Mississippi University for Women may well get a new name this summer, but not even university president Nora Miller is certain anymore what it will be.
Miller told The Dispatch on Thursday she still supports the proposed Mississippi Brightwell University moniker, but she “wouldn’t rule out” that changing by the time a bill is filed with the legislature.
The legislature must approve a name change for MUW. If it happens this session, the new name would take effect July 1.
“We are definitely resolved to change the name,” Miller said. “We’re fortunate with this being a 120-day session. It gives us a little bit of time before the bill has to drop.”
Miller announced the proposed new name during the faculty convocation Monday. Since then, the school has received a wave of criticism through phone calls and social media. Some oppose any name change. Others acknowledged a change is needed but don’t like the one proposed.
“As we navigate this transition, we are reviewing all the feedback that we’re getting,” she said. “We proposed a name that we feel is more attractive to prospective students, and that’s the main market we’re looking for, but we need the support of our alumni, our friends and our campus community to support this name change so that will happen.”
Founded in 1884 as the Mississippi Industrial Institute and College for the Education of White Girls, then later named Industrial Institute and College, Mississippi State College for Women (1920) and MUW (1974), it was the nation’s first dedicated women’s college. However, MUW has accepted male students since 1982.
MUW’s enrollment has dropped from more than 3,000 students in the late 1990s to about 2,300 this year, records from the university and the state Institutions of Higher Learning indicate. First-time freshman enrollment has dropped 35% over the past five years.
Sen. Chuck Younger, R-Lowndes County who represents District 17, plans to sponsor the bill in his chamber to change the university’s name. He told The Dispatch on Wednesday he fully supports the name change, but that Mississippi Brightwell University was not set in stone as the new name.
Speaking to The Dispatch on Thursday, Younger said he was “not at liberty to say” if or how the university’s administration would recommend a different name.
“Personally, I would like to see something that starts with a ‘W’ so we can still call it the W, but we’re just going to have to wait and see,” he said Thursday.
Negative reaction aside, Miller said the naming task force worked hard to select Mississippi Brightwell University.
“Brightwell was developed through a lengthy process that included a lot of input from various constituencies,” she said. “But we are looking at what people are saying, and we’ll reflect on that. We’ve got a few weeks.”
‘Reflecting our diversity’
MUW began its most recent name-changing effort in September 2022 with the purpose of choosing a name that was more reflective of the integrated student body.
“The name change is to interest prospective students who right now see our current name, and they don’t bother opening up our emails or looking at what we have to offer,” Miller said. “The goal is to pick a more inclusive name that would increase interest in our institution by reflecting our diversity.”
The taskforce assigned to lead the effort consists of several members of the university’s administration, faculty and students in leadership positions. Many members are also MUW alumni.
In October 2022, the task force sent surveys to alumni, faculty and staff, students, community members and prospective students with eight potential name change options. The committee also randomly selected individuals to participate in focus groups to gauge reactions to possible names.
None of those original eight suggestions — which were either geographic names or honored a past W acolyte — gained much traction and were scrapped. The taskforce then came up with the Brightwell name, which Miller announced Monday at spring convocation for faculty and staff.
The new name is not based on a historical name or the school’s location. The “bright” in Brightwell refers to the university’s literary society motto — “we study for light to bless with light” — as well as several traditions like passing a torch during commencement each year to the newest members of the school. The “well” in Brightwell is a reference to the university’s largest degree programs in the Bill and Jo-Ann Vandergriff College of Nursing and Health Sciences.
The decision to choose a concept name, like Brightwell, rather than a historical, regional or “W” name was intentional, Miller said Monday.
A name based on location would not reflect the unique qualities of the university and may be easily confused with neighboring community colleges, she said.
The taskforce decided against a historic or family name because there’s a risk of going back in history or forward to future generations, the university’s website said.
Not using a different “W” name is an effort to avoid diminishing the history behind the current “W,” which Miller said stands for women.
Miller said the proposed name recognizes the school’s historic legacy and aligns with the university mission.
“A lot of people … don’t understand that this is tied to our history and tied to the motto of our institution,” she said. “We know that the name was a surprise to people, and I think it grows on people. We’ve had some time to adjust to it. Other people have not.”
McRae is a general assignment and education reporter for The Dispatch.
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