FAMU Investiture Installs Johnson as FAMU’s 13th President, Charting a Course for Partnership, Research and Students-First Focus

Emotion swelled in the room. It was thick and palpable, as Florida A&M University formally installed Marva B. Johnson, J.D., as its 13th president. Held at 11 a.m. inside Lee Hall, the ceremony began with a nod to the University’s legacy, as Presidential Ambassadors carried portraits of former presidents into the auditorium.

Provost Allyson Watson, Ph.D., who served as emcee, welcomed an audience of faculty, staff, students, dignitaries, elected officials, and members of President Johnson’s family.

The occasion opened with the invocation, delivered by Florida State Senator Rosalind Osgood.

Chancellor Ray Rodrigues, SUS of Florida, (left) gave congratulatory remarks and Rosalind Osgood, senator of district 32, (far right) gave the invocation at Tuesday's investiture ceremony. (Photo by Jeff Adams)

“Oh God, our eternal creator, we thank you for this sacred moment. We come with gratitude and reverence today acknowledging, Father God, that every good and perfect gift comes from you,” Osgood prayed. “Today, we thank you for the life, the journey and the calling of Marva Johnson. We recognize that this moment was not by accident, God, but by your divine appointment.”

From there, the ceremony unfolded as both tribute and testimony.

Board of Trustees Chairman Deveron Gibbons shared remarks via video, affirming confidence in Johnson’s leadership and her readiness to guide the institution forward.

“She understands that FAMU’s mission has never been small. It is to educate. To elevate. To transform,” Gibbons shared. “As Chair of the Board of Trustees, she has our full confidence and our full support. We will continue to work together to ensure that Florida A&M University continues to rise, compete and operate at the pinnacle of excellence.”

The program continued as a reflection of the relationships and communities that have shaped President Johnson’s journey. Among those offering greetings was Albert D. Mosley, president of Bethune Cookman University, an institution long tied to FAMU through spirited competition, often fueled by alumni who love to debate about whose better on social media.

“I bring you warm greetings from our Board of Trustees, our faculty, our staff, and the entire Wildcat family, every one of whom asked me to convey one message,” said Mosley, pausing as the audience anticipated a rivalry-laced remark.

Instead, he spoke to the true foundation of their relationship:

“That one message is this, FAMU and BCU are family. We always have been. And we always will be.”

He continued, invoking the legacy of Mary McLeod Bethune and the significance of women’s leadership in this moment.

“Dr. Bethune worked tirelessly to ensure that women, and in particular, women of color, would ascend to roles like this,” he shared.

The investiture was not short of members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., who came out in support of their soror President Marva B. Johnson, J.D. (Photo by Jeff Adams)

Well wishes followed from across the political landscape, including Senator Ashley Moody, who emphasized both pride and partnership.

“It's my great pleasure to officially welcome President Marva Johnson as the 13th president of the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University. From the Oscars to the courtroom, from Wall Street to the boardroom, Rattlers are certainly everywhere, and they are succeeding,” Moody said. “Yes, I'm proud to report there are many right here on Capitol Hill. FAMU and its students are so fortunate to have President Johnson, a tireless advocate, a great leader, someone I am proud to call a friend.”

That national perspective was echoed by Chancellor Ray Rodrigues, who framed the moment within the broader landscape of higher education.

“Today is not only a significant moment for Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, but for the entire State University System of Florida. An investiture represents both continuity and progress. It is a time to honor the university’s legacy, celebrate the present, and look ahead to the future. It offers a glimpse into what is possible in the years to come. I am honored to join you in congratulating Marva Johnson as the 13th president of Florida A&M University,” he said.

But perhaps the most heartfelt moment came from the student perspective.

Student Government Association President Zayla Bryant delivered an emotional salute, marking one of her final formal appearances before graduation.

“There's a saying that some experiences do not just change you, but they reveal you. My time on the highest of seven those has been exactly that,” she said. “Through my journey, I have learned lessons that not only shaped my leadership, but sharpened my voice, strengthened my resolve, and defined the standard that I carry with myself today.”

Turning directly to President Johnson, Bryant expressed gratitude for mentorship and partnership.

Zayla Bryant, SGA president, gave a heartfelt address summarizing her experience on FAMU. (Photo by Jeff Adams)

“Thank you for opening doors I didn't even know existed. Thank you for advocating for me in rooms where my name needed to be spoken. And thank you for being a true partner on this hill. Someone who understood that the weight of leadership is not carried with just a position, but it is carried in purpose,” she said.

Bryant, whose voice began to tremble as she wiped tears from her eyes, charged everyone listening with the protection of FAMU’s legacy “as fiercely as you build its future.”

She closed with a personal note to the president.

“Thank you for being my first president, and I, yours. FAMU today, FAMU tomorrow, and FAMU forever,” she said.

From there, the ceremony transitioned into its focal point: the formal investiture.

Surrounded by her family: her husband Stephen Johnson; her mother Annette Brown; her father George Marvin Brown; her daughter Alexandria Bell; and her grandson Jackson Bell. For many in the audience, it was a first glimpse of the full circle behind her leadership – her tribe, her anchor, her living and breathing support system.  

