Marva Johnson, the new president of historically Black Florida A&M University, has announced the appointments of four individuals to her leadership team.
“I am pleased to welcome this group of distinguished executives to my senior leadership team. Each individual possesses a wealth of experience in their areas of expertise that will benefit Florida A&M University as I carry out my vision to enhance our competitive standing academically, fiscally, and operationally,” said President Johnson.
Kelvin Lawson was named executive vice president and chief operations officer. Lawson most recently served as president of North Star Total Services. He previously served as the executive vice president of Business Development for Channel Partners, where he coordinated the sales and business development efforts for both Apollo Retail and BDS Marketing Connected Solutions. He received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the FAMU School of Business and Industry.
Donald E. Palm, III was appointed executive vice president for health sciences enterprise and research innovation. As the chief strategist and operational leader for a broad academic and research portfolio, he will play a pivotal role in accelerating the university’s progress toward achieving Carnegie R1 classification. Most recently, Dr. Palm served as executive vice president and chief operating officer. A Pittsburgh native, he holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Lincoln University (Pennsylvania) and a doctorate in pharmacology from Pennsylvania State University’s Hershey Medical School.
Michelle Robinson is the new vice president of government relations. Robinson brings more than two decades of executive experience to the role, having spent most of this time with Verizon, where she held a series of business and leadership roles including vice president of government affairs. Robinson holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California, Los Angeles and a master’s degree in public policy analysis from the University of Southern California.
Brandi Tatum-Fedrick will serve as acting vice president of university advancement in addition to her role as director of alumni affairs. In her new role, Dr. Tatum-Fedrick will be responsible for developing and executing a comprehensive fundraising strategy to secure financial support, including cultivating relationships with major donors, overseeing fundraising campaigns, and managing the development team. Dr. Tatum Fedrick holds both a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and a master’s degree in public administration from FAMU. She received her doctorate from Florida State University.
