FAMU Selects Three Finalists for VP University Advancement/FAMU Foundation Executive Director Position

The University has experienced record-breaking fundraising in recent years. The FAMU NAA Convention breakfast in Chicago (above) raised more than $300K.

Florida A&M University (FAMU) has selected three finalists to visit the Tallahassee campus to interview to be the next vice president for University Advancement (VPUA) and executive director of the FAMU Foundation.

The successful candidate will replace Shawnta Friday-Stroud, Ph.D., who has filled the role for the past five years while also serving as dean of the FAMU School of Business and Industry (SBI). She has expressed a desire to return to being dean full-time. Under Friday-Stroud’s leadership, the University has experienced record-breaking levels of fundraising for the past several years – $24.6 million in 2021-2022 and about $26 million in the current fiscal year.

Finalists recommended by the VPUA Search Committee are: Quisa Foster, senior director, Strategic Partnerships for the National African American Museum in Nashville; Clifford Porter, Jr., JD, vice president for University Advancement at Norfolk State University; and Tykia Warden, vice president for development at the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies in Washington, D.C.

The VPUA Search Committee scheduled Monday July 10 through Wednesday, July 12 for candidates to visit Tallahassee to meet with President Larry Robinson, Ph.D., and various constituent groups. President Robinson is expected to announce the next VPUA by the end of July.

Before, moving to Nashville in November 2022, Foster served as assistant vice president for Institutional Advancement and University Relations at Clark Atlanta University (CAU). She holds a bachelor’s degree from CAU, a master’s from the University of Phoenix, and is pursuing a doctorate in higher education leadership at CAU.

Porter has been serving in his present role at NSU since 2020. Before that, he served in a similar role at Bethune-Cookman University for three years. Porter holds a law degree from Nova Southeastern University and a bachelor’s from Albany State University.

Warden earned a bachelor’s degree at Indiana University, Bloomington, a master’s degree at Bowie State University and is pursuing a doctorate in higher education administration at Northern Illinois University. Before assuming her current role in May 2022, Warden served as executive director of the San Mateo Community Colleges Foundation in California for six years. A detailed schedule will be publicized prior to each finalist candidate’s visit.