UH-D Proposes Name Change

[TexasVines]

Yeah, they are pretty easy. I have four of Math, three in Science, four in Social Studies, four in English, and two in a foreign language. I'm not in the top 10%, but borderline top 25%.

if you get up to the 20% of your class mark you are in....please tell me you go to a tough school and or you spend a lot of time chasing A LOT of girls.....because if not...

[Trae]

Katy High School is where I'm at, but the real reason is the latter. I think I'll get in since my GPA is above a 2.5 and I'm in the top 25%. My bad freshman year and first half of sophomore year is hurting my me now.

Edited December 11, 2008 by Trae

[TexasVines]

Katy High School is where I'm at, but the real reason is the latter. I think I'll get in since my GPA is above a 2.5 and I'm in the top 25%. My bad freshman year and first half of sophomore year is hurting my me now.

well those are memories that you can always have and times that you can't live when you are older

are you set on UH.....what major are you looking at....I am familiar with a lot of the schools in Texas

[Trae]

I was looking at majoring in Economics with a minor in Business Management.

[TexasVines]

I was looking at majoring in Economics with a minor in Business Management.

nothing wrong with that IMO, but the business minor might be an issue because of the harder admissions to Bauer College at UH

any second choices for a school?

[Trae]

Other choices were UT-SA, UTA, and Texas Tech. I wanted to go to Georgia, but with this economy, out-of-state is too expensive.

And if I don't get accepted into any of these places, I'm going to roll up into TSU for a year.

[strickn]

As far as meaningful or meaningless names go - frankly - unless it is accredited to grant doctoral degrees, this college shouldn't in the first place be diluting the term university.

You make good points, Vines.... But i still think UHD benefits from the confusion/association in getting students there and UHD students benefit from that University System tie-in on their resumes.

I also think any University name change hurts that school's image. History, Longevity are two attributes that contribute to a school's gravitas, image, and perception by prospective students.

Maybe I'm wrong and others disagree.. but take Southwest Texas.. that's their name for 30+ years, then one day they change to a generic name Texas State... am i the only one that instantly thinks that was a bush league move to make.

I think where we differ in opinion is the perceived value of attending this University. You think it's ready to stand on its own, I do not.

I don't know much about UHD programs, standings, rankings. But I imagine thats true of most people looking at resumes too. I do think it helps to have a school on your resume that is take seriously by potential employers.

Having a tie-in to the 4th largest University System in the State helps. Having a new University name that has never existed before this point in time hurts.

[musicman]

20 yrs ago, i considered them another hcc.

[TexasVines]

Other choices were UT-SA, UTA, and Texas Tech. I wanted to go to Georgia, but with this economy, out-of-state is too expensive.

And if I don't get accepted into any of these places, I'm going to roll up into TSU for a year.

you would be better off going to community college for a year VS TSU....cheaper and a better school....but you want to be careful because I would recommend taking the harder courses at community college so that you can take easier courses at UH and keep your grades up.....but at the same time you will need a certain GPA to transfer to UH which means you will have to do well in the harder courses at community college or at TSU....Tech will be much harder to get into than UH and so will Georgia.....UTA will be close and UTSA probably close as well.....they just raised their admissions requirements

20 yrs ago, i considered them another hcc.

so did everyone else....20 years is a long time ago....especially for UH

[musicman]

so did everyone else....20 years is a long time ago....especially for UH

UHD has definitely made attempts to improve, however they aren't at the same level as the main campus.

[TexasVines]

UHD has definitely made attempts to improve, however they aren't at the same level as the main campus.

ha ha ha....opps I thought you were talking about the main campus....but UHD has improved as well

[LTAWACS]

....because at the end of the day they are two separate schools with vastly different goals and requirements

You keep saying this but one can still graduate with a BBA from either and do just as well. As Lead Analyst/Project Manager for several companies and as I've mentioned before, I've interviewed candidates from most local schools including UHD, Rice, TSU, TT, UT, and others. The guys from the smaller schools like UHD usually got the job.

[LTAWACS]

No, UH doesn't have open enrollment. UHD does. It's confusing, isn't it?

Uh... no. Not really. No.

It's not anymore confusing than telling my right foot from my left foot.

[sarahiki]

Uh... no. Not really. No.

It's not anymore confusing than telling my right foot from my left foot.

No need to be obnoxious. I was just answering his question.

