FAMU Alumni/Current Students
 

Hello Sorors and Sisterfriends,

Let me get straight to the point. I was recently talking to a beautiful and intelligent young lady who is very interested in attending FAMU this fall. She would very much like to dialogue with someone who has or is currently attending the university. If any of you would like to assist this young lady with her endeavor to attend FAMU, please email me at Pearl19aka@yahoo.comor provide your email address so that I can relay them to her.

Sisterly,

Conskeeted19

Has she contacted the local alumni in the city she currently resides?

I did not even think about that. We will check to see if there is a local alumni chapter. If you have other suggestions, please advise.

I attended FAMU from 1998-2001. I am presently in Tallahassee in graduate school. Feel free to email me at the address provided in my profile.

I agree that contacting her local alumni chapter would be best. They offer loads of info and even scholarships. I attended FAMU from 1993-98 and have a little sis down there now.

What is it that she'd like to know?
Is she presently in HS?

You can contact me via the email in my profile or simply PM me.

What city and state is she in?

so sad...maybe it needs to be shut down.
 

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Posted on Tue, Mar. 20, 2007
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LEGISLATURE
Probe of FAMU's missing cash urged
Some lawmakers who got an earful about missing money at FAMU asked for a criminal investigation.
BY STEPHANIE GARRY
sgarry@MiamiHerald.com

TALLAHASSEE - In the worst report yet of persistent, widespread problems at Florida A&M University, state auditors told lawmakers Monday they have found evidence that the school spent millions of dollars that doesn't appear on any budget, that many other financial records are missing and that some employees went unpaid for months.

The audit prompted some lawmakers on a joint House-Senate committee to call for a criminal investigation of the university.

''Perhaps it's a matter for law enforcement to sort out,'' said Sen. Ronda Storms, a Brandon Republican.

Sen. Gwen Margolis, a Bay Harbor Islands Democrat and chairwoman of the committee, said some of the mismanagement sounded ``close to criminal.''

Lawmakers heard of an unapproved $39 million hole in the budget, nearly 1,000 missing pieces of property worth $2.7 million, and absent records of $1.8 million in athletic ticket sales that were apparently carried off by a janitor.

''I'm getting the sense this is over our head,'' said Sen. Jeremy Ring, a Margate Democrat. ``This is sounding more and more like Enron to me.''

Asked if some of the actions by university administrators could be criminal offenses, audit manager Ted Sauerbeck said FAMU records were in such disarray it was difficult to tell. He said auditors have no idea if any missing money was used for a legitimate expenditure or was simply stolen.

The report is the latest spotlight on the crippling troubles at Florida's only public, historically black university, and it is causing such frustration that legislators are considering withholding funding from the school rather than giving it a second chance.

FAMU President Castell Bryant responded in a statement Monday afternoon that suggestions that the university's actions were criminal are ''very serious charges'' that were ''not substantiated.'' Bryant said the administration is already working on a response to the audit, which it must submit within 30 days.

She acknowledged the school faces ''severe challenges'' and that ``there is indeed need for change and modernization at FAMU.''

Mark Rosenberg, chancellor of the state university system, told lawmakers Monday that a task force is being assembled to create a plan to solve the management problems by fall.

''We share your deep concern and sense of urgency about these difficulties,'' Rosenberg said.

Rep. William Snyder, a Stuart Republican, asked Rosenberg what the result would be if the university does not comply with task force mandates and Florida law.

Rosenberg's response: the end of state funding, and thus the end of FAMU.

THE WORST CASE

''The worst thing that could happen is there would be a decision not to fund it by the state Legislature,'' Rosenberg said. ``In that case, the university would cease to exist.''

Bill Edmonds, spokesman for the state Board of Governors, which oversees Florida's 11 public universities, said the problems appear to be more than the school can handle and require outside help.

The creation of a task force wasn't enough to satisfy some lawmakers on the panel. Rep. Susan Bucher, a West Palm Beach Democrat, said FAMU needs more accountants, not more reviews.

