Maurice Edington, a vice president at FAMU and the only internal candidate to be the university’s next provost, sat down among faculty on Friday for a virtual discussion about his qualifications for the position.
Faculty gathered via video call with Edington to ask questions about the wellbeing of both the students and the faculty. Some professors are quite worried about the direction of the university because they feel as though a lot is being overlooked.
When questioned about his position on “block tuition,” Edington responded with a mutual understanding.
“I believe that it is a benefit for the institution in such a way that students can register for more courses at a cheaper rate. The only downside to block tuition would be a possible loss in revenue if the concept is misconstrued.” Due to a possible loss on the subject, Edington made it apparent that students should audit any failing courses rather than repeating it multiple times.
Another topic Edington touched on during this video call was advisement issues. Faculty made claims that due to poor advising, students are being misplaced into courses and this is affecting their track to graduation.
Edington responded with a plan to “rebuild the entire advisement process.” He hopes to start “an Enrollment Management Function to better solve the issue. A better system needs to be in effect and advising needs to understand that they are working along with the academic units. Meaning, placing students exactly where they need to be,” Edington said.
Graduating students in four years also was a chief concern for Edington. Students typically don’t graduate on time for several reasons and that can potentially hurt the university. This has also become a big concern for Edington.
“In my current role, I do look at particular colleges at a university to see what can be done to increase overall enrollment and graduation rates,” he said.
Edington also has made plans to look out for the faculty as well. He believes that new criteria for promotions are needed to be initiated so that the appropriate goals can be within reach.
All in all, Edington is one of three finals for provost, the No.2 position behind the president at a university. In his career, he has served in many positions, including dean of the College of Science and Technology and his current job, vice president for strategic planning at FAMU. He has even received the SGA recognition for outstanding SACS leadership.