Florida A&M president James H. Ammons yesterday unveiled a 100-day plan for resuscitating the college and easing the concerns of national accreditors.
Ammons told FAMU's board of trustees that he and his administrators will spend the next three months working on the school's most pressing problems, including poor financial management and shortfalls in major programs like business, pharmacy and law.
Ammons' goal: To get a clean state audit (using Castell's numbers). And to save FAMU from losing its national accreditation, a seal of approval that is vital to the university's future.
"We have an aggressive agenda," Ammons told trustees. "But I feel confident that with the team we have put in place and with your support, we can accomplish this in the time frame set out."
He said he will take necessary action, including termination, against anyone who violates campus purchasing and hiring practices.
SACS gave FAMU until December to fix the problems or risk losing its accreditation, a designation that gives a student's degree its value and qualifies students for federal financial aid.
Ammons said officials from SACS will visit FAMU in September as part of their investigation. That investigation will be reported in SACS' December meeting which will determine FAMU's accreditation status.
"The staff will work diligently to ensure that most corrective action has been addressed before the September SACS visit," Ammons said.
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Could someone please go to the Tallahassee Dixie Crat and respond to Mr. Bob Oleary. He talked about the lack of diversity on our board could someone please remind him that pf the 11 boards in the State of florida that less than 5% of the board members are African AMerican yet we make up more than at least 12 % of the state! Could someone also tell him of the Original Three SUS schools Florida A&M is the only one that never had a policy written and or otherwise that denined students on the basis of race and therefore if you do not see that many white students at FAMU that is their choice and their lost! Furthermore, I do not see the problem with white students going to traditonally white schools and African American students going to HBCU's and neither does the Suprem Court!
ReplyDeleteBob O'Lary wasn't singing that tune when he was on FAMU's payroll, if, in fact this is the same guy, which I believe it is. If I recall, he was checking his bank statements every two weeks, just like a plenty other folks who was to moan and groan all day long.
ReplyDeletecorrection on my previous blog:
ReplyDelete"...folks who want to..."
I just watched the entire BOT meeting rebroadcast on famcast and I must say I was impressed. For the first time in years the meeting ran smooth. There were only two moments where "confrontation" arose: 1. Trustee Diallo's disagreement with the new visitors parking policy, 2. Trustee Duncan being confused by a chart dealing with the athletic department (almost seemed as though she wanted to make a issue out of nothing) 3.the current state of FAMU DRS as was expressed by current faculty and parents of the school. Overall, the BOT and Dr. Ammons' administration has the ship pointed in the right direction and I am confident with the full support of the BOT we will be back on stable ground by the end of this year.
ReplyDeleteI believe he wanted Robert Ruggles on the board. However, Ruggles did not make the short list. Ruggles did not have the skill sets needed. I agree with the new selections, well somewhat concerned about the Brown guy. Who brought to the table the type of recognition, experiences clot and connections that White and Dent have?
ReplyDeleteSorry this was not Ruggles time.
...and NEVER should be Ruggles time. He quit the J-School prior to the new building being finished, practiced economic racial discrimination in the school as dean, and is overall not a nice person. He has an axe to grind and the J-School has flourished since he left. Let him stay home and watch TV!
ReplyDelete^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
ReplyDeleteWOW!
I could not disagree more about your condemnation of Ruggles. The man was scrupulously, ethically fair, and I never heard the least shadow of a hint of a whiff of racism in him. He condemned racism in all contexts and without hesitation.
ReplyDeleteRuggles worked incredibly hard for FAMU. He gave this university the best years of his professional life and perhaps his health as well. He created the Journalism school and the building it is now in, and he deserves the highest credit for doing so.
From time to time, Ruggles had to manage some very smart, volatile, driven, creative people. Some of them didn't like the way he did that. But some of them wouldn't like the way anybody managed them.
On whole, he was an extraordinarily good dean. If the current deans all over campus put out as much as Ruggles did, work as hard, raise as much money, manage budgets as tightly, build as many industry contacts, juggle as many competing demands, deal with as many difficult employees -- FAMU will be much better for it.
No one who does this much will be loved by everybody. But Ruggles deserves major honors for his contributions to FAMU.
It will be harder for FAMU to rise up strong if we smash the memory of those who helped us get this far.
May everyone else do as much good for this university, and be celebrated for it more than he has been.