''I don't think a fluff task force is what we need,'' Bucher said, adding that there have been FAMU audits before and the problems haven't been resolved. ``I think that history is repeating itself in this audit.''

In one case highlighted by the audit, the university's administration blamed janitors for ''inadvertently'' throwing away records of $1.8 million in athletic ticket sales, which had been stored in a concession stand. Rep. Carl Domino, a Jupiter Republican, asked if the tickets could have been sold for more than they were worth, with the seller pocketing the difference. Sauerbeck said it was possible, but there was no way to tell.

`FOUR-YEAR VOID'

Sen. Al Lawson, a Democrat from Tallahassee and FAMU graduate, said he's been ''embarrassed'' by the university's problems. He told the panel that many attempts to lift FAMU out of its hole have been unsuccessful and that the university has suffered from a ``four-year void in leadership.''

''The only way they can be resolved is with accountability,'' Lawson said.

Nupe4Life:

Regarding your comment, you're kidding right? (please let him be kidding, please let him be kidding, please let him be kidding, please let him be kidding.)

Jody,

I want FAMU to succeed but it just seems like sometimes you have to help yourself. And for me the alumni are not doing enough to demand accountability from their Alma Mater. If the band is doing well or the football team is having a good season, that's all they care about. It's just unbelievable to me that that much money can be missing. And the athletic ticket receipts being thrown out accidentally makes no sense to me. Even if no one is pocketing the money, why in the Hell aren't there accounting mechanism in place to avoid this kind of thing.

IMO, Dr. Bryant has done a good job in the interim and that lady has received death threats because of the tough decisions she has made to insure that FAMU continues its mission of Excellence With Caring. They don't need another task force, they need some action. The problems of FAMU affect us all as African Americans. WE first have to demand excellence from our universities. It's not enough for them to exist. WE know that we have to be better than PWI, sad but true. I went to PWI institution. The thing that I noticed that HBCUs don't have is institutional support from alumni or the community. They may go to a sporting event but they don't support the financially. I found at my institution, people who never went there but supported it locally. That's what we need. No more excuses about mismanagement. If you think your institution will mismanage your contribution, give a restricted gift that way they don't have discretion on how to use your funds.

So no, I'm not for closing FAMU down but at some point we can't continue to buy all of their issues. Also as a state funded school, we can't expect the state to continue to fund it if things don't get better. This is what I think will happen, FAMU will be given just enough to run itself but they have run out of favors so special projects and extra things won't happen until they get back in the good graces of law makers. I would like to see a private accounting firm brought in to help them right the ship. And one last thing, these problems didn't appear out of thin air. Dr. Humphries (brother of Delta National President Mona Humphries Bailey) was the President for 16 years, I know he had a lot to do with this, but he's been missing in action ever since.

You must be a crimiNOLE! :cool:

Your not a Rattler, how can you speak to know what any of us care about?

Dr. Humphries has been gone for well over five years...why cast the blame on his shoulders after all this time?

From my vantage point, she wasnt equipped to lead our university...How could you come up with the assumption that our IP Casthell is doing a good job?

We have KPMG as a consultant...is that a big enough accounting firm for you? (Even if I believe they are a waste of money)


and all that other mess can be refuted and explained away per the link below.

rattlernation.blogspot.com


We know what we have to do.

If you dont know what your talking about I caution you to say nothing at all...dont believe everything to read in the Tallahassee Hypocrat!

If FAMU knew what they needed to do they wouldn't be in this mess. And I brought up Humphries to say that this stuff just didn't happen. I've talked to FAMU alumni who have credited him with some of this mess. He had a gift for attracting National Merit Scholars but in the end he couldn't give them all scholarships. I had a girl from my church back home, almost transfer because she was giving a Presidential Scholarship and they tried to get out of paying her. As an AA, I care what happens to FAMU. As a member of the community I care about what happens to FAMU.

