EMERGING LEADER - JANUARY 2008: PHILLIP AGNEW

Phillip B. Agnew is a senior business administration student at Florida A&M University.  He is the immediate past Student Body President/ University Trustee.  He is also a member of numerous civic and service organizations.  Phillip was born on June 22, 1985 in Blue Island, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago.  His parents instilled him an unwavering sense of morality and work ethic and strived to cultivate a sound sense of determination and tenacity in Phillip at a young age.  Phillip is dedicated to Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University and all Historical Black Colleges and Universities.  He feels that he is enormously blessed and that his work for the University is not in vain.  He is a strong believer in the principle of Sankofa and feels that each one of us embodies the legacy of our great institution and it is our duty to never leave it lacking.  Phillip is passionate about FAMU and believes that the preservation of our national treasure will be decided by our unwavering dedication to its survival.

Over the years, Phillip has studied various instruments including, alto and tenor saxophone, piano, drums, and the guitar; in a variety of genres from gospel to jazz, hip- hop to R & B.

He believes that God lead him to Florida A&M University.  In 2003, Phillip was elected President of the freshman class and in 2004, he was re-elected to serve as the sophomore class president and served as a member of the university’s Campus Activities Board during both terms.  Later that year, he was appointed to Florida’s Student Affairs Advisory Council.  His class was very active in the community and he has remained extremely proactive in recruiting for an institution that he loves very deeply.  Phillip Agnew charged his cabinet to stay informed about issues affecting student life.  This mission earned him the distinction of being named Co-Chair of the University’s Vote Coalition — aimed at registering, educating, and mobilizing his fellow Rattlers.

In the summer of 2004, Phillip was named the Top Student Leader out of over 1,000 students at Monster.com Diversity Leadership Conference in Chicago, Illinois and in 2005, he was awarded a yearlong fellowship with People for the American Way to continue his work and meet with other young leaders from around the country.

In 2005, Phillip was elected the Student Body Vice President and served as Co- Chair of the FAMU Homecoming 2005, and as a member of the Florida A & M University Faculty Senate.  That following year, he ran, unopposed for the position of Student Body President/ University Trustee.  In April 2006 Phillip, along with then- Student Body President Ramon J. Alexander, and student leaders from Florida State University and Tallahassee Community College led a sit- in and march at the capitol in protest to Gov. Jeb Bush’s inaction in the murder of Martin Lee Anderson at a Florida boot camp.  This stand led to the dismantlement of Florida’s infamous Juvenile Justice System.  In April 2006, Phillip along with students from Florida State University and Tallahassee Community College founded the Student Coalition for Justice in response to the Martin Lee Anderson case. 
The Student Coalition for Justice, Inc. is a non- profit student activist organization.  The Coalition, as it has affectionately been called was originally started in 2006 by leaders of Florida A&M University, Florida State University and Tallahassee Community College as well as leaders of the greater Tallahassee community.  Founded in April 2006, because of the Martin Lee Anderson case, this organization has proven to be a force to be reckoned with.  The Student Coalition for Justice, Inc. staged a sit-in on April 19 and 20, 2006, taking over Governor Jeb Bush’s public waiting room.

The students, most of them from Tallahassee schools Florida State University, Florida A&M University and Tallahassee Community College, were demanding that Bush, among other things, order the arrest of the guards who beat Anderson and issue a public apology for delays in the investigation.  The two-day sit-in was the first at Bush’s office since 2000.

On April 21, more than 3,000 protesters staged a rally outside the Florida State Capitol, joined by Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton, calling for the arrest of the guards and for changes in the state correctional system.  That day, Tunnell resigned as FDLE chief.
Bush returned from a trip to Iraq, Kuwait, and Afghanistan late on April 19, and met with four students and several lawmakers that afternoon.  The next day, Bush met with Anderson’s parents; lawmakers claimed that Bush apologized at that meeting, although that report was never confirmed by Bush or his office.  After the sit-in in the Governor's office, and numerous rallies, the Student Coalition for Justice, Inc. was the catalyst for a full investigation the murder.

In addition, Phillip is a member of the Beta Nu chapter of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., Tallahassee Leon County Civic Center Authority Board, the Florida Students Association Board of Directors, the Florida A & M University Presidential Selection Committee, and the Florida A& M University Board of Trustees.  He was recently recognized as one of the years' most notable Tallahasseeans and featured in their annual Black History Calendar.  Through the School of Business and Industry, Phillip interviewed and was offered positions with Caterpillar, Procter & Gamble, and Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals.  This summer, he will begin work with Lilly in Pharm. Sales.  Phillip is dedicated to the community and believes that the true measure of a man is in his service and hopes to one day open his own advertising/ public relations firm that specializes in black businesses.  Phillip regularly speaks at High Schools around the state, urging students to stay in school until after college.  He firmly believes that none of his dreams would have come true without Florida A & M University.  On Thursday January 17, 2007, Florida A&M University awarded Phillip Agnew & The Student Coalition for Justice, Inc. with their prestigious Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Student Leadership and Student Organization Award, respectively.