SOME FAMU employees hate people that cause work for them. Dr. Ammons must get rid of these lazy ass, sorry people that get mad when you call and ask for help or a simple question. If people work, regardless of their color, FAMU really need them. I get sick and tired of people complaining about they are busy and have too much on there plate. We all have alot on our plate, but guess what we still do our jobs. I cannot wait until the day Dr. Ammons get rid of some more of them. I am tired of getting the run around, because people do not want to do what they are paid to do. Maybe if the tables turn and the same way they trick other people happens to them, they will see how it feels to reap what they sow.
ReplyDelete7.12. at 533
ReplyDeletewhat about thelma gorham? she didnt help in the establishment of the j school...please give credit where it is due.
I am a black employee of FSU and there are many others just like me. We work hard at FSU and are recognized and rewarded for our hard work. Many of us would like to work at FAMU, because we are proud of the school and call ourselves FAMU fans even if we didn't go to college there. But we hear such terrible things about being a FAMU employee. There is not a line drawn down Gaines Street that keeps the good black employees on one side and the ones that don't want to work on the other. I had a friend to went to work at FAMU who didn't get paid because the people in the offices couldn't be bothered to fill out and turn her payroll paperwork on time. By time she got her second FAMU check she had been hired by FSU, and got paid on time. This happens over and over, not just faculty. PLEASE make us proud of FAMU - don't put up with poor workers when they should be fired. Black people get protected by FAMU no matter how bad they are. Do YOU like that Comm. Procter gets paid $50,000 and rarely shows up for work - and when he does the studnets say they don't learn anything from him. That's $50,000 that could be better spent.
ReplyDeletePLEASE make us proud of FAMU - don't put up with poor workers when they should be fired.
ReplyDeleteAMEN! Hopefully, Dr. Ammons will get over to the COL ASAP! Lundy Langston is wrecking havoc. She is a fake. Her academic background is questionable. Check out her publications. Victoria Dawson isn't the only person suffering from grammar deficiencies. FAMU deserves better than this glorified secretary (she was once the secretary of former COL dean Percy Luney). She has no business in the legal profession let alone the COL!!!
This is what the website said about Langston:
ReplyDeleteThroughout her teaching career, Professor Langston has given talks in the international arena as well as domestically. She participated in a program in Ghana, West Africa, as part of the Black Studies Scholars Institute, sponsored by the Ford Foundation and the National Council for Black Studies.
"Given talks"? "Participated"? in other words she went on a trip with her baby daddy Omar Saleem who as an ACTIVE PARTICIPANT IN THOSE ACADEMIC PROGRAMS.
She's a farce and it is time to knock her off her self erected pedestal.
7/12/2007 7:00 PM wrote:
ReplyDelete"what about thelma gorham? she didnt help in the establishment of the j school...please give credit where it is due."
Prof. Gorham deserves to be honored for her many contributions as a black woman journalist, a teacher, and a mentor. She was indeed on the founding faculty of the journalism school and served it for the decades till her death. Many students speak gratefully of her.
However, she was not chosen by FAMU to lead, fund, and develop the school as dean. Ruggles was.
And Ruggles did.
One person's success does not make another a failure. We all need the best of each other.
According to the website Langston's claim to fame:
ReplyDeleteShe has presented talks to a father’s rights group, feminist groups, colleagues at various law schools, and even a brownie troop.
A brownie troop?!!! Dr. Ammons please come and rid us of this welfare professor who makes a salary in far excess of $130,000! She makes more than most of the top level of the Ammons' administration. It is a waste. She is a detriment to the legal education of FAMU students.
You will be surprised how she has managed to stay afloat in the legal education arena. She's done it all on the backs of others through manipulation. The faculty at Nova are happy that she left. There was some discrepancies concerning her "leave of absence" (breach of contract)when she followed her baby daddy to Orlando. Tulsa had a similar problem with Langston's failure to produce. At FAMU she has never published an article. The Law Review she was advising never got off the ground. Langston is always present at the "gossip-fests" among the COL faculty. She rants and puts her personal business in the street so that all will stay clear of her baby daddy Omar Saleem. She once called Saleem (who was the Assoc. Dean) a jerk when she wanted to reschedule a class that conflicted with his. She's always late to class & often show up with red eyes and excuses concerning why she's never prepared. She hates it when she's confronted with her ignorance, unprofessionalism and pure silliness. FAMU deserves better.
ReplyDeleteDo YOU like that Comm. Procter gets paid $50,000 and rarely shows up for work - and when he does the studnets say they don't learn anything from him. That's $50,000 that could be better spent.
ReplyDeleteThis happens ALL over campus. We cannot criticize Proctor, especially when some people (high positions) start work at 10 or 11 and do not do anything for the rest of the day and take 2 hour lunches. It may take awhile for them to get caught, but guess what their day is coming. I am going to continue to work hard and do all I can to support FAMU, because it's the right thing to do and I feel good about doing my job.
