COLLEGE TOWN, Fla. (WTXL) — FAMU leaders say they're implementing academic program changes for sustainability. Some students question how the changes will impact the university's HBCU mission, and they're calling for transparency.
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Florida A&M University is implementing changes to multiple academic programs in what leaders describe as a move to strengthen the university's future. But the decision has prompted questions from students.
A few students gathered on campus Thursday to speak against the changes, arguing African American Studies and Fine Arts courses were important to FAMU's history and mission as a historically Black college and university.
"We are an HBCU. Our primary mission is a lot different than the other institutions in the state university system. Our goal is to get black students degrees. We're getting measured by the same metrics that the other institutions are getting measured by, which is straying us farther and further away from our university's mission," Devin Nobles said.
Nobles is a senior computer engineering major at FAMU.
The changes are part of what FAMU calls "academic program prioritization," a process the university says evaluates programs for sustainability, student success, and workforce demand. The review includes structural adjustments to African American Studies and Fine Arts courses, mostly consolidating those courses into other degree programs.
"So, if the problem is we don't have enough students graduating with these specific programs, how do we make sure we recruit students more than just a minute to a minimum amount of students, and how do we make sure that they go and finish the program in these fields?" Nobles asked.
In response, university officials said African American Studies would not be eliminated and would remain central to FAMU's identity. Over the past three years, nine students graduated from that program. Sixteen have graduated from Studio Fine Arts. Leaders say the changes are about efficiency and strengthening low-enrollment programs.
"We decided to consolidate programs so that they are much more appealing and meet the students where they are and what they want to do, but really bring them together so that, instead of having two programs with a small number of student,s we put them together and say this is a larger student impact and overall of a better run program," Allyson Watson said.
Watson is the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at FAMU.
Watson acknowledged the process could have been handled differently.
"If I could have done anything over again, I would've had the opportunity to have more students engaged so that they could know, just like they would hear from their dean and hear from others. We're making some important decisions that will affect you or your friends, and it's important for you to hear about it. So we will make sure that we do that in the future," Watson said.
University leaders say these changes are about long-term sustainability, while some students say they'll continue pushing for transparency.
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