FAMU BOT Accepts Robinson’s Resignation, Appoints Alum Timothy Beard as Interim President

Updated: Editor’s note: changes highlighted in yellow

Florida A&M University (FAMU) Board of Trustees voted Tuesday to accept President Larry Robinson’s resignation and to appoint retired Pasco-Hernando State College (PHSC)  President Timothy Beard, Ph.D., as FAMU’s interim president.

During the special meeting conducted on Zoom,  Trustees agreed Robinson’s last day will be August 4, allowing him to preside over the August 2 Summer Commencement Ceremony.

According to the vote, Beard, who was PHSC president for nine years, will serve as interim president for 12 months or until the BOT completes a search for FAMU’s 13th president. He will begin his tenure on Monday, August 5 in time to attend the BOT’s annual retreat August 7-8 in Orlando.

Board Chair Kristin Harper nominated Beard, who earned one of his undergraduate degrees at FAMU, and who worked in various roles for the University for 14 years. Beard earned a Ph.D. from FSU in 1998 in Rehabilitation Counseling with a focus on Higher Education Administration. He served as PHSC president from 2015 until his retirement earlier this year.  Harper said FAMU would benefit from Beard’s leadership.

“Dr. Beard has the academic pedigree, administrative experience, political capital and emotional intelligence to lead in this interim period. Dr. Beard embraces FAMU’s unique mission. Like nearly a third of our students, Dr. Beard was a first generation college student,” said Harper, who cited Beard’s other FAMU connections – two of his daughters and a son-in-law are FAMU alumni. “In my conversations with people who know and work with him for many years, I’m convinced that he’s a person of integrity, a collaborator of what FAMU needs in this interim chapter. Most importantly, he’s willing able and available to serve.”

Beard cannot apply or be considered to be the University president.

Before the vote, Robinson addressed the Trustees without notes. He recalled his start as an adjunct professor in 1995 to transitioning to fulltime in 1997 to head what was then the Environmental Science Institute; graduating his first Ph.D., students, his various roles as provost and interim president before being appointed president in November 2017. He also touched on his administration’s accomplishments, such as decreasing student debt and increasing the  six-year graduation rate  and increasing the quality of campus housing.

“The past six, seven or eight years haven’t been about me. They’ve been about the people sitting around  the table, who are doing all they can to ensure they take care of our students,” said Robinson, who spoke from Lee Hall’s fourth floor conference room where he had been meeting with the Senior Leadership Team (SLT). When he leaves the presidency, Robinson will have a one-year sabbatical before he returns as a distinguished professor in the FAMU School of the Environment. He steps away from the presidency thankful for the support of Florida Board of Governors Chair Brian Lamb and others and with a greater appreciation of what it means to lead FAMU.

“I understand the tremendous responsibility associated with this position, and I hope the record will show that Larry Robinson, the young man from Memphis, Tennessee, did something to improve the stature of Florida A&M University. I think we did. I want to thank all of you who made that possible.”

Harper and other trustees thanked Robinson for his 27 years of service, including the last seven years as president.

“What you’ve accomplished is irrefutable,” Harper said. “We definitely thank you for your willingness to support this seamless transition as we move into the next chapter of FAMU’s history and look forward to welcoming you back to the “Hill” as the distinguished professor in the School of the Environment after your 12-month sabbatical.”

Trustee Craig Reed echoed those sentiments.

“We appreciate all that President Robinson has done on behalf of the University. As we take a look at the record, it’s clear in terms of where we were, where we are and where we’re going,” Reed said. “That’s because of his leadership and his staff’s leadership. I really appreciate all that he has done.  Truly, he should be a recognized for that great work. So again, thank you very much Dr. Robinson for your service.”

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Andrew J. Skerritt

Associate Director/Media Relations

Office of Communications

850-544-2675