Proctor is out there in the streets defending his peeps, trying to hook a sister or brother up with the goods for a better life. Don't hate.
ReplyDeleteProctor is a "pimp" and the Black Community is his unfortunate "ho". That guy is playing FAMU and his constituents
ReplyDeleteFAMU is all black and no one takes the institution serious.
ReplyDeleteHigh Schools have better reputations than FAMU
Anonymous 12:57pm said:
ReplyDeleteI do not see the problem with white students going to traditonally white schools and African American students going to HBCU's and neither does the Suprem Court!
I don't see the problem either!
Anonymous said...
ReplyDeleteFAMU is all black and no one takes the institution serious.
High Schools have better reputations than FAMU
7/12/2007 10:51 PM
There must be something at FAMU that is of great interest to you because you keep your nosey ass in our business.
Dr. Ammons has begun a good work in college pharmacy, but what about the other schools, particularly nursing. The school of nursing dean has and is violating many hiring practices, for instance she hired her administrative assistant without even advertising the position. She has also hired another employee without advertising the position. She has is slowly but surely destroying the school of nursing. Dr. Ammons will you please save the school of nursing before it's too late. We need a leader not an overseer!
ReplyDeleteWhat I can't stand, is FSU employees or other outside people type up negative stuff about FAM on our blogspot! First of all, not all FAMU employees have gotten paid late when starting a job and I can speak first hand on that. IF your buddy didn't get paid and had to run to FSU, GREAT!!!!! That's one less employee that wasn't a true FAMUan out of here! And what is all this hate for Comm. Proctor? I bet you haven't taken the FIRST class by the man and talking all this crap about him. The man knows what he is talking about and is an excellent professor who tells it like it is, bottomline. Sheesh, get a life and worry about state, not FAM. You made your choice so stick with it and don't worry about us.
ReplyDeleteI am very proud of FAMU. We made the right choice bringing Ammons in, a real FAMUan. Once you get OUTSIDE folks our your business and bring in true rattlers, things get done smoothly.
"The school of nursing dean has and is violating many hiring practices, for instance she hired her administrative assistant without even advertising the position."
ReplyDeleteWell Dr. Ammons as Provost hired Bill Proctor to teach political science at fifty thousand a year with out advertising the position.
So maybe we should get rid of Ammons?
FAMU is the State's business first! So when you waste millions upon millions dollars "your" business is everyone's business.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous 7/12/2007 1:10 PM said...
ReplyDelete"Bob O'Lary... was checking his bank statements every two weeks, just like a plenty other folks who was to moan and groan all day long."
I can't let a derogatory remark like that go by without answering it.
When Bob O'Lary worked at FAMU, he really WORKED. The man knew his stuff, he took care of his responsibilities, he did his job well, and when he got finished, he walked around looking for someone who could use his help.
As more people at FAMU adopt that attitude, the place will thrive.
Ammons should fire Proctor. First, the guy can't speak proper English. I can't imagine how he grades his students. Second, there is a performance issue if he is missing class a fraction of the number of times that the St. Petersburg Times reports. Third, what exactly is the point of the class he teaches. Is he serious when he says that he wants to teach students to maneuver around the Ethics Commission and the Election Commission? This is the kind of stuff that gives FAMU a bad name.
ReplyDeleteWhat caused all this unnecessary confusion with the School of Nursing? There are students complaining to the President and Trustees about why they desire a degree when they haven't passed a final test, students demanding that they be let back into the program when they have failed out, and now staff being hired without advertising properly. Why doesn't the new Dean take charge and stop all this crazy drama.
ReplyDeleteRuggles didn't finish the J-School building that he started. Consistently flew off the handle and lost his cool without having the facts...uttered racial slurs in the presence of others...employed economic racial hiring practices...etc., etc. The J-School and its students have performed at a much higher level since his departure!
ReplyDeleteI love me some FAMU. I do not care what you all say. FSU Black employees, we do not need your love or pride. You all are some unhappy people over there, having to endure pernicious racism on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteMake your ownselves proud. We got this.
Bob O'Lary is gone and good riddance.
