Ammons’ former student leads Fla. House

FAMU President James Ammons has always had an eye for talent.

As an assistant professor at the University of Central Florida from 1977 to 1983, he used his classroom to inspire hundreds of students. One standout was named Ray Sansom.

''After I took his class, I changed my major to political science because I really enjoyed his class,'' Sansom told newspapers last year.

Today, Sansom is one of the most powerful figures in Florida politics. Having previously served as a legislative assistant, he began his elected office career as an Okaloosa County Commissioner in 1992, and ten years later, won a seat in the state House of Representatives.

This year, he takes on his biggest challenge yet as Florida’s newly-installed Speaker of the House, in which his biggest responsibility is to guide the budgetary process.

Sansom’s task is a tough one. With sales tax revenues down, state economists predict that Florida’s budget deficit could be as much as $2.2 billion. This means that more multi-million dollar cuts to important areas such as higher education are likely.

Still, Sansom’s speakership could bring good news for FAMU. The House chief has a strong relationship with FAMU’s president.

''He's a great guy and he's going to be a wonderful leader for FAMU,” Sansom said of Ammons last year. “He will build at FAMU at the level we all want to see them get to.''

Back in 2007, when state Senators Jim King (R-Jacksonville) and Evelyn Lynn (R-Ormond Beach) tried to give FSU total control of the College of Engineering it shares with FAMU, Sansom joined a bipartisan effort to stop the attempted coup.

With the support of Sen. Al Lawson (D-Tallahassee) and Rep. Curtis Richardson (D-Tallahassee), Sansom used his position as House budget chair to help ensure that FAMU kept control of the E-College’s $10.4M annual appropriation.

And despite pressure to cut or overhaul the popular Bright Futures Scholarship, which helps maintain a low tuition rate for Florida’s public university students, Sansom wants to keep program as is.

“Though the economy is bad, it doesn’t mean we have to change a great program,” Sansom said.

His position on this issue, too, parallels the stand that Lawson and Richardson have taken on Bright Futures during past years.

This year, Sansom can expect to hear regularly from his former UCF professor. Ammons has established budget-cut relief and faculty raises as top priorities in FAMU’s 2009 legislative agenda.

House budget chair sides with FAMU