Florida A&M’s newest Board of Trustees member, Marjorie Turnbull brings both knowledge and expertise in the field of education and public policy.
Turnbull is a former State Representative and Board of Trustees member at Edward Waters College in Jacksonville.
Trustee Robert Brown announced he would not submit his name for reappointment and FAMU President James Ammons appointed Turnbull. In an official statement from the Office of the President, Ammons called her “a wonderful person with a wealth of knowledge that will benefit FAMU.”
“I do believe that the board and Dr. Ammons have a vision for the direction they wish to take the university and have made great strides toward achieving that vision, and I certainly want to be a part of that and do whatever I can to help further that goal,” Turnbull said.
Turnbull is the daughter of J. Wayne Reitz, former president of the University of Florida and the widow of Augustus Turnbull, former provost of Florida State University.
“I always say my experience with universities started in the womb,” Turnbull said.This is not Turnbull’s first time working with a Historically Black College and University.
“I served on the board of trustees at Edward Waters College and that gave me a lot of insight into HBCUs: their importance, student retention rates and why students chose to attend,” Turnbull said.
She also worked for 11 years heading up the foundation for Florida’s Community Colleges at Tallahassee Community College and had the opportunity to work closely with FAMU.
In this capacity, Turnbull helped raise money for scholarships for students who were going to get their start at TCC and then complete their education at FAMU.
“Marjorie Turnbull has an outstanding reputation,” said Walter A. McNeil, Florida Department of Corrections secretary. “She steadily supports system improvements to help the youth of Florida.”