ReplyDeleteBob O'Lary, if memory serves me correct, was outsted from the Leon County School system for behavior "unbecoming" a professional. I think, again, if memory serves me in this instance, that O'Lary was dimissed for some type of sexual misconduct (or was accused of sexual improprieties) with an underage female student when he was employed in some type of instructional capacity. The specifics are sort of vague right now, but I do know that he was employed by the public school system in Leon County, and I remember reading about this in the newspaper. Plus, he needs to quit complaining about FAMU and carry his alabaster self away from there. I bet FSU won't hire his sorry a$$. But us? Well, you know, we have been, in so many capacities, a pit stop for the grossly unemployable. And grossly unemployable is what Bob O'Lary is and has been. I echo the above poster: Good, damn riddance.
ReplyDeleteProctor's pimping folk? You don't say. He's no different from other folks who been pimping the school. One good pimp deserves another. Proctor's just trying to get the $$ for the rent (even though his wife is a physician).
ReplyDeleteAnonymous 7/13/2007 11:42 AM, why am I beginning to suspect that you just might possibly have a grudge against Ruggles?
ReplyDeleteHe didn't leave before finishing the J-School. He was forced out for standing up to the way the administration was taking the money he raised for the journalism building.
He didn't "consistently" fly off the handle. In his last year or so, he became so exasperated with the way the administration took and used the millions he raised for the building that he started saying these things in public, and bluntly so. At one point, $4.3 million dollars that he had raised disappeared from the building fund. Getting it back required offending some important people who took it for other programs.
Perhaps you could have offended those powerful people more tactfully and gotten the money back?
Ruggles turned a very cold eye on anyone whose remarks even came close to racism and put them on notice. You did not want that eye turned on you.
When you say Ruggles employed "economical racial hiring practices," are you pointing to the fact that many white faculty were paid less than many black faculty? Or that under Ruggles, as under every other dean, there were wide disparities in salaries for faculty?
Your "etc., etc." is pretty empty. It sounds like you got paid less than you thought you were worth. Well, welcome to the club!
Ruggles was an important contributor to the strengths of FAMU. No dean makes everybody happy. I don't agree with everything Ruggles did, but the man deserves to be honored for his real accomplishments on behalf of FAMU.
The journalism building exists today because Ruggles raised the money for it and pushed it until it became a reality. Without Ruggles, that building would simply not be there now.
7/13/2007 7:01 PM wrote:
ReplyDelete"Well, you know, we have been, in so many capacities, a pit stop for the grossly unemployable. And grossly unemployable is what Bob O'Lary is and has been. I echo the above poster: Good, damn riddance."
A lot of fine people of all races work, and have worked, at FAMU. Calling FAMU a "pit stop for the grossly unemployable" is an egregious insult to FAMU.
As for O'Lary, the man is qualified at a professional level in at least two fields, is talented, intelligent, articulate, a gifted problem-solver.
When you need to get something important done that will take a prodigious amount of effort, insight, attention, and detail, he's someone you'd appreciate having on your team.
Nobody's perfect, but bad-mouthing such gifted and effective people, of whatever race, is just destructive.
He, too, made a significant contribution to FAMU. More than many.
To everyone of all kinds, no matter what your flaws, who made significant contributions to FAMU, I salute you, I honor you, I give you my heartfelt thanks.
As a state school FAMU needs to diversify its mostly African American population. FAMU has no right to favor only one ethnic group with taxpayer dollars.
ReplyDeleteWho do you think you are?
As a state school FAMU needs to diversify its mostly African American population.
ReplyDeleteFAMU lacks whites because whites have chosen to stay away. Whites, not blacks, legislated separate schools. When the Brown decision eliminated protection for segregated schools, white still chose to remain in majority white institutions.
The lack of diversity at FAMU is not FAMU's fault. FAMU has never shut the door to whites. The university cannot force white students to apply.
FAMU has no right to favor only one ethnic group with taxpayer dollars.
FAMU's being a majority black institution is not evidence of favoring only one race. FIU is a majority Hispanic institution but there are no complaints about its racial composition.
It is a double-standard to criticize FAMU for having a majority black student population when other public institutions have majority Hispanic and white student populations.
In the past 20 years, white student enrollment at FAMU fell from about 15% to about 4%.
ReplyDeleteWhite faculty fell from about 30% to perhaps a third of that.
Systemic changes of this kind are not the result of individual white faculty or students deciding not to apply.
They are the result of systemic policies toward the racial composition of the university.
Is this a bad thing? That's not for me to say.
But if any white university did a comparable thing, it would be labeled as illegal institutional racial discrimination.
Face it. FAMU has institutional policies in place that hugely weight the faculty and student body toward blacks. These policies have been in effect for at least two decades. And they continue today.
We at FAMU need to drop the pretense that FAMU is somehow integrated or somehow open to all comers.
