“Milligan University” will soon headline signs, sweatshirts and stickers, as President Bill Greer announced an official name change from Milligan College to Milligan University on Friday, Oct. 25.
Students, alumni and the local media outlets were just a few of the groups that filled seats in the Gregory Center to listen to the mystery announcement.
“I promised that we’d only change the name if, and when, it best served the interest of Milligan,” said Greer. ”I believe that time has come.”
The board of trustees voted to change the name effective June 1, 2020, but over the past few years, Milligan has made an effort to brand itself as just that- Milligan. It can be seen on signs, posters and even apparel, and because of these advanced efforts, this change should be smoother.
Board of Trustees chairman, Ron Dove also welcomed the crowd and spoke on behalf of the board. “The Board, along with Milligan’s senior administration, have worked carefully, thoughtfully, and prayerfully, to discern what is best for Milligan, as we are charged with stewarding this institution into what promises to be a very exciting future,” said Dove. “We agree that the designation ‘Milligan University’ best describes who we are and who we will continue to be.”
Milligan’s status has changed from a college to a university over the past decade with the addition of twelve master’s and two doctoral degrees plus the five existing undergraduate schools. The name change comes as more of a formality.
“We have been working on this for a couple of years,” Greer said. “We feel like the time is right to go ahead and designate ourselves as a university since most of the rest of the world has already been doing so.”
The hope with this change is to, amongst other things, better improve offered programs, increase enrollment and to attract more international students in the process.
Greer also announced that the first structural project as Milligan University would begin next summer with updates to the McMahan Student Center. The renovations will include a more modernized look and more outside seating with the hopes of encouraging more students to fellowship at the student center.
While things may be changing, Greer was adamant that the school would continue to be devoted to producing servant-leaders. “While our name and program offerings may change who we are at our core hasn’t wavered for over 150 years.” Greer said in closing. “We remain committed to the Christian liberal arts and to preparing students for lives of service.”
For more information on this change, visit www.milligan.edu/university
Update from the editors: This story was edited on Oct. 29 to correct inaccurate quotations attributed to President Greer and Board Chairman Dove. We apologize for the errors.