'FAMU Deserves Better': HBCU 'Conned' Into Accepting Sham Of $237M Donation Of 'Worthless Stock'
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- čas přidán 9. 05. 2024
- Speculation and concern continue surrounding Florida A&M's multi-million dollar donation from Gregory Gerami and the Issac Batterson 7th Family Trust.
The check for the more than $237 million donation presented during this year's commencement has folks investigating the man who donated the funds.
The Board had a meeting on Thursday to discuss the contribution.
Jerell Blakeley penned this op-ed on Education News Flash: "For the Love of Money, has FAMU been fooled?"
Blakeley spoke with Roland Martin about what appears to be a massive sham.
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This is almost like checking your mailbox and receiving a letter from "Publisher's Clearing House" and foolishly believing that you have actually won something.
Yep you print your own giant check, then you call out the news media to take pictures and bring balloons.
😂🤣😂😂 Exactly
Maaaan….when I was a kid, I would see those and flip out…lol.
FACTS!!!!!😂😂😂😂
Strange you used that.
This scammer called me one morning.
Informed me that I had won Publish house and would be receiving I think 25.000 a weak.
However I called while PHC while on the phone with
I found out it was a scam
Embarrassing that our supposedly highly educated leadership didn't do their due diligence. 😢
I agree that the Board of Directors failed the Due Diligence Process. Spot On.
When one is MONEY hungry they overlook the essential.
The President needs to step down.
They had that money squandered lol
No, not really surprising at all. Educated doesn't neccessarily mean intelligent.
$237 million was the first red flag 🚩
Facts. Especially if it's a dude no one ever heard of.
Right
Someone needs to be fired!!!
Absolutely
Greed
Sure do, unfortunately
Facts let’s go
This is Embarrassing. No due diligence.
Greedy, and it backfired
@@flowforever9084They were probably rubbing their hands together in anticipation of getting their cut of the money.
Even basic vetting would have prevented this. Wtf.
As Malcolm X said: " Bamboozled, Hoodwinked & Led astray.
Run amok!
They wasn't conned, they didn't do their job! Who in their right mind accept that type of money without double and triple checking to see if it's legit. No accountability.
Not one person on campus - students, teachers, staff either .
Facts
some random N that nobody knows drops a 237 million donation..FAMU: ooooh sounds legit
Even if they took accountability, The man is still in the wrong and the culprit.
He made the black administration look foolish! Where is the oversight and due diligence? Had the staff skinnin and grinning like fools!
HBCU bag due diligence should not be in the same sentence!
No the black administration made themselves look foolish all money ain’t good money what if they started spending money that they didn’t have? Would have put them in a deep deficit. Leadership DID NOT do its due diligence AND to top it off the head of SBI also approved it! Is this what they are teaching their business student majors?
This is how we lose control of our institutions. Plain recklessness.🤦🏾♀️
They did that to themselves baby.
More of Hillary’s “college educated voters”…
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂
They made themselves look like fools. They obviously have never heard "if it sounds too good to be true...."
Y'all know that someone needs to be removed from their position at FAMU. Someone royally screwed up big time.
Someone definitely needs to be fired for allowing this sham
Wow SMH how does this happen? Poor leadership in many of our HBCU's
Same in many Black folk managed public s hools
Y'all kill me. Before people on this channel were cryng that Black people cant appreciate the gift. LMAO NOW do you see why due diligence is important??????
This does not only happen at HBCU's.
@ATLIEN333
Leadership at HBCU’s are garbage!
It ain’t nothing the projects higher learning!
Not following the correct procedure. When multiple institutions said no to this guy that was a red flag, including Miles college.
So if this was fraudulently done then FAMU should seek criminal charges. Also, the incompetence and laziness of FAMU's administration for not fully vetting this is derelict of duty and everyone associated with this should be held accountable
I didn't know being the victim of a crime is a crime.
@xman9190 No, the scammer is the criminal, going to prison. While the school administration should be fired and banned from working in their positions.
Democratic mind. It is dereliction.
What did Germani take from FAMU?
@@xman9190Malfeasance and fiscal irresponsibility is a crime.
FAMU has been duped and the president needs to be held accountable. He should resign immediately. Someone didn't do their homework, background check on Gregory Gerami.
FAMU is one of the worst HBCU’s!
I went there for a semester and joined the Air Force shortly after!
It’s the best decision I made in life!