Whether this is bad, illegal, undesirable, etc., is not for people like me to say. It is a high-level policy matter that needs to be decided at the state level. FAMU's mission has modulated over the decades; it will continue to be revisited and revised.
But the numbers don't lie. They show that FAMU has systematically discriminated in favor of black students and black faculty for at least two decades now, and continues to do so today. Anyone can look at FAMU's published fact sheets and find this information.
If this is a good thing, it needs to be explained and justified better to legislators and taxpayers.
It's no longer enough to say that FAMU has a "special mission" or that it is "historically black," or that it (and this may not be true after this year) graduates the most black students with bachelor's degrees.
Think deeply, FAMU friends. This institution needs to find new and better ways to justify its existence to the people of Florida who pay for it. Stop fighting one another, critics, and FSU, and come up with better reasons to explain to Florida citizens why FAMU should continue to exist.
Think about it. Put some energy into this positive direction.
FIU is 55 percent Hispanic.
ReplyDeleteFAMU is 94 percent Black.
You cannot compare the two!
love me some FAMU. I do not care what you all say. FSU Black employees, we do not need your love or pride. You all are some unhappy people over there, having to endure pernicious racism on a daily basis.
ReplyDeleteMake your ownselves proud. We got this.
7/13/2007 3:41 PM
To Annonymous 3:41: I don't believe you love FAMU as much as you dislike (if not hate) the entire white race. You cannot claim to love a child, and then feed him only candy and cookies because that's what he wants. Or refuse to take him to the doctor when he gets sick on candy and cookies, unless you know the doctor is going to tell you what a great job of child raising you're doing. If a Black doctor tells you if you really love your child you'll feed him meat and vegatables, and never mind what he "wants" you'll call him an Uncle Tom or say he sold out to the man. If it's a White doctor telling you, you call him a racist. We've been loving FAMU TO DEATH for far too long. When can't hate those who tell us what we don't want to hear, and engage in name calling, if what they're saying is what we should be doing. You'd let FAMU go to hell before you'll give up your denial that anything is wrong. Now don't get me wrong, those f**ls at the BOG put us in a bigger whole by believe in CastHell. I wish they'd been my momma and daddy when I was growing up. They believed anything she said! I would like to turn CastHell loose for one day with my momma -- all her lies would have come to light before lunchtime.
The constant complaints about FAMU’s student population make up; my taxes supporting FAMU; and the mission of the University is no longer appropriate, have got to stop. We all have choices. You may send your children to any University in Florida or the Nation that they are qualified to attend and you have access to resources to do so.
ReplyDeleteMinority individuals who live in the State of Florida also pay taxes. Some of these individual’s children will never attend any Florida University but their taxes support the University system of Florida. So, some of the posters on this site are not the only tax payers in Florida.
Please let go of all of this negative energy and do what you can to make sure that any child in the State of Florida who desires to be educated beyond the high school level will be able to do so. If a parent and child determine that a particular University will meet their education needs and it happens to be largely of one racial group, then let them explore that option.
This crap needs to stop; you have a choice to support any University that you want. If FAMU does not meet your standards, then move on to another University. DO NOT destroy the opportunity for someone to attend FAMU because of your constant complaints. Please let Dr. Ammons and his administrative teams correct the problems that exist at FAMU. Offer him positive constructive criticism, support, and resources that are needed to move the University forward.
^^^^^^^^^^^
ReplyDeleteLook, don't let those ig'nat folks across the tracks bother you.
Very shortly they will have a media crisis of their own if they don't fix that mess with Hart.
TK's another Castell. FSU's alumni just hasn't decided to get his trifflin' butt out of there, but his days are numbered.
Then let's wait and see what their warchant will be then.
In the past 20 years, white student enrollment at FAMU fell from about 15% to about 4%.
ReplyDeleteWhite faculty fell from about 30% to perhaps a third of that.
Systemic changes of this kind are not the result of individual white faculty or students deciding not to apply.
The drop in white faculty and students at FAMU cannot be blamed on blacks. FAMU, like every other HBCU, has always hired white instructors. White professors were never barred from FAMU the way that black professors were barred at the state's predominantly white institutions.
Whites have always had the opportunity to apply for employment at any state university while black job opportunities in the SUS were limited to one state university until the 1960s. Whites are not the victims here.
Futhermore, whites were ones who decided that they did not want their children going to school with blacks. Hence, the 1885 state constitution's stipulation calling for separate schools. Whites have always preferred to attend majority white institutions and have continued to do so.
We at FAMU need to drop the pretense that FAMU is somehow integrated or somehow open to all comers.
