FAMU is poised to receive nearly $28 million in performance-based funding from the state this year.
The funding allocation, announced Thursday during a meeting of the Florida Board of Governors at Florida Atlantic University in Boca Raton, would provide FAMU with a total of $27.9 million in performance funding, contingent upon Gov. Ron DeSantis signing the state budget approved by lawmakers in late May.
The award includes $12.8 million in institutional investment, which is the university's own money redistributed through the state's performance formula, and an additional $15.2 million in new state investment.
The allocation comes from a statewide pool of roughly $645 million distributed among Florida's 12 public universities under a system that ties funding to metrics such as graduation rates, job placement, student retention and the wages graduates earn after leaving college.
FAMU's performance funding score fell to 80 points for the 2026 academic year, down from 83 points a year earlier. The three-point decline placed the university, along with New College of Florida, on the State University System's performance funding watch list.
State officials emphasized that while FAMU remains eligible for performance funding, the watch list designation serves as an early warning indicator rather than a sanction.
For FAMU, the decline follows several years of strong institutional momentum marked by record student demand, rising national rankings and growing research expenditures. University leaders have frequently pointed to gains in graduation rates and student success as evidence that long-term investments in academic support are paying dividends.
This year's funding decisions were also notable for what was absent. Florida lawmakers chose not to fund the state's preeminence program, which traditionally provides additional resources to the state's highest-performing research universities. The decision marked a departure from previous years, when institutions meeting stringent research and academic benchmarks received supplemental state support.
The final distribution of funds now awaits the governor's signature on the state budget for the FY27 which begins on July 1.