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UHD to Pick New Name: The University of Mexico in Houston?

University of Houston-DowntownI earned my Bachelor of Science in Professional Writing from the University of Houston-Downtown (UHD) back in 1998.

I was living in Downtown Houston (The Houston House high-rise apartments) and the school had the program I was interested in; University of Houston (which is only 5-miles from the downtown campus) did not.

Anyhow…a lot of people think that UHD is a satellite campus for the main UH campus. It’s not. It’s its own separate university. Which is why they are considering a name change:

UH-Downtown, located in the shadow of a freeway overpass on the northern edge of downtown, was founded in 1974. It is part of the University of Houston System but is a stand-alone university, as is the University of Houston-Clear Lake and the University of Houston-Victoria.

Those schools haven’t suffered as much name confusion as UH-Downtown, Chancellor Renu Khator told university regents Tuesday, partly because they are farther away. UH-Downtown is less than five miles from the UH central campus.

University campuses with “downtown” in their names are traditionally branch campuses, Khator said.

Branch campuses share administration and, often, faculty and other programs with the main campus. The University of Houston at Cinco Ranch and the University of Houston at Sugar Land, for example, are branch campuses.

But despite their similar names, each of the four universities in the UH system is a separate school. They share a board of regents, but each has its own president and other staff and its own slate of degree programs.

Regents voted to allow the school to pursue a new name, although any change would have to be approved by regents and legislators. Regent Dennis Golden opposed the plan, saying he wasn’t convinced it was a good idea.

Castillo hopes to have a new name selected by December. A Web site listing all suggested names should be up by September, spokeswoman Sue Davis said.

Among the suggestions so far: Houston International University, Gulf Coast University and Houston University.

I’m OK with that, I guess. I actually like Houston International University — though the University of Mexico at Houston would be much, much more accurate.

I’m not sure what the percentage of Mexican/Hispanic students is at UHD…but they are a clear and overwhelming majority of the student body.

One of my favorite things about UHD is that it is one of the very few remaining accredited open-enrollment 4-year universities in the nation. All that is needed to enroll at UHD is a high school diploma or a GED. No ACT or SAT test scores. Nobody is turned down because of poor high school grades.

What I love about this is that anybody who wants to go to college…can. There are a lot of kids who did poorly in high school for a number or reasons, and many other kids who really don’t test well on standardized tests. But that doesn’t mean that they can’t succeed at the university level.

For many of these kids, all they need is a chance.

Sure, UHD also has one of the highest drop-out rates in the nation. But at least it offers a chance to everybody.

Anyhow, I have wonderful memories of my 3-years at UHD (I transferred my credits from Baylor and the US Army over to UHD), and still wear my old UHD sweatshirt from time-to-time. This will give me an excuse to go buy a new sweatshirt now.

Posted by Robbie Cooper on Wednesday, August 20th, 2008 | Trackback |

6 Responses to “UHD to Pick New Name: The University of Mexico in Houston?”

I think that the school should be renamed to either:

The University of the Americas

or

United Nations University…

The school could then market itself as an internationally focused institution specializing in political science and business on an international level.

I attend the school and most if not all of the students are of a vast array of ethnic backgrounds. That is why I love the campus, it is truly diverse.

By the way, I thought the school was accepting suggestions? I could not find the link.

-Andy Hernandez
UHD Senior

Left by andy on August 22nd, 2008 at 7:37 am

I object to anything regarding UHD being called University of Mexico at Houston. I am a proud Latino, but there is only ignorance in that name, and I hope that those who think that way can realize we are past the 1950’s and there is more to Central and South America than Mexico. Don’t ass-ume that since somebody speaks spanish they are Mexican, I fought that mentality since the 80’s and this city has come far from that original racism. A mentality like that can only hurt the City of Houston, and if all you want is ignorance, well then go someplace else. There is a large diaspora of people here, and if you don’t like it go away. We are part of America, that include many countries not just the U.S.A.

Left by alejandro on October 3rd, 2008 at 3:24 pm

Alejandro,
relax i think he was joking.

Anyway I like Gulf Coast University. That’s my vote. Although Gangsta U. would be more accurate.

just kidding alejandro.

junior at UHD.

Left by Jon on October 5th, 2008 at 5:08 pm

I understand the reason for changing the name of the University, but to change the name to identify a particular race is crazy. If this were to be done this would require the University to change the school’s name each time the enrollment status changes. Location, founder, or specialities usually name schools, not the race of the attendees. If this were the case we should change the name of Texas Southern University to the University of African Americans.

Ridiculous suggestions and changes will only limit the University.

My choice Houston University!!! It’s in Houston

Senior

Left by Toni on October 26th, 2008 at 7:39 pm

I personally think that this university should not change its name, but if they must, then why not name it “Downtown University Houston” I think that sounds more professional and more in line with what a university should sound like.

Left by JC on December 23rd, 2008 at 2:13 pm

Gulf Coast University? Absolutely and utterly WEAK. That would make the school sound like it is implanted upon an oil rig.

My three suggestions include: Houston University, Houston International University, or Houston Metropolitan State University.

But out of those three, my favor rests with Houston University. Why? It gives it more distinction and follows in the footsteps of great schools like Auburn University, Miami University, and most notably, New York University (which is obviously a sprawling urban campus like UHD; but is a very hard school to get into, unlike UHD). Heck, UH isn’t even that hard to get into yet people IN Houston tend to put UH on a pedestal of glory. I can say this as I am a former UH student who transferred to UHD’s College of Business to pursue a degree UH’s Bauer College of Business didn’t have - a BBA in International Business.

Houston University is appealing. We could do what NYU (New York University) is doing. Build new schools where space permits, and if space doesn’t permit, we can rent out space in buildings downtown and have flags outside noting their location and affiliation with HU (Houston University).

Take a look at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:NYU-Gallatin_School.jpg

Right now, UHD has the potential to rise above UH. But it all depends on the name we choose, how we decide to progress with building new schools, acquiring more space in downtown Houston, and offering more degrees (all the way to the doctorate level). And although we are doing the community a favor by offering an “open admissions” policy, I do strongly feel that UHD needs to change its admissions policy a bit. That will also help build a positive reputation for UHD (soon to be called Houston University, maybe). We really should require some sort of SAT or ACT score upon entrance. Students who engage in taking these examinations tend to show more determination to finish college, thus decreasing our “drop-out rate” (as stated by the author of this blog). In the beginning, we don’t have to require high SAT or ACT scores, but SOMETHING. And like I said, it’s not like UH required any score of significance when I was attending there.

And remember, it’s the alumni who actually do something with their degrees that give a school its good reputation. Every school was a new school at one point. It’s up to us to give it a good, STRONG name.

Higher learning. Strive for excellence. Houston University.

Left by Brian Spencer on December 30th, 2008 at 1:49 pm

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