Integration means reforming the corrupt power structures that were used by one race (whites) to control another race (blacks). Blacks never created any legislation to restrict anyone from enrollment or employment on the basis of race.
But the numbers don't lie. They show that FAMU has systematically discriminated in favor of black students and black faculty for at least two decades now, and continues to do so today. Anyone can look at FAMU's published fact sheets and find this information.
A drop in white enrollment and white professors is not evidence of some sort of systemic discrimination. You are claiming that FAMU has been hostile to whites but have offered no proof.
White have historically gravitated towards institutions where they are the majority. The low numbers of white faculty and students at FAMU show that this is still the case.
FIU is 55 percent Hispanic.
ReplyDeleteFAMU is 94 percent Black.
You cannot compare the two!
FAMU is 94 percent black because whites continue to prefer institutions with white majorities. That was true during the time of Jim Crow is still true today.
If you want more white students at FAMU, then encourage more to apply.
In the past 20 years, white student enrollment at FAMU fell from about 15% to about 4%.
ReplyDeleteWhite faculty fell from about 30% to perhaps a third of that.
Systemic changes of this kind are not the result of individual white faculty or students deciding not to apply.
If you are going to make such claims then back them up with hard evidence.
How many qualified white professors applied for faculty positions at FAMU during the past 20 years and how many were rejected?
How many qualified white students applied for enrollment at FAMU during the past 20 years and how many were rejected?
^^^^^^^^^^^
ReplyDeleteLook, don't let those ig'nat folks across the tracks bother you.
Name calling, name calling, name calling. How does this practice make us look any better than the people we are criticizing? Look up "reaction formation" or ask a psychology major. When you go out of your way to express a strong negative opinion about your adversary, chances are that's what you really feel about yourself or your group.
I can't prove anything about discrimination against whites. I'm just a person who listens a lot.
ReplyDeleteWith FAMU becoming nationally famous during the same period, why do you think white student enrollment fell so dramatically? It should have risen from the increased publicity, don't you think?
As for discrimination against applicants for faculty positions, one interviewee who was the only candidate for a position and was rejected told me the supervisor made it clear that he was being rejected because he was not black. The position was re-advertised.
A chairperson told me he was warned not to hire a faculty that was "too white."
Such situations are never investigated. People involved are not invited to report or discuss them. Whites are told that they are not protected from hiring discrimination because they do not belong to a "protected class."
Yet FAMU's website boasts a non-discrimination announcement that includes race.
I can't prove these suggestions of racial discrimination in recruitment and hiring on a blog any more than most of you can prove your statements on a blog.
But the numbers don't lie. During the past 20 years, something, somewhere, has dramatically driven down the percentage of whites on the faculty and in the student body.
If this is OK, why, there's no problem!
If this is discrimination, somebody with the ability to gather and interpret legal evidence needs to look into it.
If FAMU seeks to be a more integrated institution, those in charge of student recruitment and faculty hiring need to take some action.
Your own arguments have been used by whites to justify low numbers of blacks on white campuses. They just "want to be with their own kind," the argument went.
What evidence would convince you? Nobody who discriminates puts up a sign saying None of Their Kind Allowed. It's done more subtly (you know, right?)
The evidence of discrimination usually comes in the actual numbers, the way missing money shows up, not as people caught walking out with cash in their pockets, but as accounts that are unbalanced.
All we her about is FAMU's special mission for blacks. With that, other races do not feel welcome.
ReplyDeleteStop saying your black and maybe more might apply.
FAMU is black by choice.
Your own arguments have been used by whites to justify low numbers of blacks on white campuses. They just "want to be with their own kind," the argument went.
ReplyDeleteThe proof that whites prefer all-white and majority white schools is in the history.
Whites have always controlled the State University System. Beginning in the 1880s, whites used that power to demand separate institutions for blacks and whites. That is clear evidence that whites, as represented by their own elected lawmakers, did not want to go to school with blacks.
Then, after the U.S. Supreme Court mandated that all schools be open to all races in 1954, most whites continued to overwhelming attend schools at which they are the majority.
Thus, the lack of whites at majority black institutions cannot be blamed on blacks. Blacks have never had the power to restrict whites from applying to study or work at any public university.
If FAMU seeks to be a more integrated institution, those in charge of student recruitment and faculty hiring need to take some action.
Once again, you are misusing the term integration. Integration means reversing the damage inflicted by segregation, a system used by one race (whites) to control and exploit another race (blacks).
Whites were NOT the victims of segregation. Therefore, integration means reversing the harm that was inflicted upon those who were on the receiving end of racial injustice: blacks.