[N Judah]

You overestimate the worldliness of a college freshman at an open enrollment school.

No, the students aren't the ones getting confused by the name change, remember? It's the supposed employers who apparently can't tell the difference between UH and UH-D, or "City College" and "Community College." It's true that it might be a lot to expect from people around here, but people in many other places do not have problems distinguishing "City College" from "Community College."

"Houston Metropolitan University" is not bad but people will have to avoid shortening the word "Metropolitan" lest others think they are going to college to learn how to drive a bus.

And UH won't have a name worthy of distinguishment until it starts tightening admissions standards and distancing itself from lower-echelon institutions. Open enrollment at UH has a bleak future, btw.

It's not easy to just "tighten admissions standards." You have to have significantly more people wanting to go to a school than there are available spots. That will not happen for a while.

At the undergrad level the best thing a public school like U of H can do is focus on the really motivated students (ie Honors College) and make sure they are able to get the internships, letters of rec, or whatever to accomplish whatever it is they want. This can be done irrespective of general university enrollment standards.

nothing wrong with that IMO, but the business minor might be an issue because of the harder admissions to Bauer College at UH

Actually the business minor is separate from Bauer admissions. Anyone can do it as long as they have a 2.75 overall GPA or something like that.

I'm not sure I agree. UH reminds me of the French universities (as far as I understand them): anyone can get in. But it's really tough to make it, once you're there. I like the idea of giving lots of students the chance to succeed, especially in a city like Houston with so many immigrants and children of immigrants. But once you get in, you have to be a fairly serious student to make it. So there's a high attrition rate. I don't know what all that does for the reputation of the school, but it should mean that someone with a degree from UH worked pretty hard to earn it, and therefore the degree means something.

I agree. Prestige is great if that's your reason for going to school, and there are schools for that, but I don't think perception of exclusivity is really what U of H is all about.

Edited December 11, 2008 by N Judah

[TheNiche]

No, the students aren't the ones getting confused by the name change, remember? It's the supposed employers who apparently can't tell the difference between UH and UH-D, or "City College" and "Community College." It's true that it might be a lot to expect from people around here, but people in many other places do not have problems distinguishing "City College" from "Community College."

Read through this thread. There are a lot of people that have applied to the wrong school (I almost did that, when I moved to Houston from out of town and didn't know the difference between UH and UHD). It is a problem for both students and for employers; and when employers are confused it is going to tend to hurt the graduates from the better school (like me) and help the ones from the lesser school.

It's not easy to just "tighten admissions standards." You have to have significantly more people wanting to go to a school than there are available spots. That will not happen for a while.

At the undergrad level the best thing a public school like U of H can do is focus on the really motivated students (ie Honors College) and make sure they are able to get the internships, letters of rec, or whatever to accomplish whatever it is they want. This can be done irrespective of general university enrollment standards.

...and you aren't going to have very many more people wanting to go to a school until the school becomes perceived as more exclusive. Focusing on the really motivated students doesn't garner a great deal of recognition among really motivated potential students whose first choice is currently UT-A, A&M, or a better out-of-state university.

Prestige is great if that's your reason for going to school, and there are schools for that, but I don't think perception of exclusivity is really what U of H is all about.

When I first enrolled there, UH was open enrollment and it was my first choice because I wasn't even in the top 50% ranking for a crappy high school (I just didn't give a ____ most of the time) and was also missing a semester of foreign language that would've been necessary to get into UT or A&M. At first I was a psych student because that was in a college that would take me. After a year, my grades were good enough that I easily transferred into C.T. Bauer.

Historically, what you're saying is true; UH has not been about the perception of exclusivity. However I want that to change so that the earning power and social status associated with my UH degrees go up. Let the ESL students, poor children of immigrants, and knuckleheads like I was go to HMU or HCC for a couple of years. If they're good enough, UH can then take them as transfer students. I see nothing wrong with that. And by filtering out more of the riff raff from the student population, more people will prefer UH as their first choice. I guarantee that application levels would increase.

[totheskies]

UofH still has the second ranked Creative Writing program in the nation (graduate), one of the best music schools in the state of Texas, and a celebrated program for public policy. With 35,000 students, there's bound to be some dead weight, but UofH is a very distinguished institution.

