As resistance mounts, calls for Johnson to reconsider grow

It has been 13 days since the FAMU Board of Trustees voted to name Marva Johnson, a telecommunications lobbyist and GOP politico, as "president select" of the institution. Johnson is now one step closer to leading one of the nation's leading public universities (No. 81 ranked public university, ranked higher than the University of Alabama (#92) and Louisiana State University (#97 )  and Florida’s only public Historically Black College and University (HBCU), despite having absolutely no experience in higher education. However, she still needs to secure the approval of the State University System’s Board of Governors, whose members have deep ties to the Republican party.

The controversial selection of Johnson has, rightfully, sparked a wave of opposition from FAMU students, alumni, and faculty, who vow to challenge her leadership and the political agenda they accuse her of advancing. Critics argue that Johnson's ties to Governor Ron DeSantis and her lack of higher education experience are antithetical to FAMU's mission.

Following the FAMU Board of Trustees' 8-4 vote last week to appoint Johnson, critics decry her reputation for being a GOP marionette and reliably toeing the ideological line that has defined the GOP's war on African Americans and academia over the past decade. Johnson has expressed support for various right-wing initiatives, including the opposing Advanced Placement course covering African American studies in Florida, which she and the GOP rejected for allegedly indoctrinating students to "a political agenda," and the rollback of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) and affirmative action programs.

Nikki Freeney, a FAMU journalism alum, astutely observed in her viral video on Instagram and “X” (formerly Twitter), "This is what the dismantling of Black institutions looks like in real time. Not with burning crosses—no—but with handshakes, votes, and smiling Black faces at press conferences. They are erasing Black excellence, undercutting Black leadership, and using our own people to do it because it's easier to sell betrayal when it looks like you."

While DeSantis claimed he was "not involved" in the selection, multiple sources familiar with the matter suggest that members of the Florida Board of Governors, including Chair Brian Lamb, have been intimately involved in the process, behind the scenes, colluding with FAMU Trustees.

Lamb, ironically, is a graduate of FAMU High School, and is the former global head of diversity, equity & inclusion (DEI) for J.P. Morgan Chase has turned his back on his on people in order to advance his career and his stature with the GOP establishment. The Board of Governors holds the final approval over the nomination.

The selection of Johnson is viewed as a scandal by many. Despite her claims of not being a "trojan horse," her career record suggests otherwise. 

Throughout her decades-long career, Johnson has promoted right-wing ideological schemes and has never offered a persuasive reason for why her views supposedly evolved. Critics draw one of two conclusions: Johnson is either a true believer in GOP ideology or a cynical careerist willing to say anything to move upward.

In either case, many argue that she is not a leader of skill or conviction necessary to continue FAMU’s recent string of academic successes as it aims to become a Carnegie Research 1 and a Top 50 public university. It is believed that she will almost certainly buckle to the prevailing GOP ideology and take FAMU backwards.

Though the headwinds against Johnson are strong, with over 3,000 FAMUans joining a virtual "FAMUly Town Hall last week in vehement opposition, Deveron Gibbons, the chair of the FAMU presidential search committee, remains defiant, believing that he can force Johnson’s nomination through.

The FAMU Foundation should balk on meeting Johnson’s hefty salary demands which could approach nearly $1 million ($750,000 base salary and commensurate bonuses and expenses—housing, car allowance and others) and resist Gibbon’s pressure campaign, if not on the merits of Johnson’s dismal candidacy, at least on the grounds that she failed to meet the basic qualifications of the job. The state of Florida only covers up to $250,000 of a public university president’s salary, with any excess requiring approval and funding from the FAMU Foundation.

For now, Johnson remains the “president-select”—her path to the presidency is appears to be secure. With mounting resistance and calls for a new search, many are urging her to reconsider.

“No one with any common sense would take a job in such a hostile environment where they are clearly not wanted,” said a FAMU alum on Twitter. “If Johnson truly cares about this university, she should withdraw.”