Florida A&M University has selected Dr. Elmira Mangum as the school’s first ever female president following a troubled time for the University following the hazing death of Robert Champion, a member of the Marching 100 band.
FAMU’s Board of Trustees voted 10–2 Thursday in favor of Mangum, who has served as Cornell University’s vice president for budget and planning since 2010.
Dr. Mangum has more than 25 years of experience in higher education, financial and resource management. She began at the University of Wisconsin- Madison as an operations specialist. Dr. Mangum has also held positions at the University at Buffalo in New York. From 1984 to 2001 she served in the role of assistant dean, associate provost for resource management and as vice provost. For almost nine years she served at the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill,
FAMU’s last permanent president James Ammons resigned in July 2012. His resignation came several months after the hazing death of Champion following the 2011 Florida Classic football game in Orlando.
