McCrory: Renaming UNCC would benefit city

UNIVERSITY OF CHARLOTTE?
McCrory: Renaming UNCC would benefit city
DIANE SUCHETKA
Staff Writer

The latest push to change the name of UNC Charlotte isn't coming from students, alumni or anybody else at the university.

Charlotte's mayor is leading the campaign.

If he could point to The University of Charlotte, Mayor Pat McCrory says, he'd have an easier time enticing new businesses -- and the jobs they bring -- to the Queen City.

Now, he says, too few people know Charlotte is home to a large public university that can help conduct research and train workers.

"Once industry gets here, they find out we have a great university," the mayor says. We want them to find out before that."

Another problem, he says, is that it's easy to confuse UNCC with UNC Chapel Hill.

That mix-up was behind the last drive to change the school's name. Alumni started that last May just as singer Clay Aiken was making a name for himself on "American Idol."

Aiken was referred to as a UNC student before a huge television audience. Most people read those three letters and think of the state's flagship university, in Chapel Hill.

Name changes are often good for schools, says Sheldon Steinbach, vice president and general counsel for the American Council on Education, a higher education policy group in Washington.

"Usually it helps generate a greater identity," Steinbach says.

And in this case, he says, it could create a sense of closeness between the city and the school.

But for now, it looks as though the mayor's chances of changing the school's name are about as slim as finding a parking space on campus in the middle of the day.

Students recently conducted an informal poll of 400 or so students. The results: 70 percent oppose the change.

They gave three reasons:

The University of Charlotte sounds private.

The current name has been around for a long time (since 1965).

And they don't really mind being confused with the prestigious UNC Chapel Hill, the oldest public university in America.

"I see both sides," says student body President Stefanos Arethas.

"But if the students don't want it, then there's no reason to pursue it any further."

UNCC Chancellor Jim Woodward says he sympathizes with McCrory, but he's got more important issues right now -- lobbying lawmakers for a $35 million bioinformatics center tops the list.

"I appreciate the mayor's purpose for proposing this," Woodward said. "But I do not intend to pursue this."

Lindsey McAlpine, president of the UNCC Alumni Association, isn't taking a stance.

"We're proud to be a part of the University of North Carolina system and we're proud to be a part of the city of Charlotte," said McAlpine, class of '91.

A change wouldn't be simple.

It would have to be approved by the UNCC Board of Trustees, the UNC system Board of Governors and the General Assembly.

Still, the mayor's going to give it the old college try.

He says he'll start lobbying Molly Broad, president of the 16-campus UNC system, and other education leaders early next year.

"The university is crucial to our future economic development," he says. "I think this is at least worthy of discussion."

 

FOOTBALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

How many people on these boards are for this?? I don't see why you wouldn't be!!! We need to do whatever possilbe to help the mayor make this happen!!

 

to the student body president that says "if the students don't want it, no need to proceed".....get real, no student has a diploma yet and until you do, you are not a permanent member of the universtiy, and I doubt that informal poll of 400 students was accurate. The people with diplomas from the school should matter most. I definately plan on calling this Lindsay McGalpine, the alum prez.

 

can it be anymore obvious that Woodward is a Chapel Hill jocksniffer??

 

Why, because you disagree with his point of view?

There are a lot of UNC fans, but there are not THAT many.

 

Did they interview Charlotte or Chapel Hill students? For some reason I doubt the validity of this poll and the reasons cited.

When I was in school, a frat collected thousands of signatures supporting the name change from students. Yeah, I guess they're stongly opposed to it.

 

What can a little 'ol first year Alum do to help this cause? I cannot express in words how much in favor of this I am! Who should we e-mail, call ect? GO NINERS, UofC!

 

Anyone have the mayor’s e-mail? We need to send him a flurry of e-mails letting him know that the vast majority of students and alumni are for the name change. Keep pushing Pat, keep pushing.

 

email this woman, I did. She is the president of alum affairs.
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