FAMU Holds Virtual Townhall to Discuss Storm Recovery and Operations

Florida A&M University  (FAMU) continues its cleanup and repairs, even as more storms are projected  to visit the area.

President Larry Robinson, Ph.D., and senior administration officials held a virtual townhall to update faculty, staff, students and other stakeholders on the progress of recovery efforts and the resumption of operations on campus.

“We have a really great team of experts who are working on this in collaboration with city, county, and state officials,” Robinson said during the townhall. “A lot of people have reached out to us, and we really appreciate them. Once again, we beg your patience. It’s going to take us a few days to get back to our feet, but we are making amazing progress.”

Crews and contractors are removing trees,  clearing debris and repairing damaged roofs. The main entrance near Palmer Avenue has been cleaned, and the City of Tallahassee Utilities is replacing damaged utility lines and poles.

Electricity has been restored to the campus and the Rattle Pointe Apartments. But as the recovery continues, University officials are keeping an eye on the weather.

According to the National Weather Service-Tallahassee, a fairly strong storm system is expected to bring heavy rains and winds to the Leon County area starting Monday night  into Tuesday.

The system is expected to bring between 2-4 inches of rainfall, but some areas could see as much as 4 to 8 inches. Trees weakened by the earlier storm could be vulnerable high winds and rain.

The weather system is expected to bring 3-5 inches of rainfall to the Crestview area beginning as early as Monday afternoon. The Durell Peaden Jr.  Rural Pharmacy Education Campus in Crestview will have delayed start tomorrow. The dean will monitor weather conditions and adjust accordingly. 

On Friday, FAMU was in the path of a EF2 tornado with winds of 111-135 mph. WeatherSTEM registered a wind gust of 84 miles per hour on the Tallahassee campus.

Due to the continuing clean-up and damage assessment, Robinson, reiterated that it’s still unsafe for non-essential faculty, students and staff to come to campus. They are urged to continue working remotely until further notice. Other Professional Service (OPS) employees are permitted to work at the authorization of their supervisor.

Monday, May 13 marks the start of Summer A and C sessions. Classes will be conducted via remote using the Canvas Learning Management System May 13-17 while the campus cleanup is underway.  Students are advised to contact their course instructors for more details. The add-drop period has been extended to Monday, May 20.

FAMU-FSU College of Engineering courses will be offered in person and online to accommodate students without campus housing due to the recent storm, and thereby excused to attend class remotely.

The College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Public Health P4 Comprehensive Exam will be administered on Monday, May 13. Staff will send exam site details directly to test takers.

FAMU Developmental Research School (DRS) will re-open on Monday. The Educational Research Center for Child Development’s (ERCCD) building was damaged and the facility will be closed until further notice.

Students living on campus have been relocated to the Palmetto Phase III Apartments. The dining schedule for this week is brunch 11 a.m to 2 p.m. and dinner from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m.