Not an Alum, but its soooo sad to constantly see FAMU in the local news for mess. And the other day the university website was down. *sigh*

I was going to refrain from commenting on NUPE4Life's ridiculous comment about FAMU and other HCBU's (clearly he did not attend one, for if he did, he would be VERY careful about spitting such ridiculous comments as closing the only insitutition that for over 100 years has educated a majority of the African American professionals in the state). I am saddened by what is going on at FAMU, but trust it is no different than anything that has occurred at other institutions of higher learning that are not historically black . . .mismanagement is mismanagement - but that NEVER is a reason to close a school's doors particularly when the problems can be fixed. (and I agree with whomever said don't believe everything you read in the TD . . .very biased journalism - using that term loosley. Moreover, the politicians making these outlandish comments are just as ridiculous . . . Enron? criminal? I am embarassed to say R. Storms is a rep from my area - no comment on her self grandising comments (rolling eyes REALLY hard))

Moreover, your comments regarding Alumni no contributing to the school - are you an Alum? How do you know WHAT alum contribute, if you are not one. I know many alum who contribute finanically and with their time to our illustrious school. I hold the legislature and the state government partially responsible for the situation FAMU is in . . . .they didn't do checks and balances while Hump was there because the BOard of Regents was too afraid of Hump to question anything he did . .THAT IS A PROBLEM . . .your responsibility as a member of the BOR (now defunct) is to CHECK ALL state funded schools . . not just sit idly by and let one do what the hell they want to do . . that is crazy . . . I am not taking all of the blame away from A&M, but there is a legislature and a BOR in place for a reason, and they failed to do their jobs . . .they saw something was fishy 10 years ago and chose to turn a blind eye until AFTER Hump left . . . and now ppl want a problem that took 10 years to make to be fixed overnight . . .it doesn't work that way (and don't get it twisted - there are majority schools that face similar problems all the time . . it just seems to generate more media attention when it is an HBCU).

Pres. Bryant has done a good job with cleaning house . . . she has eliminated the bad apples and is trying to find out where the leaks are . . but it takes time . . and I think people who make irresponsible comments such as yours, NUPE, do more to exacerbate the situation than anything else. As I said, Florida A&M has graduated some of the best and the brightest business people, engineers, pharmacists, teachers, lawyers, doctors, etc. etc. in this country - you don't randomly close a school that has that reputation . . . .this too shall pass . . .God is with us always . . EVEN in the midst of these storms we are seeing.

(sorry for any sps - he got me HOT speaking blasphemy about my school . . I do NOT Play about FAMU!!! :mad: )

Ok, calm down...
 

WOOOO-SAAAA
WOOOO-SAAAA

Is everybody ok now?

Good...


Let's take all of our personal biases and love for HBCU's out of this. Let's look at this not in terms of black and white, no pun intended, but in green.

Florida A&M University, one of the PREMIER Educational Institutions in this land has hit a tough spot. 39 Million Dollars missing is a buttload of money...for ANYBODY. The problem is that everyone is looking for someone to blame, but no one is trying to find the ACTUAL root of the problem.

Had my state legislature, or anybody's for that matter, lost 39 million dollars (especially with 1.8 million disappearing into the pocket of a brother that mopped the floors) we would be pissed to no end. We would march, protest, and call for the beheading of the governor. We wouldn't say, "well this is Governor's Nogood's fault! I know he hasn't been in office in umpteen years but so what!" We wouldn't blame the mexican at the fruitstand outside the capital building because he was nearby either. We would PUSH for accountability. We would PUSH to the root. We woudl be filled with righteous anger and indignation at the situation, not at random people involved because it seems ok to do.

(Now let's bring color back into it)

I believe HBCU's are the lifeblood, the heart, and soul of black genius. I think they are integral part of the development of the mass black consciousness and vital to our existence in this country. However, just like the church, we don't like to take a strong look at our own problems. We don't criticize our HBCU's because we love them, just like we don't criticize the church because we feel it's almost blasphemous.

If we want to help our HBCU's we need to stop giving them the benefit of complete immunity within our community. We need to hold them to the same high standards that they hold the students to. It is LITERALLY open season on HBCU financial records.