@kelj4517 LIES! Maybe you just didn't do well at FAMU.
@blynette0831
No lies here! I was on scholarship and FAMU failed me! That school was a food stamp ratchet university! I joined the military and once I got out I got a job as a government employee!
@@blynette0831I attended AND later taught at an HBCU. They are raggedy, poorly run, and basically money machines for the people who are able to finagle their way into leadership positions. I warned my niece before she attended an HBCU and she learned her lesson as well. Most HBCUs are still run as if they are stuck back in the 60s. The campuses are raggedy, no resources and the students live as if they are in a third world country. I would never s help anyone in my family go to an HBCU .
@@sk8queen So like 90% of colleges lol
If tasked with the responsibility, FAMU' s class of 2024 business students could have done a better job of vetting that foolishness!!
They should have when they heard who the speaker was. They sat around like dumb rocks like the board did . That goes for the other professors and staff too. All those folks on that campus and no one took the time to do a simple internet search.
You may think!!
Absolutely! Looks bad for SBI students, they have so many company’s that recruit SBI students for their internships I hope this doesn’t impact them.
Thinking similarly. Did anyone in economics department voice concerns and got shut down?
Great Question!!
He's wearing a mask , he didn't want to yall to see those lying words coming out of his mouth !
President Larry Robinson MUST resign NOW!
Why? He's the target of a scammer, he needs to sue the fruity pebbles guy.
@@camila.sweetlipzHe should have vetted the donor BEFORE accepting this “money” and even announcing it at commencement. THIS is the issue.
Agreed the students need to speak up! This is absolutely ridiculous. And all those who approved it! What an embarrassment the students should have a say in who their leader is and LARRY ain’t it oh and fix your financial aid process! Significantly delayed disbursements, wrong year distribution, no audit process systems dont work together.
😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂😂They heard $$$$$$ and went nuts. Boule got issues with no integrity . Do you VET folks😂😂😂😂 I guess not😂😂😂😂 Boule maddness.
Has to
Gives a whole new meaning to fake it before you make it.
Fake it until you make it? Dude didn't make it. Maybe he'll give them an I Owe YOU and make it up if his company ever goes public and becomes worth the $
It must be an organization backed by Donald the BINO (Billionaire In Name Only)😂
In this new crypto economy...this will become the norm, sadly.
Fire the Person that approved this scam!
I agree that the young man needs help. It is mental health awareness month.🙏🏾 FAMU must do better.
So FAMU made fools of themselves....Dam ...
Always
FAMU never ceases to amaze me 🤦🏽♀️. It’s always something crazy.
Football is everything.
@@secularguildportalYet the players are sharing shoes and helmets…
Dumb and incompetent
I was there and I didn't understand how he spoke no well wishes to the graduates, he just told the president to buckle up, gave him a buckle, then presented check, no speech was given just the donation. the preacher who prayed gave more encouraging words.
I knew it. This whole thing sounded sus from the start. Smh.
so is he nuts he did the same thing at another school, why would they not vet his gift?
Because if they were going to get the money THEY DONT GIVE A PHUCK WHERE IT COMES FROM.
multiple schools (University of Texas at Austin, Miles College, and Coast Carolina)
It literally took 2 minutes to Google this guy's name and read the article about his fraud attempt at CCU.
2 minutes and a Google search
WoW! 😯This is just a damn shame!🤦♀️
@@None-ef6nf frfr!🤦♀️🙄
DAMN!
So he doesn't have $237.00 to donate
What about $2.37
Nope… not a pot to p!ss in or window to throw it out of…
@@sk8queenexactly probably $-.23 in the bank!!!!! 🤦🏾♀️
Thank God for this young man being brave enough to appear on Roland Martin's Show to expose this fraud.
Bro WTF...dude is wearing a dollar store mask and a cheap suit while making a 237 million dollar donation and yall didn't think there was a problem? Wow. Everybody in that room gotta go.
@ignaciofuentes2642: Please listen up. Wealthy people don't wear their wealth but US! Therefore your point makes no sense. This man isn't totally busted like Roland makes him out to be. Anybody can get us off of our a
Square with how people present something to us
My husband and I watched this ceremony as our nephew graduated that afternoon. We both thought the speaker was a bit off and when they provided the check we both looked at one another in disbelief! We kept asking, who is this guy and why have we never heard of him before? So glad you all are shedding some more light on this.
They heard they was receiving 270mill.. and became blind n death..