The white-controlled Florida legislature always made sure that the University of Florida, Florida State, and all the other schools that blocked black applications were generously funded.
Therefore, the biggest key to getting more whites at FAMU is for the state to do a better job funding Florida's only HBCU. If the Florida Legislature gives FAMU more money for attractive academic programs, facilities, and learning resources then FAMU will start attracting more white students away from USF, UCF, and other predominantly white universities.
There are large percentages of whites in FAMU's professional programs such Pharmacy and Architecture. Therefore, if you want more whites at FAMU, help us in lobbying for more public money to go into the academic programs that whites tend to like.
As for discrimination against applicants for faculty positions, one interviewee who was the only candidate for a position and was rejected told me the supervisor made it clear that he was being rejected because he was not black. The position was re-advertised.
If that's true then your friend should immediately report it to the authorities. But until a formal investigation uncovers solid proof that he was a victim of racial discrimination, that is nothing more than an allegation.
FAMU is black by choice.
ReplyDeleteUF, FSU, UCF, USF, UWF, UNF, FGCU, and FAU are all majority white by choice.
FIU is majority Hispanic by choice.
Therefore, why shouldn't FAMU be proud of being majority black by choice? Blacks are every bit as important as whites and Hispanics.
All we her about is FAMU's special mission for blacks. With that, other races do not feel welcome.
The only difference between FAMU's recruitment practices and the recruitment practices at majority white universities is that FAMU is blunt about its intentions.
FAMU has stated its desire to remain majority black in writing. UF, FSU, etc. have all stated their desire to remain majority white through custom. Those institutions focus most of their recruitment budgets on high-achiving white students and are proud of it.
None of the majority white institutions in the SUS want to become majority black. And that's fine. There's nothing wrong with having a majority white or black university.
Stop saying your black and maybe more might apply.
We don't say that we are "black." We are historically black and majority black.
The only barrier to whites attending FAMU has been whites themselves. Whites, not blacks, demanded separate schools. And whites continued to stay mainly in predominantly white schools after the Brown decision.
But the numbers don't lie. During the past 20 years, something, somewhere, has dramatically driven down the percentage of whites on the faculty and in the student body.
ReplyDeleteThe decline in white students and faculty at FAMU has coincided with a rise in state money being pumped into majority white institutions.
Whites have always preferred to enroll and work at majority white universities. And white universities continue to enjoy the best academic funding.
Therefore, if you want more whites at FAMU, call on the legislature to start funding FAMU's academic programs as well as it funds those at UF, FSU, USF, etc.
If any other school in the state had experienced around a 66% drop in the enrollment of a minority group, somebody would have thought they had a problem.
ReplyDeleteExplain it however you will, a drop from 15% white enrollment to 5% is a 66% drop. That is significant.
Ruggles left because he called an important person at FAMU "a black bastard," and was then told he needed anger management classes and suggested he take some. He, of course, refused and decided to take his ball and go home. The university and the J-School is far better off without him. The J-School has won more awards since he left than it did in nearly 30 years of his "leadership."
ReplyDeleteRuggles and O'Lary need to get a life. Their FAMU days are over. Noone asking them to return. TIME TO MOVE ON!
ReplyDeleteHas anyone heard any rumors about SBI dean?
ReplyDeleteWhat is wrong with calling someone a "black bastard" if they are black and a bastard?
ReplyDeleteI mean really... get over it. I've been called much worse.
We should not deny people of ANY color to vent and call mean people "bastards."
Any school that employees more than 12% black is out of proportion with the state population and should be subject to an discriminatory hiring investigation.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
ReplyDeleteWhat is wrong with calling someone a "black bastard" if they are black and a bastard?
I mean really... get over it. I've been called much worse.
We should not deny people of ANY color to vent and call mean people "bastards."
7/16/2007 11:09 AM
Right! Time to move on!
Any school that employees more than 12% black is out of proportion with the state population and should be subject to an discriminatory hiring investigation.
ReplyDeleteDon't try and hide behind your "proportions" arguments. Your true problem is that you want whites to dominate every single university in the SUS. You don't want blacks to be the majority in even one.
Why are you so threatened by blacks being in the majority of one public university when whites (or white Hispanics) dominate the other 10?
There is nothing wrong with blacks being in the majority at FAMU. Blacks are every bit as important as whites and Hispanics.
If any other school in the state had experienced around a 66% drop in the enrollment of a minority group, somebody would have thought they had a problem.
ReplyDeleteExplain it however you will, a drop from 15% white enrollment to 5% is a 66% drop. That is significant.
