- South Florida's key corporations and organizations join in week of celebration ""

(BLACK PR WIRE) --MIAMI GARDENS, FL (February 1, 2012) -- Florida Memorial University’s (FMU) new era of transformative leadership is well under way, and its next chapter is poised to officially begin. February marks the formal inauguration of Henry Lewis, III, Pharm.D., as the university’s 12th president. This historic occasion will be celebrated with a week of fanfare and reverence. The South Florida community is invited to join FMU from February 6 – 11, 2012, for celebratory and fundraising events. The week’s theme is “Keeping the Promise: Advancing from Good to Great!”

“Since assuming the presidency, Dr. Lewis has outlined and executed a fresh direction for our institution’s future,” said Dr. Adriene Wright, vice president for institutional advancement at FMU. “His ambitious vision includes the entire community. Armed with a renewed vision and energetic leadership team, Dr. Lewis is steering the university on to the local, national and international stage.”

President Lewis assumed office as FMU’s president February 1, 2011. Lewis joins the institution with decades of experience in higher education administration success, including a distinguished 15-year tenure as dean of the College of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences at Florida A&M University (FAMU). Milestones include increasing his former school’s endowment from $1 million to more than $22 million, and helping educate more than 25 percent of the nation’s African-American pharmacists.

“When we began a national search for a new president, we were looking for transformative leadership that could help us move this university to the next level,” said Charles George, chairman of the FMU Board of Trustees. “We could not be more pleased to have Dr. Lewis at Florida Memorial at this time. He is the right leader for this moment in Florida Memorial’s history.”

President Lewis is an accomplished biomedical researcher with a focus on sickle cell anemia. U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius recently appointed him to the Board of Regents of the National Library of Medicine for the National Institutes of Health. Under Lewis’ leadership, FMU expanded internationally securing educational exchange partnerships with universities and governments in the Bahamas, Russia, Senegal, Ghana and China.

Keynote events of the president’s inaugural festivities include:

President’s Installation Ceremony
Date: Thursday, February 9
Time: 10 a.m.
Location: James L. Knight Center
Downtown Miami
Cost: FREE ticketed event

President’s Inauguration Gala
Date: Thursday, February 9
Time: 7 p.m.
Location: Doral Golf Resort & Spa
4400 N.W. 87th Avenue
Miami, Florida 33178
Cost: $150 per person
Attire: Formal (black tie)

The President’s Golf Tournament
Date: Friday, February 10
Time: 8 a.m.
Location: Doral Golf Resort & Spa
4400 N.W. 87th Avenue
Miami, Florida 33178
Cost: $200 per player
$725 for a foursome

“We invite the entire South Florida business and philanthropic community to join the prestigious financial partners supporting Dr. Lewis' vision for our university and our community,” continued Dr. Wright. “Sponsorship levels range from $1,500 to $100,000, providing a wealth of partnership opportunities and supporting scholarships and other community priorities.”

For sponsorship opportunities and a complete listing of events for the president’s inaugural festivities, please visit the FMU website at www.fmuniv.edu, or contact the Office of Institutional Advancement at (305) 626-3609. For media inquiries contact Zachary Rinkins at (305) 626-3624.

About Florida Memorial University:

Located in the City of Miami Gardens, Florida Memorial University is a private, historically Black institution offering 42 undergraduate degree programs and 4 graduate degree programs to a culturally diverse student body. Since its inception in 1879, the University has upheld a commitment to providing a solid foundation for thousands of young people and opening doors to educational opportunities that may have otherwise been closed to them. As South Florida’s only Historically Black College or University (HBCU), it is widely recognized for being the birthplace of the Negro National Anthem, “Lift Ev’ry Voice and Sing” and the home of student Barrington Irving, Jr., the first pilot of African descent and youngest pilot ever to fly solo around the world. Dr. Henry Lewis, III, PharmD, is the university’s twelfth president. For more information, please contact the Office of Public Affairs at (305) 626-3624. You can support FMU by visiting www.fmuniv.edu.