FAMU presidency controversy continues into contract conversation

Controversy continues to swirl around the president-designate of Florida A&M University, with the latest dispute being over Marva Johnson’s five- year contract and how she will earn her pay.

FAMU Board of Trustees Chair Kristin Harper said Friday that Johnson’s contract puts the university at odds with the FAMU Foundation, which is responsible for providing most of the money. That’s because state law caps contributions at $200,000 annually for presidential salaries.

The foundation’s board chair said it could not afford a $750,000 base salary, the Tallahassee Democrat reported, which is what Johnson requested.

The foundation anticipated the new president’s salary would be $588,562, Harper said, reading from a letter from the foundation. 

The contract says the board “shall use its best efforts to cause the foundation to contribute to the university portions of all payments” beyond $200,000. That language concerns Harper, who said she is not sure trustees can make the foundation, a direct-support organization of the university, do anything.

“I have concerns about the burden, the financial burden that this places on the university and the university’s inability to fund this sweetheart deal of sweetheart deals,” Harper said. 

There was significant pushback among alumni to Johnson’s candidacy, much of which was centered around her political connections to former Gov. Rick Scott and Gov. Ron DeSantis. Alumni also cited her lack of higher education administration experience.

Despite the opposition, the FAMU Board of Trustees voted 8-4 last month to hire Johnson; Harper voted against her. After the trustees approved Johnson, the board voted to put FAMU trustee Nicole Washington, instead of Harper, in charge of negotiating the contract. At the time, Harper said she was offended.

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On Friday, Washington disagreed with Harper’s assessment about the foundation’s ability to pay.

“It’s my understanding that the foundation will be required to amend their budget to accommodate this expense,” Washington said. 

“Required is quite a strong word,” Harper replied.

Washington on Friday stood by the contract she negotiated, which was ultimately approved with an 8-3 vote.

“I compare this process to, similar to, buying a house. I still regret not buying a house back in 2017 when the median home price in Florida was $237[,000]. In 2025, that median price is $389,400, a 60% increase. The market has changed,” Washington said, calling the contract “competitive yet balanced.”

Johnson is yet to be approved by the Board of Governors. If approved, her contract would take effect Aug. 1.

Total compensation would be about $840,000 in the first year and rises up to about $981,000 in the final year.

Comparing the contract to other historically Black colleges and universities, the FAMU contract rises above the average HBCU contracts that search consultants evaluated at $446,094. The average of other institutions with a similar research capacity as FAMU is $617,021, according to consultants. 

Trustee Craig Reed took issue with the size of the contract compared to former President Larry Robinson, whose total salary was $591,669 in his last year.

“I find it highly difficult to approve a contract that significantly exceeds, essentially, what we paid our previous president that had significant experience as a sitting president and as a faculty member in a higher ed institution,” Reed said.

Compared to other State University institutions, FAMU’s package would land it below the 50th percentile in the first year, which is $899,644. 

The contract also provides Johnson a spot as a faculty member at the FAMU College of Law following her presidency. 

Priorities

One concern voiced by some trustees and during public comment, was whether the contract prioritizes retention rather than performance.

The five-year contract would start Johnson at a base salary of $650,000 with a 3% annual increase. 

The contract provides annual performance compensation of $86,000, if the board deems her worthy. For comparison, the recently negotiated University of Florida contract would’ve provided Santa Ono with a 20% performance bonus. Johnson’s performance bonus would be approximately 13% of her salary.

Her contract provides a $150,000 annual retention payment, able to be cashed out after the three- and five-year marks. The retention bonus would be approximately 23% of her annual base salary.

“I’m just concerned, you know, about what matters more to this board: Occupying a seat or delivering outcomes for student success?” Harper said, adding that she would prefer that performance and retention were swapped. 

Trustee Zayla Bryant, a student, stood with Harper.

“And with that only being less than half of what her retention payment would be, I feel like that sets a clear standard or sets a clear indicator that her presence is more important than her performance,” Bryant said. 

Washington countered that the two are intertwined.

“It’s interesting that you see that as an ‘either/or.’ I see that as a ‘both/and.’ In order for the president to remain for three years would require that she has performed over that time,” Washington said, adding that “This is not a contract that anybody is going to get just for sitting in the seat.”