Florida A&M has zeroed in on a familiar face, Angela Suggs, to lead its athletic program.
After a month-long search, FAMU's Board of Trustees has called a special meeting for Friday, Sept. 20, to discuss the employment agreement for Suggs to become the Vice President and Director of Athletics officially. Friday's meeting is set to start at 9:30 a.m. and is available for the public to watch via Zoom .
Suggs' unsigned contract, available on FAMU's website, is a three-year, $750,000 deal ($250,000 annually) with incentives based on securing game guarantees, external fundraising, and ticket sales, among other thresholds.
Suggs, a 1992 FAMU graduate who previously served as the Rattlers' Senior Associate Athletics Director for External Affairs and Senior Woman Administrator (SWA), has been the Florida Sports Foundation's President and Chief Executive Officer since 2017.
She will replace Tiffani-Dawn Sykes , who spent 19 months leading the program before departing last month. She departed after FAMU interim president Dr. Timothy Beard called on the university's top leadership team to resign .
Sykes was FAMU's 11th athletic director, interim or permanent, since 2009. Michael Smith served as the Acting Athletics Director during FAMU's search to replace Sykes.
According to her Florida Sports Foundation profile , Suggs advocated for Florida's sports industry, generating over $70 billion in economic impact annually, assisting communities with securing, hosting, and retaining sporting events and sports-related business through the Florida Sports Foundation's grant programs, providing participation opportunities in the Sunshine State Games and Florida Senior Games, and assisting national and state governing bodies to promote amateur sport development.
Suggs previously worked for FAMU Athletics in various roles from 2009-2017.
Suggs also led FAMU Athletics' Marketing and Promotions, Development, Athletics Communications, Licensing and Branding. Suggs was FAMU's athletics department's primary liaison with campus direct support organizations, neutral site games, affinity/support groups, and community relations. She also managed administration FAMU sports teams ― men's and women's Track and Field, Cross Country, softball, men's and women's tennis teams, and Rattlers spirit groups.
Suggs has a bachelor's degree in economics from FAMU and attended FAMU DRS. Suggs is also a member of FAMU's Beta Alpha Chapter of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. Suggs has a master's degree from St. Thomas University.
Suggs is married to Davin Suggs , a Deputy Executive Director for the Florida Association of Counties. The couple has a daughter, Dillyn, an NCAA Division I softball player at Campbell University in Buies Creek, North Carolina.
Gerald Thomas, III covers Florida A&M University Athletics for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact him via email at gdthomas@tallahassee.com or on the app formerly known as Twitter @3peatgee .
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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: FAMU set to hire Angela Suggs as next AD; proposed contract available
