.

-$85 million in mandatory funding for HBCUs in the pending Student Aid and Fiscal Responsibility Act. This money will replace the HBCU grants that were part of the past College Cost Reduction and Access Act (CCRAA). They were designed to help HBCUs with their “academic resources, management capabilities, and physical plants.” In 2008, FAMU netted the largest HBCU CCRAA grant: $2,002,165. FAMU is using the money to upgrade Enterprise Resource Technology, library multimedia, and instructional technology.

-$64.5 million for the Strengthening Historically Black Graduate Institution program, a $3.1 million or five percent increase. FAMU has used these dollars to buy new physics laboratory equipment, conduct bar examination preparation seminars for law students, and provide graduate teaching assistantships across the university.

-$20.5 million for the HBCU Capital Financing program, to provide HBCUs with access to financing for the repair, renovation, and construction or acquisition of educational facilities, instructional equipment, research instrumentation, and physical infrastructure. This funding will support $279 million in new loans in 2011, more than $100 million more than in 2010.

While FAMU does not have an active loan with this program, it could apply and receive one to help finance the demolition and rebuilding of Polkinghorne Village. The project carries an estimated price tag of $63 million and would add 800 beds to campus.

Florida Memorial, Bethune-Cookman, and South Carolina State are all examples of schools that haved used HBCU Capital Financing Program loans to finance brand new housing complexes.

-$103 million for a comprehensive science and technology workforce program at the National Science Foundation designed to engage undergraduates at Historically Black, Tribal, and Hispanic-serving colleges and universities by realigning and building on existing programs. The president’s budget request would increase funding for these activities by over 14 percent.

This money could assist programs such as FAMU’s Undergraduate Research Center for Cutting Edge Technology at the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering.

-An increase in the Pell Grant maximum award to $5,710 in 2011 – an increase of $160 over the 2010 level – and a provision to increase that rate faster than inflation in future years. In 2011, students attending HBCUs will receive about $900 million in Pell Grants, an increase of nearly $400 million since the Administration took office.

During the 2007-2008 school year, 5,431 FAMU students received a total of $17,241,180 in Pell Grants.

Source: Jags planning Pro Day workout with Vann

Although FAMU kick return specialist Leroy Vann wasn’t invited to the NFL Combine, the official “job fair” for prospective pro football players, it looks like he will still get some private interviews.

According to National Football Post reporter Aaron Wilson, a league source indicated that the Jacksonville Jaguars plan to hold a Pro Day workout and private session with Vann on March 18. Wilson adds that: “San Francisco 49ers coach Mike Singletary has called to express interest, and 20 to 25 NFL teams are expected to attend the workout.”

Vann has been honing his punt return skills by training with former NFL punter Rodney Williams in Atlanta.

Morale plummeting at DRS

“Unresponsive.” “Distant.” “Unconcerned.”

These are just a few of the words that FAMU Developmental Research School (DRS) stakeholders use to describe their top K-12 administrator. It’s hard to find many students, teachers, or parents who have anything good to say about Superintendent Ronald Holmes.

DRS mothers and fathers complain that Holmes is disconnected from the school community and has not worked to develop a strong relationship with the Parent-Teacher Organization. Similar views are commonly expressed among members of the School Advisory Council.

Teachers blame Holmes for not heeding their suggestions to help DRS maintain the progress that improved the school’s Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test (FCAT) grade from an “F” in 2007 to a “C” in 2008. DRS dropped to a “D” in 2009.

Faculty members are also struggling within an atmosphere of fear following a series of highly publicized scares concerning their employment. Back in December, Holmes told nine faculty members that he would not renew their contracts the next month. He explained that the layoffs were necessary because his projected enrollment numbers fell short by 56 students. The jobs were ultimately saved by FAMU’s Division of Academic Affairs.

DRS suffered another employment-related media snafu in June after word spread that Holmes planned to lay off 35 teachers. Holmes had written 35 “visiting” faculty members to tell them that their contracts were about to expire. After a public outcry, FAMU released a press release stating that Holmes was going to send another letter to the 35 visiting faculty members encouraging them to reapply for their positions.

There are also concerns about school safety now that word has spread that the DRS administration has attempted to boost enrollment by admitting students who were expelled from the Leon County School System due to behavioral problems.

These issues are taking a heavy toll on teacher morale as DRS prepares to administer the FACT to its students this month.

Frustrated DRS stakeholders who’ve approached Holmes say he often dismisses their criticism as if he’s “untouchable” and knows he won’t be held accountable by any one. Holmes is the brother FAMU Trustee R.B. Holmes.