I'm sure some of you are aware that UHD/HMU will now be the largest Houston-area school for open enrollment. Texas Southern changed its policies last year, so HMU is going to serve an increasingly important role for our area. What better way to show that than with a name all its own.

Edited December 11, 2008 by totheskies

[LTAWACS]

UofH still has the second ranked Creative Writing program in the nation (graduate), one of the best music schools in the state of Texas, and a celebrated program for public policy. With 35,000 students, there's bound to be some dead weight, but UofH is a very distinguished institution.

I'm sure some of you are aware that UHD/HMU will now be the largest Houston-area school for open enrollment. Texas Southern changed its policies last year, so HMU is going to serve an increasingly important role for our area. What better way to show that than with a name all its own.

blah blah blah... UHD and UHCentral have some of the same accreditations.

Edited December 11, 2008 by LTAWACS

[TheNiche]

blah blah blah... UHD and UHCentral have some of the same accreditations.

But not all of the same accreditations. This is as it should be.

[LTAWACS]

But not all of the same accreditations. This is as it should be.

Correct. To clarify, UHD does not have the power to grant doctoral degrees. However, both institutions have several other in common such as AACSB International.

[totheskies]

Correct. To clarify, UHD does not have the power to grant doctoral degrees. However, both institutions have several other in common such as AACSB International.

LOL the same??? Different strokes for differnt folks dude. My whole degree program... Bachelor's, Masters or Doctoral... doesn't even exist at UHD/HMU. I should know b/c I taught there as a lecturer last summer. But I haven't taught any classes at UH b/c I don't have a doctorate. They're totally different entities that hapen to share some very common accreditations.

[N Judah]

Read through this thread. There are a lot of people that have applied to the wrong school (I almost did that, when I moved to Houston from out of town and didn't know the difference between UH and UHD). It is a problem for both students and for employers; and when employers are confused it is going to tend to hurt the graduates from the better school (like me) and help the ones from the lesser school.

Er...I'm sorry you were confused (did you try looking on the internet?), but I don't think it is an issue for most people. Even if there is a certain subset of employers who don't know their way around town I don't think it's very significant. Anybody who needs to know the difference already knows, and anybody who is unaware can be told in 30 seconds or less. The most important thing to remember is that neither school is typically thought of as being better than the other in any meaningful way, and the UH-D students mentioned in that survey are deluded if they think that it is a boon to be confused with students from UH-Main Campus.

...and you aren't going to have very many more people wanting to go to a school until the school becomes perceived as more exclusive.

Exclusivity for the sake of exclusivity is a noble goal, and if that is your interest there are many, many schools for that (almost too many).

Focusing on the really motivated students doesn't garner a great deal of recognition among really motivated potential students whose first choice is currently UT-A, A&M, or a better out-of-state university.

Yes, it does. UT-Austin is a degree mill superimposed on top of a football factory if not for Plan II, and every high school counselor in Texas knows this. Soon it could be the same for U of H.

Historically, what you're saying is true; UH has not been about the perception of exclusivity. However I want that to change so that the earning power and social status associated with my UH degrees go up.

That would be quite a cultural shift. I think you just went to the wrong school.

Let the ESL students, poor children of immigrants, and knuckleheads like I was go to HMU or HCC for a couple of years.

Is that what you did?

If they're good enough, UH can then take them as transfer students. I see nothing wrong with that. And by filtering out more of the riff raff from the student population, more people will prefer UH as their first choice. I guarantee that application levels would increase.

I understand the desire to make UH better but for my part I would prefer U of H be improved in more substantial ways instead of by simply attempting to be more exclusive. Blaming UH's perceived lack of prestige on UH-Downtown was absurd to me at first, but what do I know? Now that the albatross that is UH-D has been jettisoned I guess UH is on the make. UTEP and SFA had better look over their shoulders.

[TexasVines]

Yes, it does. UT-Austin is a degree mill superimposed on top of a football factory if not for Plan II, and every high school counselor in Texas knows this. Soon it could be the same for U of H.

this post alone proves you have no clue about what you are talking about

if any HS counselor is dumb enough to think this then they are too dumb to even be a high school counselor

Edited December 11, 2008 by TexasVines

[N Judah]

No...UT is a joke. Most large public schools are pretty bad, but UT is known for being the worst.

EDIT: Actually, I'll give high school counselors credit for being idiots. Not all of them know that about UT, but they really should.

