FAMU's next president could get a salary of up to $750,000, per search committee's range

Florida A&M University's next leader could be looking at a total salary of over half a million dollars once they become the 13 th FAMU president .

A salary proposal ranging from $600,000 to $750,000 – which would include a base salary and other incentives – was approved by FAMU's presidential search committee during a virtual meeting May 13. 

But a high-end salary recommendation ranging from nearly $900,000 to over a million dollars was initially suggested by the university's hired search firm Myers McRae , which garnered the full support of some committee members – including Florida Board of Governors Vice Chair Alan Levine and FAMU Board of Trustees Vice Chair Deveron Gibbons. 

At the same time, the approval came after much discussion with some saying the university does not have enough funds to afford the salary range, which exceeds former President Larry Robinson's total salary of $591,669 before resigning last year. 

"We need to look at the numbers and look at where we are today," FAMU alumnus and Tallahassee Urban League president and CEO Curtis Taylor said during the May 13 meeting. "We simply do not have the funding to do this." 

The salary range was approved by the committee to assist the Board of Trustees when they formulate a compensation package for their chosen presidential finalist. 

The final candidates in FAMU's presidential search are University of Maryland Eastern Shore Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs  Rondall Allen ,  University of Central Florida  Senior Vice President for Administration and Finance Gerald Hector , Charter Communications'  Group Vice President of State Government Affairs  Marva Johnson and FAMU's Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer  Donald Palm.

While Allen and Hector asked for salaries ranging from $400,000 to $450,000 in their presidential applications, Palm indicated being negotiable. But Johnson, an ally of Gov. Ron DeSantis who has drawn criticism from many in the university community, requested a salary of $750,000 if she gets the job.

A protest of Johnson's candidacy is scheduled at the Will Packer Amphitheater on May 13, which is timed to occur after her interview with the Board of Trustees. There has been broad speculation about premature salary negotiations and that Gibbons insisted on adding Johnson to what was initially a list of three final candidates committee members voted on during closed sessions.   

Other committee members who vocally supported the suggestion of having a high-end presidential salary besides Levine and Gibbons were FAMU trustee and Faculty Senate President Jamal Brown, FAMU trustee John Crossman and Raphael Vazquez, owner and operator of J.V. & Sons, Inc . 

"Generally speaking, HBCU (historically Black college and university) presidents are paid less, and I don't subscribe to continuing that trend," Levine said. "I think if we want a great president, we should compare to other great institutions and not continue the pattern. The president of FAMU ought to be compensated in a manner that is requisite to the hard job and should not be treated differently because it's an HBCU."

But FAMU alumna and former ABC News President Kim Godwin said while HBCU presidents make less, it's important to consider that HBCUs are widely underfunded compared to other state universities. 

"We should not forget how we got here," Godwin said. "We're touting us as the number one public HBCU, which we are, and the number 81 university in the country. Well, that was done with a president who made $450,000 and understood exactly what we needed to do and considered it a very fair salary." 

FAMU's search firm says higher salary is 'crucial in attracting top talent'

According to the search firm's executive summary of presidential compensations, market trends show that university presidents in Florida who earn an average total salary of about $557,834 fall under the 25thpercentile while $899,644 falls under the 50thpercentile and $1,090,561 falls under the 75thpercentile. 

In addition, the market trends analysis revealed that Florida universities are compensating their presidents "above HBCUs and comparative R2 institutions," which are schools with Carnegie classification of High Research Activity. 

The search firm made its recommendation in efforts of having FAMU's president salary fall between the 50thand 75thpercentile, taking into consideration the university's longtime goal of reaching a  Carnegie R1 classification  (Very High Research Activity) by 2030 from its R2 spot.

"Simply said, an effective compensation strategy for university presidents is crucial in attracting top talent while ensuring fiscal responsibility," Myers McRae's Chief Operating Officer Joseph Barry Hasenkopf said during the meeting. 

"We probably could get a candidate under that 50th percentile for the total remuneration, but is that going to sustain that candidate once they start growing and making a difference? If they're good, other institutions are obviously going to look at that."

While the state contributes a compensation amount of $250,000 to the total salary of its university presidents, according to Levine, it is up to the universities to come up with the rest of the money for their institution leader.

FAMU Foundation Board Chair Lisa LaBoo explained how the university's Foundation – which also contributes to the president's salary – began helping to fund a new athletics coach's compensation not too long ago, as well as two other positions that were recently authorized by the board.

"With that being said, that's a lot," LaBoo said, referring to an increased presidential salary.

While the $600,000 to $750,000 salary range was being discussed, Jeuanne Pitter – an assistant professor at FAMU's School of Nursing – said the recommendation was "questionable" when considering that none of the finalists have prior experience of serving as a university president. Also, Robinson's last salary figure of about $591,000 came after his seven-year tenure in the role, which included pay increases along the way. 

"This would be their first presidency, so they're unproven in this arena," Godwin said, referring to the presidential search finalists.

Following campus visits taking place this week for the campus community and others to engage with the finalists, the university's trustees will meet May 16 and will discuss the presidential range of compensation. They will also vote to select a sole finalist for president, with their selection being subject to an interview and confirmation by the  Florida Board of Governors .

Tarah Jean is a reporter for the Tallahassee Democrat. She can be reached at  tjean@tallahassee.com . Follow her on X:  @tarahjean_ .

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: New Florida A&M president could make $750,000, search committee rules