39 Million...that's a lot of tax money...

Just like we chastise our children in love, lets start loving our HBCU's instead of simply saying we do. (AND THE CHURCH!)

AMEN! AMEN! :D
And YES I am an alum of an HBCU!
And NO these types of things have not just occured at FAMU.

I would not be the successful, driven person that I am today if not for the HBCU education I received.

To LitAKAtor: I ride or die for my school as well (I bleed the Blue and Gold). We had our share of problems in the recent past as far the financial state of the university and university officials abusing their power. We (the alumni) must take the stance that something must be done! But family business is family business. ;) So I TOTALLY understand the Fiery response!
To Nupe4Life: If you didn't go to an HBCU you then just understand that you leave that campus and move on the bigger and greater things, you do so feeling like you're leaving behind "family". So I think that may be part of reason why you got your a** chewed. :o It's like if somebody talks about "yo mama". Those are fighting words!!!

RitaMae: She didn't chew my azz out. This is a very passionate debate with credible arguments on both sides. I think I made some valid points. PhrozenGenius was able to better articulate what I was trying to say. I do feel though there is no need to ever disrespect anyone in this debate. We all want what's best for HBCU's. Like PhrozenGenius has said, this is taxpayer dollars. I as a tax payer in the state have a vested interest in how my money is used. I would be the same way if a PWI in Florida was doing the same thing.

Okay so I said "chew" but in a playful manor.. I was just trying to lighten the aire!!! Calm down already. :D

I will agree that you did make some valid points. But we can all make a point but are the right people hearing those points!? In other words what can we do to rectify the situation other than spouting off 'articulate' responses to a problem that remains yet unresolved.

Don't get me wrong - as I said - I do not hold A&M or its administration blameless . . .but at the same time the BORs turned a blind eye to things that were going on that weren't quite right for a long time b/c of Hump and their "fear" of him. I am very angry at the bad light my alma mater is in, but I do NOT appreciate nor encourage people to blanketly call for the school that has educated so many to close its doors. If this was UF or FSU or USF or any of the other public universities, these legislators would not be saying such things . . .it is downright disrespectful. As I stated, the problem took 10 years to make, it is going to take more than 10 minutes to fix. I LOVE MY SCHOOL and I will dayumed if I am going to let someone who did not walk on the hill and deal with what I dealt with disrespect my beloved university. . . .PERIOD!!!!:mad:

My anger was not steered toward your concern for the mismanagement of funds - I am a taxpayer as well and am equally concerned. MY ISSUE was your comment that FAMU should close its doors - even in jest it was, imo, an irresponsible thing to say because that is what the majority has been saying for years . . . FAMU educates many AA students in this state that have good grades but are not accepted to UF or FSU . . these students go on to become lawyers, doctors, teachers, etc . . . as an alum I am interested in keeping my school open an assisting in fixing the problem - NOT seeing its doors close!

I really wish there was an actual way to effect change in a place with ease. Until then, there really isn't. The people with the most sense aren't in power. Those in power won't listen to those with the most sense because they're typically not "on the inside."

So, we have two options:
1. Get together, throw caution to the wind and SHOUT, PROTEST, and PICKET!

or

2. We can bleach our skin pretend to be campaign contributors to state legislators and infiltrate the Good Ol' Boys Club...

The latter seems highly unlikely though...(BEWARE: Blanket Statement Approaching)
Come to think of it, the first does two. Black folks are hard to move, especially when they don't gain anything PERSONALLY from it.

Sadly, I agree. I have written the legislators, and will be writing mine to condemn her for her ridiculous statements. Her consituency includes those people who graduated from that great school (but this is the same person that said, when they RE-opened FAMU's law school - loooong story about the autrocities surrounding that - short story FSU's law school used to be FAMU's- that it didn't matter if they opened up a law school for us- we still wouldn't be able to pass the bar . . .see dumb as a box of rocks and has diarreha of the mouth all the time!)