You mean “deaf” ?
Correction 237 million!
Not $270M it was always "Stock.
@@babytoshiro7014 yeah I didn't pay attention to the exact amount at 1st, it's supposed to b 237 mil.. and yea stocx but it's f'd up overall to expect something and find out it's fraud
@@escapeearth2327 seems like they went to school at FAMU
Shouldn't that guy be arrested for faking something like this?
Yes
I wish.
Actually, he should be hired to work on Trump's legal team.
For what? No money was given or taken … He just lied .
Transferring non existent stock certificates could be considered wire fraud. Idk
OMG, this is so embarrassing on so many levels. Common sense would tell you if this cat is so rich how come no one has heard of him.
I was hoping this story wasn’t true. Unfortunately, it is true. It’s embarrassing, disgraceful, and inexcusable. What message is this sending to the FAMU students? Heads must fall.
It just makes them look like a non serious University. Good for them, FAMU still has at least some clout in the Florida black community. And one of the top HBCUs so they will survive.
Whats scary they signed a legal, binding NDA with a scam artist. So if they do that no telling what else they doing.
Exactly! This is absolutely insane fr!😱
Exactly! They need to be audited asap!
You can talk if criminal activity was committed.
Greed is how they got caught up in this HOAX
Or desperation.
Yep
SMH. Raising funds is essential to the existence of any higher institution of learning.
That guy was not the only one that should be investigated and charged because a lot of people are guilty. What a disgrace!!
They allowed themselves to be hooded winked by a scammer. Educated and professionals! Wow!😮
Education and common sense are not one and the same. All involved in approving this need to GO!
The man claimed to own 114 acres of land to grow hemp but he doesn't even have a license to grow hemp.
...Hemp is not Pot....
They weren’t conned into anything. They should have done their due diligence and checked this fraud out first!
They need to put the FAMU president on ice.
Roland, let the man talk!!!!
Exactly! 💯I'm like wth is wrong with him? He does this often and it's irritating as heck!🙄🙄🙄
Right!
I thought I was the only one. 😂😂
This explains why black media wasn’t invited to the initial announcement. FAMU was basically bitcoined.
Even Bitcoin would’ve been a better gift or investment. At least its market value isn’t zero.
More like bitconned.
The market value being zero just means it’s a private company and hasn’t been assessed yet. For all we know it could have value. But no one has ever heard of it so chances are slim lol.
@@can72287 one can infer or assess the value of private companies if they have tangible assets and certain intangible assets. Same if they are an industry leader In an area where there are publicly traded comparables.
@@NightMoonling lol
THAT president needs to volunteer to step down NOW!!!😮
Not just the president
A lot of people are missing the point. FAMU has a hemp license! They needed a company to work through. The valuation of the product may very well amount to 200 million. Get the picture now!
We need to learn to shut up sometime and let things develop.
@@ltellis036there is no company!
@@ltellis036I'm not prevy to that info. Would you mind explaining? I'm truly interested in what you are bringing to light
@@ltellis036the point is that Gregory just started his "business" in 2021. There's no way for it to have amassed a billion dollars for him to be able to donate that amount of money so quickly. He was running a scam. People will believe anything but the research.
Total embarrassment!! FAMU should be ashamed for the laziness of their administration
Who should be ashamed are FAMU (or any HBCU) alumni that have so much to say on this, but are themselves not financially committed to their Alma mater.
@@ltellis036 You hush! This is a failure by the lazy FAMU administration!!! Our Board of Directors failed the Due Diligence Process. A COMPLETE MESS!
What happened to waiting until the check clears?🤔🤫
There was never a check. It was stocks.
This is embarrassing as hell.
Heads are going to roll!!!
😊
@@ra15899550
It should
😂 it is on so many levels. And the guy seemed so off as well.
I noticed that the too. During the recorded video of the signing something did seem a bit off about him… it was his mannerisms in relation to everyone else in the room.
Come on FAMU!
We are known to fall for almost anything. We must do better and research before we take anyone’s word on
Ok Roland Martin you're not listening to your own guest. He stated several times he went to Howard...Take a breath. I will say he's been on your show about something else and he's very articulate and intelligent young man.
Agree. Please take a breath, calm down, respectfully lower your voice. Trust me we can still enjoy this conversation without a combative nature. I love you but it’s off putting.
They saw them dollar signs$$$$$$$$ and they were thinking about their cut. That’s why they went for the NDA.
