Fred Gainous

Fred Gainous
9th President of Florida A&M University
In office
2002–2004
Preceded byHenry Lewis III, Frederick S. Humphries
Succeeded byCastell V. Bryant, James H. Ammons
Personal details
Born (1947-07-06) July 6, 1947 (age 77)
Tallahassee, Florida
Residence(s)Tallahassee, Florida
Alma mater

Fred Jerome Gainous is an American academic administrator. He was the 9th president of Florida A&M University, serving from 2002 until 2004. He also served as chancellor of Alabama's community college system from 1988 until 2002.

Early life and education

Gainous was born on July 6, 1947, in Tallahassee, Florida, where he attended Lincoln High School.[1] He received his bachelor's degree from Florida A&M University in 1969. After two years teaching high school, he went on for his master's degree at the University of Florida, which he received in agricultural education in 1972.[1][2] He continued to a doctorate in education from the same institution, which he received in 1975 with a thesis titled The role of the county adult education administrator in Florida.[1][2]

Career

Gainous was briefly an associate commissioner at the Kansas State Department of Education, and an associate vice president at St. Petersburg College. He then served as the chancellor of the Alabama College System's Department of Postsecondary Education (covering community and junior colleges) from 1988 to 2002.[2][3]

Gainous returned to Florida A&M University in the role of university president in 2002.[4] After about two years, however, the university board of trustees voted to fire him, citing financial troubles,[5] mismanagement of a move of the football program to NCAA Division I-A, and other problems.[2][3][6][7]

References

  1. ^ a b c Gainous, Fred Jerome. "Biographical Sketch". The role of the county adult education administrator in Florida (PhD thesis). University of Florida. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  2. ^ a b c d Kumar, Anita (September 29, 2004). "FAMU trustees vote to fire president". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  3. ^ a b Kumar, Anita (May 18, 2002). "New FAMU president journeys home". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  4. ^ "FAMU Presidents". Florida A&M University. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  5. ^ Kumar, Anita (November 30, 2003). "Financial turmoil racks FAMU". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  6. ^ Powell, Robert Andrew (October 9, 2004). "Florida A&M Tries to Recover From Failed Bid". The New York Times. Retrieved March 30, 2023.
  7. ^ Basinger, Julianne (September 30, 2004). "Florida A&M Fires Its President, Citing 2 Years of Missteps, Mismanagement, and Miscalculation". The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved March 30, 2023.