The Florida A&M University Foundation has agreed to supplement the salaries of President Marva Johnson’s leadership team. The move comes at the expense of the school’s famed Marching 100 band. But officials say that cut is just temporary.
Under a new budget passed during a special meeting Tuesday, foundation members agreed to shift about $400,000 dollars that had been earmarked for the band—zeroing out the foundation's line for the Marching 100—and instead allocating $300,000 to executive compensation and $100,000 to the Office of the President for fundraising.
Officials say the University’s budget will make up for the cut to the band. During the meeting, Johnson said she and Chief Financial Officer Nichole Murray are committed to funding the band at full capacity.
The shift is happening because of a state law that says Florida’s public universities can only pay salaries of up to $200,000 to university presidents and $250,000 to university executives. Johnson earns $650,000 plus housing and car allowances, a 3 percent annual raise, and a guaranteed faculty post when her presidency ends. But right now, the foundation is only paying $35,500 toward Johnson’s salary package, because the legislature agreed to allow the FAMU Board of Trustees to allocate money for her salary – just one time – from the university’s operating expenses.
The foundation’s budget shift supplements the salaries of Chief Operating Officer Kelvin Lawson, whose salary is $394,000, Provost Allyson Watson, Chief of Staff Carmen Cummings Martin, and Donald Palm, who applied for the presidency and now holds the newly-created title of executive vice president for Health Sciences Enterprise and Research. The athletic director is slated to be on this list, but current AD Angela Suggs is on paid leave.
The total reallocation of $300,000 to University Executive Support raises the total line item in the foundation’s budget to $780,000.
