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ST. GEORGE, Utah (AP) - Utah regents have approved Dixie State College's yearslong drive to become a university and are sticking with the school's traditional name despite some concerns expressed about racial insensitivity.
The regents voted Friday to adopt the new name of Dixie State University. It's subject to approval by the Utah Legislature, which opens its 2013 session Monday, and by Gov. Gary Herbert, who has indicated support.
Dixie has been a nickname for the St. George region since the 1800s, when the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints sent pioneers - including former slave owners and drivers - there to grow cotton. That history had prompted some students, professors and state educators to call for a name change.
Among them was the Rev. France Davis, a member of the board of regents and an educator in northern Utah who marched for civil rights in Washington, D.C., with Martin Luther King Jr.
I wonder if we miss an opportunity to move forward on the name. I wonder if the word 'Dixie' might be more fittingly changed to a more fresh or new word.
–Rev. France Davis, Utah regents
Davis said the regents were missing out on a chance to change perceptions of the region outside the state. He said he had been asked by educators in "the real Dixie" why a school in Utah would use that name after schools in the South have abandoned Confederate symbols.
"I wonder if we miss an opportunity to move forward on the name," Davis said. "I wonder if the word 'Dixie' might be more fittingly changed to a more fresh or new word."
Steven Caplin, chair of the Dixie State College board of trustees, praised Davis for his service and leadership but said the traditional name has overwhelming support in the local community. He said the school appropriately retired its Confederate symbols years ago, and that by doing so the college had "honorably demonstrated (its) social sensitivity."
At Friday's meeting, the regents' Programs and Planning Committee approved Dixie's request for a bachelor of science and arts with a minor in history - the final program the school needed to check off its list of benchmarks for becoming a university.
"Our collective dream of attaining university status is about to come true," said college President Stephen Nadauld.
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Information from: The Spectrum, http://www.thespectrum.com
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