Not to absolve the president and the university of guilt, but its just another reminder of how underfunded our hbcus are. Again. Not an excuse to fail to do their due diligence in vetting this fool!
Our people can be so stupid sometimes. Constantly easily blinded by dollar signs. How does an entire university not know?
Don't put this on Black people. There were plenty of Black folks who sounded the alarm. It was isolated to these particular people, and it's not because they're Black.
Terribly disappointing for the FAMU family.
I like Roland Martin's shows. His show covers news that other networks never report.
Thank you for your reporting, may we all embrace the lessons learned and be better
This story is making me sick on my stomach 🤢! This sounds like a low budget Scam!
FAMU needs to reevaluate and come up with a new system to vet these donations. Anyone can get scammed but this one was too easy not to catch. How do all these board members go along with this, unless the president override everyone elses concerns.
Exactly, how does a 30 year old have $237 million to donate? How does that not raise red flags?? Smh.
If it Smells like it... Then you don't touch it... We got people at FAMU with more degrees than common sense!
Well damn did he created this just to embarrass the university and after the first university declined it that should have been a red flag.
This is the same BS a guy named Brian Davis tried when he said he was gonna buy the Commanders for 7.5 billion! 😂
Kind of sort of Both are scumbags but Davis phucked over a lot of people by taking investors money and spending it instead of putting the money into the projects he told them about. This was a fake donation so I’m not sure if people lost money on this it’s just a really sinister thing to do. This shit though happens very very often.
Best show on tv is a series called AMERICAN GREED that a series EVERYBODY should watch you will see shit that your like HOW THE PHUCK DID THEY PULL THIS OFF. It’s cases like WOLF OF WALLSTREET shit like that but even worse
Fire fest and Ja Rule
As a rattler alum this is beyond embarrassing it’s been past time for Dr. Robinson to go.
He needs to go for signing the NDA and not telling the Board alone!
Anytime someone keeps saying. "I am not picking on FAMU" mean they are picking on you. FAMU's president needs to step down to save the schools face and take ownership of this fiasco. But I know that will not happen. So the board needs to get rid of him and replace him with the Vice President if that person is deemed worthy. Man up and fall on the sword my brother.
And he promoted himself to be a future Commencement Speaker! SMH.
Greedy
I don’t think he was picking on them. Just calling a spade a spade.
Several million shares of nothing:
237 million x 0 = Zero
It's almost like he wanted to make HBCUs look foolish.
What happened to the due diligence?
What happened to the oversight.
This is beyond embarrassing.
Mission accomplished
He did this to two white schools as well and they didn’t fall for it.
You don’t make that kind of announcement without checking the funds and verification details. 🤦🏽♂️✌🏾✊🏿💯
Absolutely!!!👏👏👏
Wym? That’s not the problem. They received the stock…that’s why they thought it was real.
They just don’t know/aren’t able to detirmine the worth of the stock. Cuz the stock is in a private company. The problem is that they won’t have anyone to buy the stock because no one is going to buy it based on a private company with no prospects and that’s not “vetted”. Since they aren’t Public it’s not like they can go to the NYSE or Nasdaq.
Now if “company” goes public or otherwise blows up….then they’ll be ok. But that’s not likely.
@@can72287 This is what happens when you are more concerned about making a splash than having facts. This could have been avoided by asking questions and doing their homework. This is embarrassing on so many levels.
This is about a debacle at Florida A&M not all HBCU’s. Knock it off.
Sounds like a TRUMP BUSINESS DEAL TO ME!!!!!!!
Trump had nothing to do with this. This is classic and common black on black victimization. Stick to the facts!
Sounds like Biden sending $200 Billion to UKRAINE
TDS , can't you racist think of anything other than Trump .
You wrong only because trump would have funneled the money back to a charity in his name he super crooked.
My thoughts exactly... it's a shitty deal, look for an orange stain!
This is Crazy! People have lost their minds!
EVERYDAY...I am amazed and shocked at the crookedness of people and institutions these days.
Who rushed to celebrate this before verification?! 😅
FAMU did.
Roland Martin will you please let your guest speak without interruption!!! My God this is annoying at the highest level. If you are going to ask questions and answer those questions or comment then there is no need to invite any guest. Just do the program solo. Geesh.
