Florida A&M University President Larry Robinson resigned on Friday amid an investigation into a multimillion dollar donation blunder.
"I have made the decision to step down from the presidency at this great institution. As you can imagine, comes with many emotions - pride, joy, gratitude, some sadness, of course, but at the same time, hope and anticipation," Robinson wrote in a letter to the university.
The resignation comes months after Robinson announced a controversial $237 million donation from a Texas-based hemp farm that quickly unraveled. Days after announcing the gift during the May 4 graduation ceremony, the president said the donation had "ceased" according to the Tallahassee Democrat.
Robinson, who led the state's only public historically Black university for seven years, later took responsibility for not properly vetting the donor and the gift's legitimacy. Shawnta Friday-Stroud, vice president for university advancement, also resigned from her role shortly thereafter.
Al Lawson Jr., a former Florida congressman with ties to the university, told the Tallahassee Democrat that Robinson "did a great job of moving FAMU forward," but that the mishandled donation caused "the university, as well as the state of Florida, an embarrassment."
In addition to the donation debacle, the Florida Board of Governors recently threatened to eliminate poor-performing licensure programs at the university, including law, nursing, pharmacy and physical therapy.
During Robinson's tenure, the school achieved a top 100 ranking among U.S. News and World Report's national public universities and maintained the number one position for HBCUs for five consecutive years.
Despite his resignation as president, Robinson will return as a distinguished professor in the School of the Environment following a yearlong sabbatical.
