Francis Marion University’s African-American Faculty and Staff Coalition (AAFSC) recently celebrated 25 years of advancing student success through scholarship support during its annual event held at the FMU Performing Arts Center in downtown Florence on March 12.
Founded in 1995, the AAFSC was established to enhance cultural awareness and promote professional development and well-being among faculty, staff, and students. Over the past quarter century, the Coalition, in partnership with FMU, has created twelve named scholarships, supporting more than 200 students.
During the event, Ann Williams, registrar at FMU, received the AAFSC Diversity Award. The award, presented annually, recognizes an individual who has demonstrated a strong commitment to fostering a culture of belonging on campus and beyond.
Williams, a two-time FMU graduate, earned her Bachelor of Business Administration in 2003 and her Master of Business Administration in 2017. She began her career at the university in 1995 in mail services and has held several roles, including mail services supervisor and student services counselor, before being named registrar in 2018.
The event’s keynote address was delivered by Bishop Michael A. Blue, a distinguished alumnus and longtime educator. Blue holds a Bachelor of Arts in English from FMU. He spent 25 years in Marion County Schools as a high school English and chorus teacher and founded Door of Hope Christian Church in Marion in 1992. Since 2000, he has presided over the Christian Covenant Fellowship Ministries.
During the program, FMU President Fred Carter announced the establishment of the LaTasha Brand Ford Scholarship. Ford, a 2002 graduate of FMU, currently serves as the university’s vice president for student life.
Carter also emphasized the distinctive partnership between the university and the Coalition.
“No other university in South Carolina has a partnership quite like ours,” said Carter. “What began as a support group has grown into a powerful advocacy organization and one of our premiere leadership forums. As we mark 25 years of mutual support, we can rejoice in what has been accomplished and the lives that have been changed.”
