For married couple Richard B. Johnson II and Tiffany T. Johnson, completing the FAMU Masters of Business Administration (MBA) Distance Learning Program is going to be about setting goals and teamwork.The couple, who met as undergraduates at FAMU, were on campus January 5-8, 2012 as part of the School of Business and Industry’s (SBI) distance education orientation.
“I researched the program first,” said Tiffany Johnson, who received her bachelor’s degree in agribusiness in 2005. “We had both set goals to attain our MBA. With us doing the program together, I realized, ‘How awesome it is to have that support behind you.’ Right now it’s all about teamwork.”
Launched in 2011 as part of the FAMU partnership with Tom Joyner Online Education (TJOE), the MBA online program is one of three online programs that FAMU offers. The other two programs, nursing and public health as well as the MBA, were selected as the pilot programs because of their high demands.
“We are truly elated with our second online MBA cohort that consists of new and returning Rattlers,” said SBI Dean Shawnta Friday-Stroud. “Just like our inaugural cohort, all 33 students have impressive resumes. But more importantly, they are excited about embarking upon the journey of enhancing their academic and professional opportunities by obtaining an MBA from FAMU’s SBI. We are thankful that they have been selected to be a part of FAMU’s and SBI’s rich legacies and traditions.”
This semester’s incoming MBA class consists of 33 students in careers in cities all around the nation. Some of those students include: Antonius G. Barnes, an educator and politician from Panama City, Fla.; Natasha Moody, who works for the National Basketball Association Team New Orleans Hornets in New Orleans, La.; and Tylana Hill, an accountant in Orlando, Fla.
“You are going to be giants with very strong shoulders for others to stand on,” Vice President for Academic Affairs Cynthia Hughes Harris said to the students during a welcome reception. “You are going to be the hallmarks of our online MBA program.”
Hill, who received her bachelor’s degree in accounting in 1995, currently co-owns a Certified Public Accountant with her husband. She said it was important for her to enroll in the program so that she would have the opportunity to broaden her skill set and the program’s convenience.
“This online program is very convenient because I don’t have to be in one place on a set schedule,” said Hill, a native of Los Angeles, Calif. “That was very important for me in picking an MBA program.”
During the orientation, Florida Rep. Alan Williams, D-Tallahassee, reminded the students that they are now ambassadors for the university.
“You are now coming into a program that is deep in tradition,” said Williams, a graduate of the SBI five-year program. “We want this program to grow.”
Director for Instructional Technology Franzetta D. Fitz said the incoming students’ stories speak to why the online MBA Program is needed.
“It was a lot of work to put this program into fruition,” she said.