Edited December 11, 2008 by N Judah

[Highway6]

No...UT is a joke. Most large public schools are pretty bad, but UT is known for being the worst.

EDIT: Actually, I'll give high school counselors credit for being idiots. Not all of them know that about UT, but they really should.

UT was ranked 15th among public universities and in the top 50 overall in US News' last College Rankings.

Either you are incredibly biased, you were scarred as a young child by a longhorn, or you have no idea what you are talking about.

[TexasVines]

No...UT is a joke. Most large public schools are pretty bad, but UT is known for being the worst.

EDIT: Actually, I'll give high school counselors credit for being idiots. Not all of them know that about UT, but they really should.

in your mind most large public schools are bad, but in the mind of everyone else the world over many large public schools are very good which is why no matter what ranking method or who does the rankings these schools fair very well and also why recruiters from top companies flock to them for graduates

I think Michigan, Wisconsin, UCLA, TAMU, Minnesota, Ohio State, Penn State, Arizona and many more would disagree with you

if anyone could be looked at as a joke it would be smaller east coast private schools that are well known for grade inflation

I know your opinion carries a lot of weight in the world of academia, but rankings published from Shanghai, to London, to the USA consistantly have UT as one of the top US universities and as one of the top public universities in the world.....and I have my doubts that anyone in London or China was so marveled by Vince scrambling to the right at the final seconds that they elevated their rankings of UT

and all the large public schools mentioned above are members of the AAU.....and I think the collective minds of the AAU know what a quality university is VS you on HAIF

[N Judah]

Yes, it is absolutely correct that I am incredibly biased against degree mills superimposed on top of football factories.

in your mind most large public schools are bad, but in the mind of everyone else the world over many large public schools are very good which is why no matter what ranking method or who does the rankings these schools fair very well and also why recruiters from top companies flock to them for graduates

I think Michigan, Wisconsin, UCLA, TAMU, Minnesota, Ohio State, Penn State, Arizona and many more would disagree with you

if anyone could be looked at as a joke it would be smaller east coast private schools that are well known for grade inflation

I know your opinion carries a lot of weight in the world of academia, but rankings published from Shanghai, to London, to the USA consistantly have UT as one of the top US universities and as one of the top public universities in the world.....and I have my doubts that anyone in London or China was so marveled by Vince scrambling to the right at the final seconds that they elevated their rankings of UT

and all the large public schools mentioned above are members of the AAU.....and I think the collective minds of the AAU know what a quality university is VS you on HAIF

Wow. I don't know what to say...

Edited December 12, 2008 by N Judah

[TheNiche]

Er...I'm sorry you were confused (did you try looking on the internet?), but I don't think it is an issue for most people. Even if there is a certain subset of employers who don't know their way around town I don't think it's very significant. Anybody who needs to know the difference already knows, and anybody who is unaware can be told in 30 seconds or less. The most important thing to remember is that neither school is typically thought of as being better than the other in any meaningful way, and the UH-D students mentioned in that survey are deluded if they think that it is a boon to be confused with students from UH-Main Campus.

Actually, come to think of it, the particular situation was that I was trying to get my high school transcript sent out and the admin person asked me whether I wanted to send it to UH or UH-Downtown. I had physically been to the UH campus and knew that it was close to Downtown, and I had been to www.uh.edu, which is for the Central Campus and which did not make at all clear that such a thing as UH-D existed, much less was a seperate entity. So I was completely at a loss. I made a guess, and guessed correctly. And I can completely understand how others could be confused.

I did not ask the counselors about UH-D, nor did I probably fit the profile of a UH-D student (on paper I did, in person not so much), so there was no reason for them to tell me that it existed.

Exclusivity for the sake of exclusivity is a noble goal, and if that is your interest there are many, many schools for that (almost too many).

On the contrary, it is a self-serving goal. Students want the name of the school on their degree to indicate to employers that they were able to do something that others were not so as to increase their career opportunities. That's what all degrees and credentials are, are marketing tactics. And universities that leverage up the prestige of their degrees reap the short-term rewards of increased applications from better students, and the long-term rewards of a more active and wealthy alumnus.

Yes, it does. UT-Austin is a degree mill superimposed on top of a football factory if not for Plan II, and every high school counselor in Texas knows this. Soon it could be the same for U of H.

