Florida A&M’s restructuring is affecting everyone related to the university.
After learning that the School of General Studies will be eliminated, about 1,500 students are being forced to declare a major.
In my opinion, this could have been avoided.
In 2008, record-breaking numbers, of African American voters helped to elect Barack Obama the 44th President of the United States.
Those same record-breaking voters were absent in the 2010 Florida gubernatorial elections.
After asking 2010 freshman class vice president Alfred Henderson who should be held responsible for the budget cuts and the restructuring of FAMU, he said, “Rick Scott is primarily responsible for the restructuring process at the university.”
More than three-fourths of students at FAMU are here because of financial aid, whereas only 20 to 40 percent are on financial aid at Florida State. This, Henderson said, is exactly why he marched along side other FAMU students Tuesday to the Capitol.
Since the restructuring negotiations began, FAMU officials have toyed with idea of cutting back summer sessions.
President James Ammons said, “We must reduce the workforce to meet our restructuring goals. We can’t afford to continue to do everything that we do.”
To me this means if it’s not an asset to the university, like the School of Pharmacy, then we have to eliminate it.
Social networks like Twitter and Facebook show evidence of students who share different opinions about the budget cuts in Florida and here at the University.
State-wide, universities are undergoing budget cuts as well.
Bethune-Cookman University, a private school in Daytona Beach, stands to lose more than $2 million in state revenue, according to www.aareports.com.
In the restructuring letter from Ammons, found on www.famu.edu, he calls the restructuring plans a “process that permits everyone to have input into how our resources, technology and collaborations will make FAMU the best in its class.”
Furthermore, these budget cuts are a direct result of constituents of Florida not voting.
I feel this could have been avoided if people would have voted last November; one should not downgrade the works of Scott when the voting numbers in the 2010 election were almost half of those from the 2008 presidential election.
One way to sum up the remarks I have about this process: “JUST VOTE.” Voting gives everyone a chance to be heard. And only then will the opinions about restructuring become relevant.
There is no reason a royal court candidate of FAMU should have more student votes than the candidates for governor.
This situation is outrageous.
(could you make a link to the famaun opinions twitter page? I’ll email it seperately)