Florida A&M University’s Board of Trustees members questioned the leadership abilities of the university’s president Thursday.
Eight of the 12 trustees voted that they had no confidence in President James H. Ammons during a routine board meeting.
FAMU has been under scrutiny for hazing following the death of drum major Robert Champion in November.
Since then, 11 members of the band have been charged with felonies for allegedly beating Champion to death.
However, Ammons is determined to continue as president and repair the university’s image.
“I hear the message that the board has sent to me through its vote and I take it very seriously,” he wrote in an emailed statement.
“I pledge to the board, faculty, students, staff and alumni that I will fix the problems at FAMU.”
Other problems facing the university have been an investigation of fraud in the band’s finances, issues with accreditation and graduation rates, and findings that showed more than 100 members of the band were not students enrolled in the university, according to the Tampa Bay Times.
Ammons is the tenth president of the university.
When he was appointed in 2007, FAMU was facing fiscal problems and was on probation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools.
During Ammon’s first year as president, the university had its first clean audit in three years and was removed from probation, according to the university’s website.
Contact Samantha Shavell at sshavell@alligator.org.