You are (mostly) correct. The quality of the education at UT-Austin is comparable to and often actually less than that of UH. Whereas UT's professors tend to be more research-focused an not teaching-focused, UH has an advantage in terms of conveying knowledge to students. But degrees aren't supposed to communicate how much you know. Students interested in knowing things can take elective coursework without intending to earn a paper credential and waste less money and time on extraneous coursework.

I don't care whether my high school counselor approves less of a UT-Austin degree relative to a UH degree, however. They aren't looking to hire me and I'm not looking to work for them.

The TRUTH is that UT-Austin and A&M grads are leaders in the Texas business environment. Many of them look down on other universities, like UH, which were less exclusive. And in spite of the rivalry, they are quite a bit more willing to hire from one another than from second-tier schools like UH. Likewise, UH grads in the business environment tend to look down upon UH-D grads. Yeah, it's snobby. But it does happen. And the best way for UH to maximize the value of its paper credential to its students is to try and position itself as a Tier One institution so that it can join the club.

That would be quite a cultural shift. I think you just went to the wrong school.

The culture has shifted quite a ways. It continues to shift. It will continue to shift, especially as they undertake the strategic plan to distance UH from UH-D/HMU.

I went to the best school I could get into, looked at transferring into UT-Austin after some years, but decided that I was better off able to work a full-time job and develop local contacts in a career I could stick with, rather than place myself into a much more difficult job market in Austin. It worked out better that way, IMO.

Is that what you did?

No. UH was easier for high-risk students to get into at that time. I know that that makes me look like some kind of hypocrite, and yes, I do very much want to shut out people that fit my profile as well as the poor or disadvantaged...because it will help me now and not in some hypothetical case that isn't reality.

I understand the desire to make UH better but for my part I would prefer U of H be improved in more substantial ways instead of by simply attempting to be more exclusive. Blaming UH's perceived lack of prestige on UH-Downtown was absurd to me at first, but what do I know? Now that the albatross that is UH-D has been jettisoned I guess UH is on the make. UTEP and SFA had better look over their shoulders.

UH's lack of prestige has more to do with its legacy than with its identity confusion with UH-D. That doesn't mean that UH-D isn't a factor or that that factor shouldn't be addressed. It is just one part of a multifaceted strategy apparent to those of us that can see the forest from the trees.

UT was ranked 15th among public universities and in the top 50 overall in US News' last College Rankings.

Either you are incredibly biased, you were scarred as a young child by a longhorn, or you have no idea what you are talking about.

Universities are multifaceted beasts. I can't think of any that are good at everything.

[TexasVines]

Yes, it is absolutely correct that I am incredibly biased against degree mills superimposed on top of football factories.

and you also seem "smart" enough to judge a 50,000+ student university based on 100 students in the football program....I am sure this lends credibility to your opinion and the next time rankings services and university studies the world over come out with a list of top universities they will include your "proven" method of judging a school based on .002 or less of the total student body

[LTAWACS]

LOL the same??? Different strokes for differnt folks dude. My whole degree program... Bachelor's, Masters or Doctoral... doesn't even exist at UHD/HMU. I should know b/c I taught there as a lecturer last summer. But I haven't taught any classes at UH b/c I don't have a doctorate. They're totally different entities that hapen to share some very common accreditations.

That's what I said.

I never mentioned the degree programs at either. Accreditation. In what did you major? Art?

No need to be obnoxious. I was just answering his question.

Didn't mean to. I just wanted to point out that it really ISN'T confusing.

Read through this thread. There are a lot of people that have applied to the wrong school (I almost did that, when I moved to Houston from out of town and didn't know the difference between UH and UHD). It is a problem for both students and for employers; and when employers are confused it is going to tend to hurt the graduates from the better school (like me) and help the ones from the lesser school.

...and you aren't going to have very many more people wanting to go to a school until the school becomes perceived as more exclusive. Focusing on the really motivated students doesn't garner a great deal of recognition among really motivated potential students whose first choice is currently UT-A, A&M, or a better out-of-state university.

When I first enrolled there, UH was open enrollment and it was my first choice because I wasn't even in the top 50% ranking for a crappy high school (I just didn't give a ____ most of the time) and was also missing a semester of foreign language that would've been necessary to get into UT or A&M. At first I was a psych student because that was in a college that would take me. After a year, my grades were good enough that I easily transferred into C.T. Bauer.

