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Dr. Lawrence M. Drake II, the former interim president of Bethune-Cookman involved in the 2023 controversy with Ed Reed, is making headlines once again in his new role at Albany State University. Drake is currently serving as the interim president of Albany State following the departure of former president Marion Ross Fedrick.
Drake was at the center of a tumultuous Spring 2023 semester at Bethune-Cookman University that saw Ed Reed have negotiations over his contract as head coach of the football team cease following an expletive-filled tirade over the conditions of the school weeks after the announcement of his pending hire. Shortly after Reed's departure from the institution, students protested over unsafe living conditions on campus.
As the search for a new permanent leader continues, alumni have expressed their preference for a fresh perspective and have indicated that they do not wish for Drake to be selected as the permanent university president.
A petition started by the group ASU Golden Rams Alumni & Supporters on Change.org has elicited over 550+ signatures at the time of this writing urging the Georgia Board of Regents to not consider Drake and that the new president be selected through a rigorous search committee process.
“We desire this missive to function as a formal request that our next president be rigorously selected through the national search committee and that the current interim president, Dr. Lawrence M. Drake II, not be considered for the position,” the petition boldly outlined.
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“While Dr. Lawrence M. Drake has served in various roles, his term as interim president (2022-2023) at Bethune-Cookman University (Daytona Beach, Florida) highlights his lack of quality leadership experience in higher education. His unsteady leadership and questionable character resulted in deleterious media attention. Also, his poor response to the October 19, 2024, on-campus shooting at Albany State University lacked the vigor, resolve, and comprehensiveness to meet this crucial matter and moment,” the petitioners also said.
The last two full-time presidents of Albany State, Art Dunning (2015-2018) and Marion Fedrick (2018-2024), both began their roles as interim presidents before being officially appointed to the position. The petition pushes for candidates with diverse higher education experiences to be considered for the position.
“We expect the national search committee and Board of Regents to identify an eminently qualified, sought-after, donor-centered, faculty-experienced leader to steward our revered university. Unfortunately, during the past two presidential selections, we have not been able to benefit from the honest fruits of a national search committee, which is the vehicle necessary to yield a president an overwhelming majority of the students, faculty, staff, alumni, donors, and community can be genuinely proud to see in the position.”
Albany State remains one of two public HBCUs in the state of Georgia that have yet to appoint a permanent president. Savannah State University is also in the process of finding its next leader following Kimberly Ballard-Washington's departure in 2023. In the interim, Cynthia Robinson Alexander has been serving as president.
