Dive Summary:
- Hundreds of people flocked to Facebook and Twitter and signed online petitions demanding a name change after the University System of Geogia's Board of Regents' Tuesday approval of the name "Georgia Regents University" for the institution created by the merger of Augusta State University and the Georgia Health Sciences University.
- Supporters of the universities are angry that "Augusta" was dropped from the school's name, as the state's other public universities that are being merged retained a nod to their region in their new names, and one local writer blasted the new name as a showing of the board's alleged narcissism.
- Board of Regents spokesman John Millsaps says the board has no plans to change the name because "it recognizes the fact that this is the first comprehensive research university in Georgia created by the USG Regents" and statewide and national marketing studies "indicated that the name was relatively neutral, allowing the university to create its own image and brand."
From the article:
Tempers flared on Thursday as supporters of two universities in Augusta, Ga., that are being merged found out what their combined university will be called. The name, "Georgia Regents University," isn't sitting well with hundreds of people who have flocked to Facebook and Twitter and signed online petitions demanding a different name. The University System of Georgia's Board of Regents approved the name on Tuesday for the campus being created by the merger of Augusta State University and the Georgia Health Sciences University. ...