SACS Committee Complete Visit of FAMU

In the exit conference meeting, members of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Monitoring Committee presented its recommendations. The committee commended the university for the remarkable progress that has been made since the university was placed on probation by SACS.

The committee developed draft recommendations related to fiscal management. Dr. Joseph Silver, the SACS liaison, said the committee chair will submit the draft report to FAMU President James H. Ammons to review for accuracy. The final report will then be sent to the Compliance and Review Committee that will recommend action to the Commission on Colleges of SACS. A decision about the university’s probationary status will be made at SACS’ December meeting in New Orleans.

“In the three months since receipt of the notification, FAMU has made remarkable progress,” said Dr. Robert Gratz, chair of the on-site monitoring committee. “There has been taken a broad range of corrective action. The university has assembled a strong management team and there is also a strong campuswide commitment to addressing the concerns. Now the new system only needs time to show its effectiveness.”

The SACS committee reported that based on their review, the issues of board oversight and competent administrators are “moot.” The recommendations centered around finance and receipt of an audit and management letters.

“I am pleased with the effort of the campus leadership, faculty, staff and students who participated in the interview process,” said President James H. Ammons at the exit conference. “The accolades we received are not normal coming from a visiting team. The team, however, saw the intense amount of work and effort we put into making sure that we complied with SACS’s core requirements and comprehensive standards.”