When Dr. James Ammons took the helm of his alma mater, Florida A&M University, he inherited a nationally recognized school facing numerous crises.
Ammons, who served as provost of FAMU during its heyday in the 1990s, knew the school was mired in trouble with the state, having accumulated dozens of state auditor questions about its financial operations resulting in two years of unacceptable state audits. A legislative watchdog task force had even been established out of concern that the school’s fiscal problems were so widespread that the state would have to take over.
To make matters worse, Ammons got news in his first week on the job in July 2007 that FAMU, once recognized as an academic model for other colleges, was being placed on “probation” for six months by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS). The accrediting agency, based in Decatur, Ga., had serious questions about several academic programs at FAMU.
Within a year, the problems Ammons inherited were resolved.
After several months of 14-hour days, a team led by Teresa Hardee, his chief financial officer (who followed him from N.C. Central University, his prior presidential post), cleared financial operations and earned the school a clean bill of health. Meanwhile, Ammons, who had headed accrediting teams for several other schools, swung into action on the SACS issues. Soon, SACS was satisfied and reaffirmed the school’s accreditation.
No sooner had the Rattler’s ship been righted than it began encountering the strong economic headwinds that were suddenly shaking much of the nation’s economy to its core. FAMU and many of its peers around the country, particularly public colleges, began seeing income fall precipitously.
At FAMU, state support has been cut by tens of millions of dollars since Ammons became president. It has reached a point where tuition revenue for the 2011-2012 school year is expected to exceed state aid at FAMU for the first time in the school’s history.