Historically, what you're saying is true; UH has not been about the perception of exclusivity. However I want that to change so that the earning power and social status associated with my UH degrees go up. Let the ESL students, poor children of immigrants, and knuckleheads like I was go to HMU or HCC for a couple of years. If they're good enough, UH can then take them as transfer students. I see nothing wrong with that. And by filtering out more of the riff raff from the student population, more people will prefer UH as their first choice. I guarantee that application levels would increase.

It sounds like someone woke up on the wrong side of the couch.

this post alone proves you have no clue about what you are talking about

if any HS counselor is dumb enough to think this then they are too dumb to even be a high school counselor

Which is why they are counselors.

[Bombero451]

An editorial by FordGuyHTX:

I was thrilled to have learned that the UH System ("UHS") Board of Regents approved the initiation of a name change for the University of Houston-Downtown ("UHD"). When I saw the headline in the Houston Chronicle about UHD initiating the name change, I said to myself, "IT IS ABOUT TIME!!!"

I have been hoping for this moment (UHD to change its name) ever since I started my freshman year at the University of Houston ("UH") back in 2002. There had been discussion about possible name change of UHD since 2004, but it never went anywhere. I am glad both UH System and UHD are moving forward with the name change in 2008 thanks to the support of Renu Khator (Chancellor of UH System and President of the University of Houston) in cooperation with Max Castillo (President of UH-Downtown). Although this is late, but never late then ever. I believe the UH-Downtown name change initiation is part of the UH System agenda for the University of Houston (UH) to move forward and become the next third flagship university in Texas--along with The University of Texas at Austin and Texas A&M University.

As a graduate of the University of Houston's Bauer College of Business (BBA '06), I am tired of people asking me what "campus" I attended and having to explain that UH only has one campus located at 4800 Calhoun Rd. I have refrained from referring to my alma mater as "UH-Central" or "UH Main Campus" as the University of Houston is not a multi-campus university.

Most people think that UH-Downtown is a branch, satellite or extension campus of UH, which it is not. The general public thinks that UH-Downtown and UH are the same university. Hopefully the name change of UHD will end the reference of UH as "UH-Central" or "UH main campus". References to UH such as "UH-Central" and "UH Main Campus" are misnomers.

With all these people referring to UH as "UH-Central" or "UH Main Campus" are the reasons why UH System and the students/alumni at UH advocate the name change of UH-Downtown.

A lot of UHD students and graduates I have met believe that they are part of UH. They would tell me they attend or graduated from UH, but to find out that they really attend or graduated from UHD (they lied, either intentionally or unintentionally)! People who graduated from UHD or not UH graduates and they do not have any rights pertaining to UH. The students and alumni at UH do not want to be associated with UHD. A lot of UHD graduates also falsify their resumes by putting down they graduated from "University of Houston" when they should have put "University of Houston-Downtown".

The time has come to elevate the status of the University of Houston (UH) by renaming UH-Downtown to something else without the root name "University of Houston." UH doesn't have the image it deserves because it has been negatively affected by UH-Downtown by the general public thinking they are the

same university.

For the last time, the flagship institution of the UH System (UHS) is referred to as the University of Houston ("UH"), not "UH-Central" or "UH Main Campus". Additionally, UH-Downtown (UHD) is not a branch or satellite campus of UH. With all these people referring to UH as "UH-Central" or "UH Main Campus" are the reasons why UH System and the students/alumni at UH advocate the name change of UH-Downtown.

For the renaming of UH-Downtown, I would suggest the following:

• Cullen State University (CSU)
  
• Houston Metropolitan University (HMU)
  
• University of Houston-Commerce (UHC)
  

Although I prefer the name University of Houston-Commerce, it would defeat the 90% purpose of renaming UH-Downtown. I don't have anything against UH-Downtown, but it needs to have a name other than "Downtown" in order to eliminate the confusion of being a branch or satellite campus of the University of Houston ("UH").

The University of Houston (UH) had officially changed its name to "University of Houston-University Park" in 1985, but reverted back to "University of Houston" in 1988. This name change was an effort by the UH administration to give its flagship institution of the UH System a distinctive name that would eliminate confusion with the other three UH System (UHS) universities (UH-Clear Lake, UH-Downtown, and UH-Victoria). The University of Houston (UH) will not go through another name change again--we are the University of Houston and will remain that way. It is now UH-Downtown's turn to change its name and establish their own identity to end the confusion with the University of Houston.

