U.S. Congresswoman, 5th District of Florida
It has come to my attention that there has been a “behind
the scenes effort” to divide the joint engineering program shared by both
Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University and Florida State University.
This backhanded decision by the Florida legislature to move
forward with a plan of action without first jointly consulting with the
administrations of Florida A&M University and Florida State University is
both unprofessional and not the type of leadership you expect from your elected
officials.
During my ten year tenure in the Florida House of
Representatives, which started in 1982, it was the policy of state lawmakers to
reduce duplication of high cost academic programming in the state university
system. Our goal was to be good stewards of the tax dollars paid by hardworking
Floridians like you, and find a reasonable - bi-partisan solution to paying
twice for some of the higher cost academic programs such as medical schools,
law schools, and engineering schools. As a result, the joint school of
engineering for FAMU and FSU was formed. Since the inception of this
collaborative effort, the schools have been able to garner millions of dollars
in sponsored research via its multi-year contract, graduate a bevy of talented
young people who have gone on to do incredible things in the field of
engineering and manufacturing, and attract bright minds from all across the
country.
As a long serving elected official from the State of Florida
who has a vivid memory of previous attempts by the Florida Legislature to
weaken the academic standing at FAMU by defunding the university’s law school, nursing
program, and several other programs throughout the years. I believe that tax
dollars used to create a new school of engineering for Florida State
University, when there is already a successful partnership in place with
Florida A&M University is counterproductive to increasing engineering
graduates.
Instead of using scarce tax dollars to duplicate another
scholastic program within the city of Tallahassee, there should be an effort to
allocate that funding to issues that are of greater need and priority. Issues
such as expanding Medicaid in Florida to the thousands of uninsured people who
make too much to qualify for the program, yet not enough to purchase insurance
of their own, investing in education so that students currently in school have
the resources and funding to receive the quality education they deserve, and
among other things, appropriating the necessary funds to improve our states
infrastructure and invest in projects such as SunRail and improving our ports.
There is no reason this plan should move forward without
additional dialogue. The short and long term implications of this plan are
unknown. As an alumnus and lifelong advocate of FAMU, I recommend that
proponents of this measure withdraw their support and give all stakeholders an
opportunity to discuss a better way forward. With the long-term future of
Florida A&M University at stake, we can no longer sit idly by as there are
continuous attempts to weaken and dismantle the nation’s largest Historically
Black College. As the 1954 Brown vs. Board of Education Supreme Court case has
shown us, separate is not always equal. The notion that future legislatures
will equally protect the funding for both institutions is naïve and credulous. At a time when we need cooperation and
increased partnership, this hasty resolution to a problem that does not exist,
will only plant the seed of division and discord. Join me in urging the Florida
Legislature to do what is best for Florida A&M University and Florida State
University by opposing this measure and defeating this legislation today.