It”s Reneau.
Mississippi University for Women President Dr. Claudia Limbert announced the school”s choice for a new name this morning at a faculty/staff convocation.
And received a standing ovation from a full-house at Nissan Auditorium.
While the announcement ended a months-long process of committee work, it touched off another months-long process that will require the approval of the state Institutions of Higher Learning Board of Trustees and the full Mississippi Legislature.
The name also likely will be picked apart by dissatisfied alumni, who have criticized both Limbert”s leadership and the need for a name change.
If approved by the IHL, the name will be submitted for approval to the state Legislature.
MUW officials said Reneau University refers to Sally Reneau, who, in the late 19th century, lobbied the state Legislature for the school to be built.
Limbert this morning called Reneau — who was 18-years-old when she first lobbied the Legislature for the creation of the first state-supported female college in the United States — a “remarkable woman.”
“It is time to build that monument (to her),” she said.
“We must remember that our university is not an island,” she added, referring to the process by which the Institutes of Higher Learning will recommend a new name to the state Legislature. “We must remember our university is the university of and for the entire state.”
Before the announcement, West Point Mayor Scott Ross, who also serves as president of the IHL board of trustees, gave his “personal opinion” on the issue of a new name for the university.
“The decision to move forward with a name change is not just optional, it”s a matter of survival,” he said. “This university does not need to be closed, but, if this university wants to survive, my personal opinion is you have to adapt to where we are today.
“I don”t believe this university will be a player, long-term, if we don”t adapt and change who we are today,” he continued. “For the university to remain relevant, we have to change.”
Acknowledging the emotions behind the issue, Mississippi Commissioner of Higher Education Dr. Hank Bounds stressed a need to “put logic and future preservation ahead of emotion.”
“Changing the name can have a real impact on retention and access issues,” he said. “This is not just a campus issue. Now, the business community will carry the torch.
“Great work has been done, but much work is left to do,” he added. “Taking on an emotional issue like this is not easy, but it”s the right thing to do.”
“This institution will find its history carries it forward,” said Blake Wilson, CEO and president of the Mississippi Economic Council, noting the organization voted to “endorse a new name.”
A graduate of MUW, 4-County Electric Power Association CEO Allegra Brigham, who also serves as the president of the Columbus-Lowndes Development Link board of trustees, recalled beginning her college career 44 years ago.
“The school is progressive; it”s keeping up with the times,” she said. “My university also reflects the state of Mississippi, which includes male students.”
“Since (her) time” as a student, changes at MUW have “enriched it, enhanced it and enlightened” the school, she noted.
“I know the name change will be difficult for some to accept, but the world has changed,” she said, explaining one of her daughters declined an enrollment opportunity because the school is “perceived to be a women”s college.” “This decision (to change the name) was too important to be based on emotion and nostalgia. It had to be made with facts and a plan for the future.”
The university has admitted men since 1983, and studies commissioned by the school have shown male students are reluctant to attend the school with its current name. The school enrolled about 2,400 students last fall, with 16 percent of them male. The IHL has said the school could handle up to 4,500 students.
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