LOL!!!!

Hey everyone, I'm a newbie here and literally laughed when I read this post.

I joined this forum to find more information about the proposed soccer stadium and have enjoyed reading the hundreds of other threads this massive forum has to offer . . . then I came across this gem tonight.

I'm a memeber of another message board and find it hilarious that this guy is posting the same quality, overkill elsewhere. Priceless.

[LTAWACS]

I'm upset they changed their name. In the end it's the same thing.

[FordGuyHTX]

The UH System Board of Regents approved to change the name of UH

Edited December 16, 2008 by FordGuyHTX

[LTAWACS]

The UH System Board of Regents approved to change the name of UH

[Highway6]

Houston Main Street University

Discovery Houston University

Houston City Centre University

maybe they could sell the naming rights for the whole school... Thats never been done before.

Minute Maid University of Houston

Edited December 16, 2008 by Highway6

[Original Timmy Chan's]

I think the name change is appropriate. It will give UH-D its own identity, which should be separate from UH.

Over the last few weeks I've come around to the "City University of Houston" idea.

I think the name would help convey the UH System's desire to make the distinction between the University of Houston as a national research university, and the "City University of Houston" as a more locally-centered school.

[LTAWACS]

There really is no reason the change the name... sheeesh.

[TexasVines]

I fail to understand why there would be confusion in the first place. It's as if some people confuse their left foot from their right foot. Come on...

Also, Dr. Uzman has a good point.

actually he has a stupid point

in a quick google search of the two metro universities that come up in the USA one is exactly like what UHD is

http://archive.metrostate.edu/academic/

and the other is like what he describes.....but they recently changed their name to something stupid

http://www.fmu.edu/

and 4 in England are much better sounding than UHD

http://www.mmu.ac.uk/

http://www.londonmet.ac.uk/

http://www.lmu.ac.uk/

http://www.sihe.ac.uk/

same for South Africa (though I suspect if UHD wanted a name like this it would fly through)

http://www.nmmu.ac.za/default.asp?bhcp=1

sounds to me like Dr. Uzman needs to get a clue and get out more and UHD should just go ahead and change their name to some ignorant PC crap like Hopes and Dreams, Obama/Chavez State, Social Promotion State, or We Hand'um Degree State

that was by far the best name of the bunch and it sounds like they let the biggest dullards of their faculty make a false claim with nothing to support it because he wants some garbage name...UHD is hardly some school that can make any type of "gravitas" claaim seeing as it is an open enrollment school offering tons of classes for people that are behind coming out of high school

"The most ethnically diverse, the most racially diverse university in the system and you say, 'Change your name,' " Rose said. "Marketing can fix (any confusion)."

and to make the claim above when UH is one of the most diverse schools in the USA with the first female Indian born president and chancellor just shows childish ignorance....the other names suck and some have been proven to turn students off because of bi-directional wordiness (that has been proven in study after study to be associated with a lesser school) or they just sound stupid...."City" State University

someone needs to tell Dr. Uzman exactly what UHD is.....and it ain't "gravitas" that is for damn sure or anything to faithfully and appropriately reflect upon

they should just go ahead and change UHD to "Liberal PC Crapper University"

[sevfiv]

Thank goodness that name was dropped - sounded very DeVry-esque to me.

I am all for UH remaining in the name since it is part of the UH system. The others are geographically named and I think it works, so I think a cheesy name change isn't needed to begin with.

[TexasVines]

Thank goodness that name was dropped - sounded very DeVry-esque to me.

I am all for UH remaining in the name since it is part of the UH system. The others are geographically named and I think it works, so I think a cheesy name change isn't needed to begin with.

http://www.atlm.edu/index.html

yet another "metro" school that looks a LOT like UHD and nothing like devry

maybe they should call it barbera J's and mickey L's bayou school that is real good

[N Judah]

I don't mind the name but I think it should be "college" instead of "university." It just sounds better and seems more accessible.

[FordGuyHTX]

Another Houston Chronicle article regarding UHD's name change: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/6168615.html

The issue has been approved and UHD will get a new name. "Cullen State University" is now part of names under consideration.

Edited December 17, 2008 by FordGuyHTX

[pestofan]

University of Jan Brady.

'It's always UH, UH, UH!"

