We know what FAMU President James Ammons thinks of the university's progress with fiscal affairs, and of looming budget cuts (see today's St. Petersburg Times story here). But what does he think of Gov. Charlie Crist's opposition to tuition hikes? Of FAMU's relationship with FSU at the often-conflicted engineering school? Of persistently low bar passage rates at the law school?

Yesterday's 45-minute interview with the St. Petersburg Times editorial board touched on all these issues, and then some. Here's a sampler:

On Crist and tuition: "At Florida A&M, we've got 78 percent of our students who are on need-based financial aid. That means that they're coming from families with limited resources. … I really applaud him (Crist) for the stance that he's taken on tuition from the context of students at Florida A&M."

On the engineering school: "This is a continued work in progress. But I tell you what – (FSU) President Wetherell and I have made a commitment that we're going to work together. We are going to try to put aside some of the history."

On FAMU's bar passage rates: The law students are "not doing as well as we want them to. … He (new law Dean LeRoy Pernell) and I have talked about it. He's hiring new faculty, bringing in his team and I think you're going to see over the next few years that bar-passage rate increase."

To see the full interview with Ammons, click here.

- Ron Matus, state education reporter