I wanted to share an update on the progress of the surveys dealing with the possibility of changing Fort Lewis College’s name.
The idea to look into the possibility of a name change was discussed in the 2012-2016 Fort Lewis College Strategic Plan. It was not decided that the College should or shouldn't change its name, only that the discussion be had at some point.
With the recent work on the strategic directions of the College, now became a good time to start the process. Again, we have no foreordained decision that we need to change the name of Fort Lewis College. Our goal is to gather data and feedback from our campus, alumni and Durango communities to see if a name change should be considered.
We began by reaching out to Native American tribes, alumni and supporters on a one-on-one and small group basis to seek out their input. This was due to the unique ties that Native Americans have to Fort Lewis College.
The next step was to send surveys out to Fort Lewis College alumni, faculty, staff, students and local community members to ask questions about perceptions of Fort Lewis College. These surveys encompassed more than just the name change question and will aid us in better understanding how Fort Lewis College is viewed.
That first round of surveys closed in November. Next, we are reaching out and surveying prospective Fort Lewis College students, along with high school counselors and representatives, to further broaden our understanding.
Beginning in early 2018, we will be taking the survey data and conducting focus groups with campus stakeholders and alumni to delve more deeply into the idea of a name change, if that’s where the data leads us.
I want to emphasis that this will be a data-driven decision. If the data tells us not to change Fort Lewis College, we won’t make a change. The data may indicate that a change from college to university, keeping Fort Lewis, is advantageous. Or a complete name change might be the direction we should go. If the data says a change is in the institution’s best interests, then we’ll move on to the process of figuring out what the new name might be.