Or perhaps:

UH-Mulligan

UH-Differentiate (no need to change initials)

UH-We're Kinda Not UH

TCBUH (This Can't Be UH!)

Cougar High-Downtown

U. of Inferiority Complex System-Downtown campus

Stylz G. White U.

U. of Fragrant Bayou

U.'ve Got to be Kidding

University of Talula Does the Hula From Houston

University of Lemonjello

UH-Surely (if they have a flight school)

UH-And We're Not (perhaps better for the Chevy Chase, MD campus)

Not You're Father's UH

Preparation H

Nosoupfor U.

RFU (

)

Client #9 U.

U. Know What?

U. Win

U. Should See What We Rejected!

U. Light Up My Life

U. Might Be a Redneck

I Can Name That U. in 3 Notes

U. Whatever

and my favorite choice:

UH-Ostensibly Houston, aka UH-OH!

Edited December 17, 2008 by pestofan

[JJVilla]

UT was ranked 15th among public universities and in the top 50 overall in US News' last College Rankings.

Either you are incredibly biased, you were scarred as a young child by a longhorn, or you have no idea what you are talking about.

AGREED--Nothing against Rice BUT why would I pay twice as much for an engineering degree that is ranked twice as low compared to UT!

<Back to the name change and general UH discussion.>

UH is a great local school but it didn't offer what I wanted at the time - Petroleum Engineering degree (B.S.). I would consider for a M.S. but don't need at the time.

Edited December 17, 2008 by JJVilla

[LTAWACS]

actually he has a stupid point

in a quick google search of the two metro universities that come up in the USA one is exactly like what UHD is

http://archive.metrostate.edu/academic/

and the other is like what he describes.....but they recently changed their name to something stupid

http://www.fmu.edu/

and 4 in England are much better sounding than UHD

http://www.mmu.ac.uk/

http://www.londonmet.ac.uk/

http://www.lmu.ac.uk/

http://www.sihe.ac.uk/

same for South Africa (though I suspect if UHD wanted a name like this it would fly through)

http://www.nmmu.ac.za/default.asp?bhcp=1

sounds to me like Dr. Uzman needs to get a clue and get out more and UHD should just go ahead and change their name to some ignorant PC crap like Hopes and Dreams, Obama/Chavez State, Social Promotion State, or We Hand'um Degree State

that was by far the best name of the bunch and it sounds like they let the biggest dullards of their faculty make a false claim with nothing to support it because he wants some garbage name...UHD is hardly some school that can make any type of "gravitas" claaim seeing as it is an open enrollment school offering tons of classes for people that are behind coming out of high school

"The most ethnically diverse, the most racially diverse university in the system and you say, 'Change your name,' " Rose said. "Marketing can fix (any confusion)."

and to make the claim above when UH is one of the most diverse schools in the USA with the first female Indian born president and chancellor just shows childish ignorance....the other names suck and some have been proven to turn students off because of bi-directional wordiness (that has been proven in study after study to be associated with a lesser school) or they just sound stupid...."City" State University

someone needs to tell Dr. Uzman exactly what UHD is.....and it ain't "gravitas" that is for damn sure or anything to faithfully and appropriately reflect upon

they should just go ahead and change UHD to "Liberal PC Crapper University"

What is your major malfunction?

[jc281]

wait, so whats the new name?

[JLWM8609]

they should just go ahead and change UHD to "Liberal PC Crapper University"

[LTAWACS]

wait, so whats the new name?

Not changed yet... but I hope they don't change it...

[FalconRanch1]

Not changed yet... but I hope they don't change it...

Well lets see, they NEED to change the name because it is confused with the University of Houston, they are trying to elevate themselves to Tier 1 (and i really hope they do!!) a good name would be Houston University Downtown. (HUD) (Not to be confused with the Rural Housing Program lol) or even Southeastern Texas University (STU).

Edited December 18, 2008 by FalconRanch1

[TexasVines]

Well lets see, they NEED to change the name because it is confused with the University of Houston, they are trying to elevate themselves to Tier 1 (and i really hope they do!!) a good name would be Houston University Downtown. (HUD) (Not to be confused with the Rural Housing Program lol) or even Southeastern Texas University (STU).

bidirectional State names drive students away in droves it has been studied all over the USA

this is why Southwest Texas State (Texas State San Marcos) and Southwest Missouri State (Missouri State) and others changed their names

Edited December 18, 2008 by TexasVines