FAMU has SO much to offer the entire community. Your rep is only echoing the sentiments of her peers within the legislature. The problem that we have as a people is that there are very few of us who take steps such as you have to make the wishes of the community known to their representatives in government. Thus, the stewards of the people are more "self-serving" capitalists with a penchant for resume fillers than anything.

Hey, look at it like this, at least you're not in Alabama.

Part of this problem is caused by the fact that the bodies that are supposed to oversee higher education in Florida have been in a state of turmoil for the last few years. With all of the constant changes going on at the BOR/BOG/BOTs level, it not surprising that this problem wasn't addressed sooner, before it grew to be so out of control.

I sincerely hope that FAMU can get this resolved. Eleven public universities are not enough to serve the rapidly growing educational needs of Florida. We need to be expanding and developing all of the schools we currently have, and adding new institutions as well. Closing one of them would just compound the problem.

N4L what the heck does his familial relationships have to do with anything? Plus she is not the current national president and hasn't been for 25 years.

ETA: FAMU's doors will not be closed. I bet this is the siren call that will mobilize folx and not just FAMU alumni and students.

I agree.

[Tangent/]I made this same argument to a group of HBCU alum years ago. They were extremely irrate and sensitive to the point where they tried to lash out against me personally. Their arguments ranged from I wouldn't understand b/c I didn't go to an HBCU to I wouldn't understand because I was younger and hadn't been in the "real world of full time work experience" yet. Such passion should have been directed at the HBCUs.[/end tangent]

When you look at the issue objectively, HBCUs have a lot of structural problems. Many of them don't have the stellar reputations that they once did. The calibar of student for some HBCUs has struggled along with their administrations. This doesn't mean that there aren't good students at these HBCUs but bad apples can spoil the perception of the bunch. Just like bad apples among HBCUs spoil the perception of HBCUs.

Loyalty is fine if some people want to attach themselves to HBCUs. But loyalty without demand for improvement and accountability is a waste.

I wondered the same thing.:confused: :(

Rita Mae and LitAKAtor, you are letting your emotions obscure the facts. And the fact is that Florida A&M University is a BUSINESS!! And like any business, if there are inadequate resources to keep that business running, that business will cease to exist one way or another.

Too many black folks are unable to separate their heart and loyalty from sound business decisions, hence you get emotionally charged discussions as these. Whether or not N4L attended FAMU is irrelevant and has nothing to do with his ability to intelligently discuss the issues at hand. As long as folk like you continue to argue, debate, and fight issues with emotions rather than with facts and business saavy, then businesses like Florida A&M University frankly deserve to go down the toilet.

This is real talk and tough love.

Signed,

A former Central State University (HBCU) student whose school encountered issues similar to that of FAMU.

The point of your post was that your point stands even without your signature detail. ;)

First, let us not get it twisted- as a BUSINESS major I quite capable of removing the emotion I feel for my school from the business aspect of running a university/business. Moreover as an ATTORNEY, I am more than capable of engaging in intelligent debate and am able to articulate facts without clouding the same with emotion. So not quite sure what you mean by "people like you."

Additionally, aside from my comment to N4L that I felt his suggestion to close FAMU's doors was irresponsible, the substance of my post was far from emotionally charged. Notwithstanding, who wouldn't be a bit peeved at someone making a blanket statement that the school you love have its doors closed without the benefit of a dialogue regarding the issue. His subject was (to my recollection - and paraphrasing)- was is it time for them to close their doors or something to that effect.

I would advise both you to read my post in its entirety instead of piece mealing it to garner its meaning. As I stated numerous times <b> I do not hold my alma mater blameless in this situation, but AGAIN it takes more than 10 minutes to fix that situation. </b> There is work that needs to be done - but it doesn't mean closing a 100+ year old school's doors without a valiant effort to fix the issues. In light of the historical significance FAMU has in this state, it deserves the opportunity to attempt to fix the fiscal problems that are there . . .that is what is occurring now.


DSTCHAOS's statment:

"When you look at the issue objectively, HBCUs have a lot of structural problems. Many of them don't have the stellar reputations that they once did."

