By Angelique Fullwood
On June 8 the Florida A&M University Board of Trustees met in the Grand Ballrooms, discussing the presidential search and fundraising efforts among other things. During the meeting, board members acknowledged the positions of alumni chapters on issues such as the selection of the next university president.
Student issues were not at the forefront of the board meeting. It wasn’t until it was the meeting was close to being adjourned when Trustee Justin Bruno, who serves at the SGA president, spoke up about how Marching 100 band members were concerned about eligibility requirements.
Chairman Kelvin Lawson responded to Bruno by congratulating him for bringing up student concerns and indicating that the board will try to include the student perspective more in the future.
“I think that we can do honestly a better job of getting student input,” Lawson said. “We did a listening session on campus in the pharmacy auditorium a couple months ago, and it wasn’t well attended. I think there’s an opportunity for us to do more of that and publicize it better.”
While Bruno is only one student, his presence on the board might bring attention to student life at FAMU.
“I appreciate the opportunity to advocate on behalf of students who don’t necessarily know that these processes, these forums are available to them,” Bruno said. “A lot of students sometimes they run into concerns and issues and they feel like they have to carry that weight themselves. So if I can do anything to serve as a sounding board for some of those issues and get them addressed just like I’ve been trying to do today, that’s the reason why I’m here.”
Angelique Cherie Fullwood 