FAMU Names Donald Palm New Executive Vice President/Chief Operating Officer

Florida A&M University (FAMU) President Larry Robinson, Ph.D., has announced Donald E.  Palm, Ph.D., as the next chief operating officer/executive vice president. Palm, who left FAMU in 2016, is executive vice president/provost at Virginia State University (VSU) in Petersburg, Virginia. He is scheduled to begin work at FAMU on August 14.

Palm succeeds outgoing COO/EVP Maurice Edington, Ph.D., who is leaving to be the next president of the University of the District of Columbia (UDC). As COO/EVP, Palm will report directly to President Robinson.

“I am pleased to welcome Dr. Donald Palm back to FAMU at this exciting time.  He did great work previously at FAMU and even more impressive work while away,” Robinson said. “I look forward to working closely with him to continue our positive momentum in student success and operational outcomes, and the Florida Board of Governors’ performance funding metrics as we march to the top 100 national public universities.”

Robinson created the COO/EVP role in December 2022 as part of an administrative restructuring to foster operational excellence. The COO is charged with guiding strategy for vice presidents and other senior administrators to improve outcomes on key performance indicators and achieve operational excellence throughout the University.

Palm said he is excited to be returning to FAMU in this leadership role.

“Florida A&M University has ascended to the top among Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) and is well on its way to the top 100 national public universities,” said Palm.  “I look forward to working with President Robinson and the entire FAMU community on achieving the goals as outlined in the new strategic plan to get there. FAMU is ‘Boldly Striking’ in elevating excellence, and I’m happy to join the team and play a role in that effort.”

A Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, native, Palm earned his bachelor’s degree at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania and completed a doctorate in pharmacology at Penn State University. He conducted postdoctoral research in the Department of Neurosurgery and Neuroscience at Brown University   in Providence, Rhode Island.

Prior to assuming the role of VSU’s provost, Palm was associate provost for Undergraduate Studies at FAMU.  He was also a tenured professor in the FAMU College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Institute of Public Health, a status he will resume pending the Board of Trustees approval, Robinson said.