As do PWUs (structural problems). Re: stellar reputations - is do you have some facts to support this blanket statement. I would disagree with the term many - I would say some - but then again, there are SOME PWU's that have less than stellar reps as well. So, what is your point? Objectively speaking, I can name SEVERAL HBCUs whose educational programs are top notch and its graduates are competing and can compete with the likes of ANY graduate from ANY PWU, to wit - FAMU (pharmacy, nursing, education, business) Hampton (architecture, pharmacy), North Carolina A&T (engineering), and let me not forget Morehouse and Spelman and the host of other HBCUs who have have excellent educational reputations. If you have some facts to the contrary, please share - I am all ears. (in case there is some thought that this is an emotionally charged statement- let me quash those thoughts now - it isn't - if you have contrary information - please share

We aren't talking about PWIs. You can start a thread on them if you want.

This is qualitative information that are "facts" simply because I have read and heard the opinions myself. Reputation is based on both the objective and the subjective. In that case:

Many HBCU alum, administration, employers, graduate schools, general population people, etc. don't hold schools like Hampton and Howard in the same regard as they once did in terms of 1) academic rigor; 2) quality of student body; 3) preparation for the job market or graduate school; and 4) prestige (subjectively defined).

This isn't a point of debate as far as I'm concerned because for every person who respects HBCUs as a whole there will always be (more) people who don't. Simple as that.

ETA: I'm talking about the colleges and universities as a whole, not particular departments or programs. So mentioning a school's specific program to me doesn't dismiss the idea of it being a struggling HBCU as a whole. I'm also not talking about ALL HBCUs being sucky--there's one HBCU that I absolutely adore and it is one of the best schools in the national PERIOD, as far as I'm concerned.

Asinine statement. As soon as the term "HBCU" got thrown out there the point of reference became PWI's in terms of institutional direction, accountability, and the way this would have been handled. The question in effect became: If UCF, USF, UF, FSU, or even Sterling had messed up like this would there have been a call to close it? You know it. If we were talking about Higher Educational Institutions in general there would be no need to use the term "HBCU" or "PWI" in this discussion whatsoever.


Sounds like your opinion and circle of sociality have been disguised as qualitative information. Well, as we all know you can't have qualitative without info without quantitative aspects and methodology. How many were surveyed? How many people don't respect HBCU's? How can we measure the quality of students at the institutions versus their predecessors? When did HBCU's become less academically rigorous? What institutions in specific? Unless you can answer those questions don't call it qualitative.

Plus, your last statement completely negates your earlier points. "There's one HBCU that I absolutely ador and it is one of the best schools in the national PERIOD" comes right after you say people don't respect HBCU's....

NEWS FLASH: I'm not flaming you. I'm just coming at you in the same way that LitAKAtor came at N4L. Just like she said his post about closing FAMU down was irresponsible I'm saying the same about yours.

All in all, this boils down to what I said before. We need to stress accountability for our institutions actions and stop giving our black people "who've made it" a pass to do whatever they feel like doing with our institutions. Whether it's the NAACP, FAMU, the National Urban League, whatever. If Spike Lee starts screwing up 40 Acres and a Mule I'm gonna be right there calling his ass out. These HBCU's and institutions are not here just for the alumni and students but ALL of us. I went to a PWI, but that doesn't mean I don't love HBCU's any less than some of the people that went there. I will call out ANYONE that either A)receives my tax money or B) is working in OUR interest...

Peace Out

Phrozen Genius
(From the state with more HBCU's than ANY OTHER STATE IN THE NATION!)

I live in Alabama too!

If I'm not the one who brought it up, I'm not talking about PWIs. Assinine that.

NOT true.

Even if it was true, if you don't have the quantitative info to trump any dissenting qualitative data, what's your point?

These questions were asked because you don't have a complete understanding of what "qualitative" means when used outside of a "methodology" context. Either way, I made no mention of rigorous methodology or even a survey being conducted. Moreover, many studies use qualitative data in the form of participant observation to go beyond the numbers and see how people really feel. Participant observation sizes can range from 1 to 100. So let's say my sample size was 200 from having had these discussions over the past 10 years. Let's say I've talked to alum from the 1960s to the 2000s. Let's say I won't tell the schools because I don't want to read people's hurt feelings about their HBCU.

