By David L. Snelling

Miami Gardens, Fla. – A Miami-Dade Circuit Court judge is expected to settle a dispute this week over who’s in charge of Florida Memorial University following the appointment of school President William McCormick.

In a hearing last week, Judge Javier Enriquez ordered the two sides to submit proposals addressing the legal standards so he could decide this week.

Ousted interim Board of Trustees Chair Brandon Dumas filed the lawsuit accusing current Board of Trustees Chairman Walt Weaherington, according to the school’s website, of running roughshod over the board.

At issue is whether Weaherington was authorized to call the meeting and vote to pick McCormick as the school’s 15th president last month, and that some trustee members were not involved.

In addition, Dumas claims he’s still chair of the board despite a letter from Weatherington removing him from the position on July 22 and again on August 14 for failure to meet his obligations and violating the Bylaws.

“It’s unfortunate that he continues to ignore his removal and unlawfully hold himself out as chairman,” Weatherington said in a statement.

However, Dumas claimed the presidential appointment vote was illegal because some trustee members including himself did not attend the meeting, and Weatherington was not authorized to call a vote because his term had expired.

“Let us be absolutely clear: this presidency was obtained illegally,” Dumas said in a statement. “The meeting that facilitated this alleged vote, which none of us attended, was never properly noticed to the board… and the action taken is in direct violation of our bylaws.

Weatherington said the appointment of President William McCormick was conducted legally and he was authorized to do so.

Dumas said the power struggle at the university could jeopardize the school’s governance and accreditation. He claimed he was officially named the chair in May 2025 after serving in an interim capacity.

Although Weahterington claimed that the vote was unanimous, Dumas said other board members were not involved, and they signed off on a letter disputing the decision. He said they include Dr. Mona Lisa Pinkney, Vice Chair; Deneshea Phelps Owens, Treasurer; Brittany McMillon, Secretary and National Alumni Association President; Councilman Reggie Leon; Rev. Bartholomew Banks; Rev. Dr. Marcus Davidson; and Charles George, Chairman Emeritus.

In a statement following the presidential appointment, Weatherington said McCormick was the perfect choice since he demonstrated leadership and developed camaraderie with faulty staff and students while serving as interim president for one year.

“The board made its decision based on the results of an evaluation conducted by an independent third-party evaluator,” he said. “The decision was based on Mr. McCormick’s outstanding performance over the past year and his unfailing commitment to the FMU community.”

For Dumas, he was removed from a university position eight years ago.

According to Florida Politics, in 2017, he was ousted as vice chancellor at Southern University over a scandal involving a leaked sex tape and internal disputes over campus governance that led to his dismissal.

Dumas was at the center of an investigation over his administrative practices and reports that sexually explicit Snapchat videos, later uploaded to a porn site, were circulating among alumni.

During a closed-door meeting the month before, when Board of Supervisors members voted to uphold then-President Ray Belton’s termination of Dumas, officials referenced the sex tape and testimony from the woman in the video, who told investigators that while she was a Southern University employee, her partner in the video was not.

The scandal placed Southern University, another HBCU in Louisiana, on an accreditation evaluation which could result in loss of federal funding.

Dumas filed a lawsuit challenging his termination but a judge dismissed his complaint.

McCormick was appointed interim president last year, replacing Dr. Jaffus Hardrick, who resigned due to health issues.

If the court upholds the board’s vote, McCormick would be the first ever alumni to become president in the school’s 146-year history.

“This is a special moment in my life, and I fully respect having the opportunity to pour back into my alma mater the same way it poured into me,” he shared on social media.

FMU alumni shared their thoughts on McCormick becoming the new president on social media.

“President McCormick, you’re the perfect Lion to lead the pack,” said Pam Porter.