👏👏👏
I hate to agree but you are correct
Few people understand how to really interview
Totally agree. It’s always interruption and shouting
I feel the same way, that's why i hardly listen to him.
He tried the same thing with Coastal Carolina University.
And UT of Austin
Dr. Carr is happy to see a former student.
These HBCU's need to start investigating people like that before they give money. This is a joke.
Jerell, thanks for bringing this story to the light.🙏🏽
...The Question is ...WHY?.....Why would a Black Man Want to do This to a Small Black University?
It was black people who put other people on slave ships. Before that for 1,400 years black people sold black people by the millions to north african arabs. These are cold blooded and easily verifiable facts. Of course, it was a black person trying to scam another black.
Something tells me that it’s going to get worse. Like it wasn’t exactly a gift. Something along the lines of the exchange of land for this “money”.
Clout. Same reason he did it the last time
Because he’s a con.
That’s my question. What’s his grift? If it was just the money; ok an embarrassment but no harm no foul…but like someone said; maybe there’s more to the story.
Ftr, it’s possible the stock is worth something. It’s just a private company and no one really knows the value of the company. So if the company ends up valuable then the stock will have value. It’s just that most people don’t think the company is that valuable.
Good job on Roland For Finding this Suspicious from the Start
First thing I thought when I heard about the stock donation was dump that stock!
The stock has no value so in this case even that would not make a difference.
30 minutes from my hometown Thomasville GA.....
WE Love FAMU
And Albany State University is 45 minutes in the other direction. We know the black belt down there lol.
Damn, I was hoping that the check was legit.
Excuse me, Howard University had P. Diddy speak one year. in my opinion he was not qualified to have been among the other esteemed speakers.
👏💯
Not to mention what just came out about him. Smh.
The lack of due diligence in accepting it (openly and infront of the media) and to now have to back peddle & retract the acceptance. That is typical HBCU administrative/leadership INCOMPETENCE 101. SMH!
How can the president act without the bod?
Im sure they were spending that money before the check even cleared! Thats what happens when you get too greedy
Embarrassing and shameful.
This is such a black eye on the school. FAMU is an institution of higher learning. As a potential student why would I select FAMU for college, if they can be scammed so easily. Why should I trust you to educate me when you do not have an educated leader or leaders with the bare minimum of intuitive common sense. It took me 10 sec to say something don’t sound right. A young 36 BM give away $237M in one lump sum who is not a billionaire…mmmmmh. No ma’am no maam
Seriously. This is beyond unbelievable. I can’t wrap my head around how these people were this gullible….let me stop sugarcoating it. How they were this stupid.
This was probably done intentionally! Unforgivable!
Wow, that’s seriously crazy. When I first heard about the endowment I shook my head and wondered how was it possible from such an unknown person? It’s sad that university was played like that.
I can think of a certain former president who was ordered to pay a $450 million dollar penalty for "overvaluing' his assets. In that case, the assets were real, the assets were appraised by banks, and the assets secured loans that were repaid. Gerami just pulled a number of out of his ass to generate marketing at FAMU's expense.
It's called DUE DILIGENCE FAMU!!! SMH Heads need to roll for this.
I can't believe FAMU was scammed like this.
The university president should be fired.
All their saw was $$$ signs and nothing else mattered.
Any student who failed to provide proof of source and proper citation would have been admonished. That a college board failed to do due diligence is disgraceful.
The blind leading the blind 🤣
Word of advice Roland keep a cup of water next to you we tired of you hacking up fur balls 😂
😂😂😂
Throat spray works, too
So help me, when heard and saw i thought something was weird with this guy.
All that glitters is not gold.
Roland - Bro please let the man speak. Geesh 🙂
This is a reflection of most HBCU’s leadership. No real business acumen or real business experience. The shift from education to selling education as a business is what most our HBCU’s haven’t understood. I’ve seen it first hand working at three HBCU’s in leadership positions.
Famu is getting exactly what it deserves. They’ll probably have Jay Morrison speak next year.
Who was in charge of this mess at famu
Did they even check the company website? The website even looks funny and looks like a kid did it.
He has multiple LinkedIn pages as well. Definitely not a wealthy businessman.
Dame! I was really hoping the money was legit. How can a young black man set out to humiliate an HBCU like this.
What are his reasons?
The President did not inform the Board and allowed the university to be embarrassed. He should be fired. The Board should be right behind.
I feel sorry for the students and alumni.
Why would fire the board? They didn't know about this. OMG