Former FAMU presidents presented the ceremonial regalia, each piece carrying its own weight of history and responsibility, before Vice Chair and Trustee Michael White administered the oath of office.

Surrounded by her family, President Marva B. Johnson reflected on her humble beginnings, noting that she descends from a long line of farmers. (Photo by Jeff Adams)

“I, Marva B. Johnson, do solemnly affirm. That I will faithfully execute the duties of the office of the President of Florida A&M University. I take this obligation freely and without reservation. With a deep sense of honor and responsibility. And with a steadfast commitment. To the enduring excellence of Florida A&M University.”

With the oath complete, the ceremony shifted from installation to President Johnson’s intention.

In a speech that moved fluidly between history, responsibility and vision, she delivered an investiture address that framed her leadership as both a continuation of legacy, a call to action and request for partnership.

“We have had a time… My body and my soul have been nourished with great food, great fellowship, and prayer,” Johnson said, thanking those who participated in the week’s events.

She then moved from celebration to reflection, quoting the words of Frederick Douglass.

“Education means emancipation. It means light and liberty. It means the uplifting of the soul of man into the sunlight of freedom and dignity.”

Johnson then revisited 1887, when 15 students and two professors began building what would become the institution, despite uncertainty and systemic barriers.

“They were newly emancipated men and women… living in a state they did not fully own, on land they did not control, and a freedom that existed on paper, but had to be fought for every single day,” she stressed. “And yet they came… not because the world was ready for them, but because they were ready for the world.”

President Marva B. Johnson shared her gratitude for the responsibility of leading FAMU, as she detailed her vision for FAMU. (Photo by Jeff Adams)

From that beginning, Johnson connected the dots to FAMU’s future.

“This university is built for a world without borders.”

She emphasized the institution’s expanding reach and the faith that continues to fuel its progress.

“Faith… builds for a future it cannot see. Faith of this scale, institutional, communal, governmental, is not given freely. It is earned by character, confirmed by competence, and sustained by results,” she said, further noting that she does not take the confidence of her supporters for granted.

She then turned to identity and what it means to be FAMU. Highlighting FAMU’s top ranking and its long tradition of producing changemakers, Johnson underscored a tradition where students don’t just rise, they redefine what’s possible.

“We are the Marching 100 thunder on a Saturday afternoon… We are orange and green, bleeding through generations of families who came to the highest of seven hills and left changed forever.”

Of course, she added: “We bragg different, and there is no institution like us on Earth.”

Still, Johnson made clear that legacy alone is not the destination.

“The 15 did not sit still. They built, and so must we.”

She defined her presidency in a single word: ascent, pointing to a deliberate path toward Carnegie R1 status and expanded research impact.

At the center of that vision, she routinely returned to the students.

Mister and Miss FAMU Miles Howard and Edwina Fleuridor (Photo by Jeff Adams)

The audience was filled with future FAMU graduates in the making. (Photo by Jeff Adams)

“Every strategic initiative, every research investment, every federal relationship we pursue has one North Star, and that is, does it make life better for Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University students? That will be our guiding principle.”

She affirmed that everything that the administration does will be judged by one question, and that is, “does it help our students succeed?”

Johnson wanted people to know that they were not in the business of just enrolling students, but ensuring that they persist, graduate and achieve at a very high level.

She extended that vision outward, positioning FAMU as a partner in shaping the future.

“We come… not as recipients of opportunity, but as architects of it,” she said.

When others invest in FAMU, Johnson pointed out that they are investing in the transformation of American communities.

“So come build with us,” she urged.

President Marva B. Johnson, J.D. receives her chain symbolizing the formal transfer of leadership, trust, and authority. (Photo by Jeff Adams)

To alumni, her message was both invitation and expectation.

“As you find success, I invite you to reinvest… and to make sure that you’re providing access to the next generation.”

Reflecting on her early days as president, Johnson shared a personal moment.

“I was overwhelmed, not by the weight of the office… I was overwhelmed by your gratitude. I was overwhelmed with joy and inspired by each of you.”

And in her final charge, she distilled her leadership philosophy.

“Will this decision advance student success? That is the standard… And that is the standard of this presidency.”

With that, she closed the moment with a blessing and familiar phrase.

“May God bless the United States of America. May God bless the state of Florida. And may God bless the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, October 3rd, 1887. Whattttttttt.”

Lee Hall was packed wall-to-wall as guests, administrators, faculty, staff and students showed up in support of FAMU's 13th President. (Photo by Jeff Adams)

President Marva B. Johnson's mother, Annette Brown, gives a hello to the camera. (Photo by Jeff Adams)

After the investiture, a reception was held on the Quad where the waiting Marching "100" greeted President Marva B. Johnson, J.D., with their traditional sound. (Photo by Jeff Adams)
President Marva B. Johnson, J.D. poses for a moment with members of her administrative cabinet during the reception on the quad. (Photo by Jeff Adams)

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