What now? Nothing. So, miss me with whatever opinion you have from this point on and whatever lesson you thought you were teaching. ;)

This makes no sense but that doesn't shock me. I guess you missed this part of my post that came right before the one you attached your ass to:

If you're going to "debate," show that you can completely read and understand the opposing viewpoint before you attempt to counter it.

I'm not going to debate anything you just attempted to break down because it essentially weakened your argument. You took your opinion, tried to pass it off as gospel/data/truth/the vox populi and then contradicted yourself *sigh*

Anyways, what do you think should be the next step as far as this situation is concerned? What should the Board of Regents and FAMU do to correct this problem?

You follow directions very well.

I'm still trying to figure out where she did that. :confused: Especially since I would agree. The reps of many HBCUs (and that is all I am talking about here) are not as stellar as they once were. I am talking from many more years of experience than you. And no I did not go to a HBCU, but my daughter did.

In my opinion FAMU has one of the best business programs in the nation, yet it is not accredited. The same holds true for other HBCUs that for some reason have not achieved accreditation. This has led to a decrease of the reputations among corporate recruiters.

As a alum of the business school, let me give my understanding of why it was never accredited. Trust, it was not because it could NOT be accredited, but with accredidation you have to change and become aligned with whatever the standards are of the accrediting body. Dean Mobley created a gem at FAMU with Professional Development - at the time there was nothing like it at any business school. business schools such as Wharton and others were clamoring trying to figure it out - what is it that Dean Mobley is doing to prepare these AA students to take the business world by storm. We were just going to class and making presentations, we were interacting one on one with CEOs of companies. We were engaging them with stimulating well researched questions. We were/are prepared to sit at the table with any corporate exec and act and talk like we are supposed to be there. D. Mobley didn't want to jeapordize that by getting accredidation from a body that couldn't measure up to what she already had created . . why when top notch corporations were actively and still are actively seeking us out. My internships were with Pfizer HQ and Chamption International HQ . . .not some mom and pop stores. I interacted with the VP of HR of Pfizer ( a sister while I was there) and met and dialoged with the VP of Marketing at Champion . . .how many can say that? In my opinion, accredidation during that time would have done nothing but hurt the program - and it wasn't needed. NOw that D. Mobley is gone and more schools have incorporated Professional Development in their curriculum, it may be needed - there is a new sister and the helm of SBI and from all accounts she is doing a good job . . . but I think with the desire to get accredited, some brilliant people were let go (former Coporate Execs) and that, in my opinion, may end up doing more harm than good. So bottom line, I don't agree with your statement that the lack of accredidation at SBI made its graduates any less competitive than others. I know several graduates (some very recent) who have been accepted to Columbia, Harvard, Yale, and other Ivy League Business schools and others who have earned their MBA's from A&M and have been hired and the top accounting firms and corporations and the lack of accredidation wasn't even an issue.

I advise everyone with a grain of sense to stay from perpetually nonaccredited schools, whether they be HBCUs or PWIs.

However, if the school loses its accreditation only for a short period of time due to unforeseen circumstances, like NCCU's b-school, that is given a pass as long as they get their accreditation back within a few months or a year.

As you once again have failed to provide SPECIFIC facts that substantiate any of your OPINIONS, I won't engage in a back and forth with you about this issue. If you have SPECIFIC data regarding that lack of: 1) academic rigor; 2) quality of student body; 3) preparation for the job market or graduate school; and 4) prestige that led to your views, then okay. If not, it is, in my opinon, conjecture and not entitled to more weight than that given to just one person's opinion based on other people's OPINIONS. That would kind of be like me making an argument to the court about a position I was taking with no legal support . . . . ain't gonna fly.

Good because, like I said, there is always a subjective approach to this topic that not everyone will agree on regardless of what info is provided.

I never cared to debate with you and have moved on.