- Florida A&M University will update the Florida Board of Governors on efforts to fix issues found in recent financial and operational audits.
- The university's CFO was placed on leave, and an acting senior vice president of Finance and Administration has been appointed.
- FAMU is addressing the issues by hiring new staff, correcting records, and partnering with an accounting firm for assistance.
With flawed financial and operational audit reports under scrutiny, FAMU officials are getting ready to provide the Florida Board of Governors with updates on what’s being done.
FAMU’s Vice President for Audit Credentials Joseph Maleszewski will give a presentation during the board’s 8:15 a.m. audit and compliance committee meeting Sept. 11 on the New College of Florida’s campus in Sarasota to discuss progress that has been made, such as new hires and corrected records. The meeting is open to the public and will come ahead of a full board meeting scheduled at 3 p.m. Sept. 11.
The need for audit updates comes after the university’s financial matters gave rise to concerns from the Board of Governors at a June 18 meeting, which is whenFAMU President Marva Johnson was confirmed as the institution’s new leader.
Delayed bank reconciliations, vendor payment delays, weaknesses in internal controls and accounting practices and a lack of staff involvement were among red flags that were raised in an auditor general's March 2025 reports of FAMU’s finances for the fiscal year ending in June 2024.
But the financial and operational audit issues weren’t the only concerns of the governing board. The role of the university’s Senior Vice President of Finance and Administration and Chief Financial Officer Rebecca Brown – who has served in the dual position for nearly two and a half years – was also called into question.
Critical feedback from board members included comments on how Brown “failed pretty miserably” in her role as overseer of the university’s finances.
Following the June board meeting, FAMU’s Chief Budget Officer Nichole Murry was appointed acting senior vice president of Finance and Administration and CFO on July 14 by former interim President Timothy Beard, according to a brief letter he sent to university officials on the same day with the announcement.
A month ago, a FAMU spokesperson told the Tallahassee Democrat that Brown has been on personal leave since July.
Regarding FAMU's athletics program audit, the university mutually agreed to terminate the audit in September 2024 due to its inability to provide necessary documentation, according to Board of Governors member Aubrey Edge, who chairs the board’s audit and compliance committee.
The last audit of the athletics program was for the year-end for June 30, 2021, but as a member of the National Collegiate Athletics Association (NCAA), FAMU is required to submit financial data for its athletics programs every year.
The issue remains at hand all while FAMU Vice President and Director of AthleticsAngela Suggshas been placed on paid administrative leave following charges of grand theft and making fraudulent claims for travel expenses while she served as CEO of the Florida Sports Foundation.
The university has not indicated when or if she will return to the role, and court dockets show no major developments in her case since she was arrested and released from the Leon County Jail.
According to a FAMU “Audit Update” slide presentation posted on the Board of Governors’ website ahead of the board’s Sept. 11 meeting, the university is working on building out its Athletics Business Office, where a business manager position has been filled while a senior associate athletics director for Business Operations and two fiscal specialists are still needed to tackle audit issues in the department.
Investment accounting and recording issues within FAMU’s operational audit have been corrected, and plans are being made to hire and train more staff to address bank account reconciliations. Also, older vendor invoices have been paid, and the university currently had no invoices over 100 days old as of Aug. 28.
Regarding FAMU’s significant deficiencies in account records and financial reports, a financial statement for the 2024-25 fiscal year – which has a Sept. 30 due date – is in progress as the university has been partnering with the national accounting firm Cherry Bekaert for assistance since May.
Staffing gaps in FAMU's Controller's Office still need to be filled, which the university plans to resolve by having "third-party onsite support," according to the slide presentation. To continue resolving the audit issues, weekly reports are being sent to Johnson.
While Maleszewski will be presenting before the Board of Governors, its members usually address some follow-up questions to the university’s president and Board of Trustees chair for additional details on how the financial issues are being handled. With Johnson having been in the presidential role for a little over a month, it is unclear if she or board chair Kristin Harper will address the governing board after the presentation.
How to listen in, comment at Florida Board of Governors meeting
- The committee meetings will be held starting at 8:15 a.m. while the full board meeting will be at 3 p.m. Sept. 11. Tune in on The Florida Channel’s website at:https://thefloridachannel.org/.
- Public comment forms can be obtained by emailing the governing board’s corporate secretary at generalcounsel@flbog.edu or by calling 850-245-0466.
Tarah Jean is the higher education reporter for the Tallahassee Democrat, a member of the USA TODAY Network – Florida. She can be reached attjean@tallahassee.com. Follow her on X:@tarahjean_.
