1. Vol. 40, No. 08 Section 01 Tallahassee, Florida Feb. 20-26, 2014
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FAMU Board of Trustees and Mangum
Agree on Amended Contract
By Aldranon
English II
Outlook Staff
Writer
Prolonged delib-
erations between
Florida A&M’s
Board of Trustees
and President-elect
Elmira Mangum
came to an end with
some clarity on Feb.
13 and should bring
the arrival of the
university’s 11th
president April 1.
A distinctly di-
vided board voted
8-5 to accept the
revisions Mangum
requested to her
contract – revisions
that she initially
agreed to in late
January with Trust-
ee Chairman Solo-
mon Badger. Trust-
ee Narayan Persaud
was adamant about
finding resolution
after Thursday’s
meeting.
“At the end of the
deliberations, we
would find our an-
swer,” said Persaud.
Trustee Glen-
ton Gilzean Jr.
addressed con-
cerns and asked
for clarification for
the language and
text of the modified
contract, including
amendments made
by Mangum. Trust-
ee Rufus Mont-
gomery made more
than five motions
to amend the new
contract and Trust-
ee Kelvin Lawson
also attempted to
have a provision for
a car stripped from
Mangum’s contract,
but all failed by 8-5
or 7-6 votes.
Trustee Lawson
continued to vent
his frustrations with
the compensation
package for Mang-
um.
“I think these ad-
ditional changes are
trivial,” said Law-
son. “I continue to
have heartburn over
an untested presi-
dent who hasn’t
proven herself yet
as a leader.”
Although Mont-
gomery’s senti-
ments echoed Law-
son’s, he agreed
overall that she is
the right individual
for the position.
“Out of all the
other candidates,
I think she is the
most qualified,”
said Montgomery.
During the two
and half hour con-
ference, trustees
found themselves
bewildered on what
was the basis of the
meeting.
“This is a con-
tract, and we are
not here to establish
policies,” said Per-
suad.
Trustee Spurgeon
McWilliams asked
pivotal questions
concerning the mo-
tions that were pre-
sented.
“Are we voting
for the same things
we voted on a week
ago?” asked Mc-
Williams. “Is it be-
cause Mangum did
not approve?”
Trustee Belinda
Shannon demys-
tified ambiguity
that shrouded each
member during the
conference.
“We are in ne-
gotiations, and she
asked us to recon-
sider,” said Shan-
non.
Dr. Elmira Mang-
um, vice president
for planning and
budget at Cornell
University, must
sign off on a change
that a majority of
the trustees agreed
to; if she steps down
in two years or less,
she will be eligible
for a six month sab-
batical rather than
12 months. The mo-
tion passed 8-4. She
also must be ap-
proved by the Flori-
da Board of Gover-
nors meeting next
week in Tampa.
Mangum’s pro-
posed base salary
is nearly $100,000
higher than what
FAMU paid former
President James
Ammons when he
started his tenure in
2007.
Photo special to the Outlook
Elmira Mangum