BUZZ
University president is trying to ‘bridge’ divides with alumni by including old name
The name “Dixie” has resurfaced at Utah Tech University four years after complaints about racism and slavery connotations prompted state lawmakers to change the institution’s name.
Formerly Dixie State College, Utah Tech recently began selling “merchandise dubbed the Heritage Line with the old Dixie name at the school’s bookstore,” the Salt Lake Tribune reports.
Its president, Shane Smeed, said they are trying to “bridge” divides with alumni by including the old name in some ways.
“It’s not a goal to whitewash that history. It’s not a goal to not allow alumni to support the college that is on their diploma, whether that is Dixie Junior College or Dixie State University,” Smeed told the newspaper.
Smeed said the name “Dixie” refers to Mormon settlers who came to the area in 1861 to grow cotton.
Rebranding the new Utah Tech name cost the university more than $3 million in 2022, according to the report:
The school officially changed its name in July 2022. Supporters argued that the old name was hurting graduates’ job opportunities and made recruiting quality faculty to the institution more challenging.
But the name change angered many longtime residents, who argue that the word “Dixie” is not racist and have accused state lawmakers who mandated the change and university officials who supported it of being “woke.”
Years after the change, the debate remains. Last July, Rep. Trevor Lee, R-Layton, proposed restoring the university’s original name. Thus far, Lee has not introduced legislation to enact this change and did not respond to requests for comment.
The president of the Defending Southwest Heritage Coalition also supports changing the name back to Dixie State, according to the report.
“I think it’s the only way that they get the community to come back together is to reinstate the Dixie name,” President Ilene Hacker said. “They need to change it back because they painted the community as racist when the name was changed to Utah Tech University.”
However, Salt Lake City NAACP President Jeanetta Williams criticized the university for embracing its old name even in a minimal form.
“I object to anyone wanting to continue using the name ‘Dixie’ or celebrating that history because it was offensive then, and it still is offensive today,” she told the newspaper. “It should be done away with completely.”
Universities have been removing seemingly offensive names and mascots for years.
Earlier this year, Lewis & Clark College in Oregon unveiled its new River Otter mascot, a replacement for the Pioneer. On its website, the college said some people felt the Pioneer was “inextricably linked with settler colonialism,” The College Fix reported.
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