The only historical barriers to white enrollment and employment in the SUS have been the ones whites placed on themselves by demanding separate schools and then chosing to remain in majority white instiutions after Brown.
The drop in white enrollment and faculty employment at FAMU coincides with a rapid expansion of academic programs and learning facilities in the majority white institutions.
Again, if you want FAMU to attract and retain more white students, then why not help FAMU lobby for more money to build the programs that whites like to attend at our university?
Whites enroll in the greatest numbers at FAMU's Pharmacy, Architecture and Law Schools. If Florida begins funding those professional schools at FAMU as well as it funds the same schools at the University of Florida, then FAMU's white student population will dramatically rise. We'll be challenging UF for the best white students in no time.
If you don't want FAMU to have more money for the professional schools that whites like, then it's clear that you aren't serious about diversifying FAMU. Your true intention is to try and use the lack of white students as a reason to shut FAMU down.
When is Mr. Towsend leaving. Does anybody know.He is trying to sabotage the athletic programs.
ReplyDeleteTownsend (AD) and all of those hired in the last 12 months should have to resign and reapply. Dr. Ammons took care of pharmacy real quick fast and in a hurry, what is he waiting with the other schools within the university? Get rid of all the dead weight if you want to meet the SACS requirements by December! Trust me unless some changes are made real soon FAMU is doomed!
ReplyDeleteThere are some white people on our blog who just love us so much. They really do. They can't help it. It's in their genes. Goes back to slavery. OOh that is it. they know that we are their cousins and blood kin, and that's why they stay on our board and even add comments.
ReplyDeleteIt's ok boo. YOu can admit. My name is Chez Whitey, and I love black people, especially those at FAMU.
Hey Whitey. Applause.
Sometimes I worry that FAMU students are too isolated by the university's emphasis on the black experience.
ReplyDeleteToo many students graduate without much experience working with peers of other races.
Does anyone else think this is a potential problem? And if so, do you have any ideas how to respond to it?
Sometimes I worry that FAMU students are too isolated by the university's emphasis on the black experience.
ReplyDeleteFAMU students get plenty of experience working with peers of other races.
For example, FAMU's Student Government participates in the activities of the Florida Student Association. FSA brings together students from all 11 state universities to lobby the Legislature, Governor, and Board of Governor on student issues. FSA meets monthly throughout the year.
Students in all schools participate in professional conferences and organizations that bring them in contact with the best student scholars of all races thoughout America.
When FAMU student athletes compete in NCAA tournaments, they also interact with schools of all racial compositions: HBCUs, predominantly white, predominantly Hispanic, etc.
FAMU is isolated. It still lives in the segregated south!
ReplyDeleteFAMU is isolated. It still lives in the segregated south!
ReplyDeleteFAMU lacks whites because whites have chosen to stay away. Whites, not blacks, legislated separate schools. When the Brown decision eliminated protection for segregated schools, whites still chose to remain in majority white institutions.
I love you.
ReplyDelete-Boo (aka Chez Whitey)
I cannot agree with ANY comments that FAMU Students are ISOLATED. There are non-black students everywhere [sports, band, etc]. Some non-black students have run for student govt., even miss this/that. FAMU's professional programs are heavily non-black. There are probably non-black faculty and students in Black Studies.
ReplyDeleteFAM would have to offer classes in the most remote jungles of the Amazon in order for students to be isolated. In the 21st Century, such isolation just does not exist, especially at an institution of HIGHER LEARNING.
JMHO
Your response, saying that students at FAMU can't be isolated, sounds theoretical to me.
ReplyDeleteMy observation is that many students wear blinders to most things except campus, hiphop, TV, friends and family, and their long working hours.
About a year ago, I asked a class to vote on the percentage of African Americans in the U.S. population. 30% was close to being the leading figure -- more than twice the actual number. I took that as an indication that students experienced some isolation from the realities of American life.
Look at how isolated FAMU is from Gadsden County next door, which has a black population around 75%. Even TCC has opened a service office there and staffed it with a dean.
Perhaps FAMU has unheralded volunteer agencies operating in the predominantly black public schools of our area. I'd love to hear about them if they exist. I appreciate Ammons targeting nearby schools and neighborhoods for FAMU volunteer help.
That's the kind of initiative that can help move students away from being consumers to being contributors.
I get so tired of seeing the TV commercials where folks are helping the poor or disparate. It is ALWAYS whites helping blacks. Where are the BLACKS helping blacks? FAM should have been FIRST to help, not TCC. We HAVE to start giving.
ReplyDelete