In his book, Priority Actions in the First 100 Days, Timothy Beard, interim president of Florida A&M University, lays out a number of his plans for the university as he takes the helm while the search for a new president is underway.
Beard has hit the ground running and has already begun working on one of the priorities on his plan’s to-do list that is currently being checked off: “Conduct assessments and evaluations of senior staff and make changes as needed.”
“Implementing strategic actions within the first 100 days is critical to building trust, addressing pressing issues and laying a foundation for future success,” the action plan states.
The strategies in Beard’s action plan – which serves as a roadmap for his first 100 days as FAMU’s leader – emphasize “community engagement, student support, academic excellence and administrative reform.” This plan follows reform already initiated by restructuring efforts within FAMU’s senior leadership team.
Beard assumed his role as FAMU’s interim president on August 5, following the resignation of former President Larry Robinson. His last day in office was August 4.
A week after Beard took over as the university’s interim leader, he asked his entire leadership team to resign while he evaluated members. Those fired include communications director Keith Miles, vice president of intercollegiate athletics and athletic director Tiffani-Dawn Sykes, director of government relations Danielle McBeth and vice president of legal affairs Denise Wallace.
Although Beard is three weeks into his term, the first priorities of his action plan for days one through ten included conducting a comprehensive audit of university finances and conducting a fact-finding tour with students, faculty, staff, alumni and community leaders to gather feedback from them.
More: “New leadership is essential”: FAMU interim president Beard calls for resignations
From Days 11 to 20, Beard planned to implement a weekly “President’s Update” program on social media with the goal of engaging stakeholders and providing them with news about the university.
He also prioritized identifying “urgent” campus infrastructure needs and conducting a campus-wide food insecurity assessment to produce a detailed report on the level of food insecurity and initial partnerships with local food banks, the plan said.
In addition, tasks related to achieving Carnegie R1 status are included throughout the plan, with Carnegie classifications based on research and development-related expenditures and the creation of research doctorates, as designated by the Carnegie Foundation, which evaluates the research activity of academic institutions every three years and conducted its most recent evaluation this year..
Since FAMU has set itself the goal of achieving the Carnegie R1 classification (very high research activity) by 2030, the rating is currently Carnegie R2 (high research activity).
Here are more plans in Beard’s 100-day calendar of planned actions:
- Day 21-30: Hold initial hearings with student organizations, sports teams, fraternities and sororities, launch targeted alumni engagement campaigns, and form a task force dedicated to Carnegie R1 status.
- Day 31-40: Begin by implementing priority repairs to campus infrastructure; develop initial food insecurity relief efforts; conduct professional development workshops for faculty and staff.
- Day 41-50: Host the first Transition/Community Advisory Team meeting and implement enhanced student advising and support programs.
- Day 51-60: Conduct quarterly financial reviews, host virtual town hall meetings with students, and initiate strategic partnerships for Carnegie R1 status.
- Day 61-70: Formalize memorandums of understanding (MOUs) with community organizations; launch monthly community service events involving students and faculty; develop and launch mentorship programs that connect former students with current students.
- Day 71-80: Conduct a review of student support services; begin developing a strategic plan for long-term infrastructure improvements; implement continuous improvement processes for all initiatives.
- Day 81-90: Host an alumni gathering (in person or virtually); review progress of the Carnegie R1 status initiative; conduct a comprehensive impact assessment of community engagement initiatives.
- Day 91-100: Conduct final stakeholder hearings and feedback forums; prepare and share a 100-day progress report with stakeholders; hold a celebration to recognize successes and outline next steps.
According to a university spokesperson, the action plan does not require approval from the FAMU Board of Trustees, but Beard is scheduled to discuss his goals for the university during the Board of Trustees’ committee meetings on Wednesday, Sept. 11, at the Al Lawson Center. That’s before a full Board of Trustees meeting on Sept. 12.
Contact Tarah Jean at [email protected] or follow her on X: @tarahjean_.
