By: Sydney Franklin Photo by: Lindsey Campbell
Last week neighbor school and athletic rival King College announced its changing its name to King University, but Milligan’s President Bill Greer said there are no similar plans for Milligan any time soon.
“I was asked before becoming president whether or not I would change the name,” said Greer. “Two or three people said ‘Promise me you won’t do that.’ If we changed it, it would be in the best interest of the college. I wouldn’t do it because another school has done it.”
Greer thinks of a name change as more of a public relations strategy, a way to attract more students to the college.
“It (university) isn’t better than college,” said Greer. “It’s marketing. It’s a name.”
King’s switch to university status reflects the values of its institution. King has twice as many students as Milligan, but focuses on adult and graduate education. Within the university, there are six official colleges and 12 satellite campuses throughout the region.
Milligan has a different focus. Greer said that Milligan is committed to maintaining a “traditional, residential campus” unlike King who looks to expand.
Several colleges like King have “upgraded” to a university status in recent years. Atlanta Christian College became Point University in 2011. Kentucky Christian College, Cincinnati Bible College and Johnson Bible College, all the former names, have changed as well.
But a name change isn’t always welcome. King’s Facebook page contained several negative comments towards the idea.
One wrote:
“Terrible idea…such a wonderful place that has went extremely down hill. No close knit community no religion…so forth. It probably just needs to change the name completely.”
Another agreed in saying that King was losing its liberal arts status and that the change was “a sort of downgrade to the ‘universities’ credentials as well as the credentials of those past graduates.”
Some Milligan students have reacted to the possibility of Milligan doing the same.
Junior psychology major Tyler Brackins has heard conversations spark over Milligan’s possible acquirement of Emmanuel Christian Seminary and whether that would give Milligan university status.
He thought that changing Milligan’s name would make it feel “impersonal.”
“People perceive it as less of a tight-knit community and I think that’s what we are about,” he said.
Anna Lennox transferred into Milligan from Florida State University as a senior nursing major. She prefers Milligan’s program to other colleges.
“I would be nervous about Milligan becoming a university,” she said. “It would change my nursing program. It would be a college I would have to get into.”
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