To compete with its top competitors, a task force has been formed to potentially rename Houghton College to Houghton University. Comprised of Houghton students, faculty, alumni, staff, and trustees, the taskforce is being co-chaired by Jason Towers, Houghton’s Vice President for Enrollment and Marketing, and JoAnne Barnes, a member of Houghton’s Board of Trustees. Together, the two have made a significant amount of progress with their team in potentially turning Houghton into a university.
In an email about the task force’s recent success, Towers reported to the STAR that “the feedback we received from the taskforce, Student Council, the larger faculty, the Alumni Foundation, the Athletics Advisory Board, and the President’s Advisory Board has been exceptionally positive and supportive of this potential change.” After this feedback was received, the task force submitted a positive recommendation to President Lewis in which these supportive groups were cited. It then was decided by Lewis that he would bring this recommendation to the Board of Trustees on April 25th or 26th with a final decision following. When this decision is made, a submission will be sent to New York State with Towers and company expecting a “swift confirmation because we do in fact meet the new criteria established by the state for University status in January of this year.”
There are several reasons why Houghton is pushing for possible university status. One of them is what “university” status means to the various student groups that the college serves. Towers explained this meaning in relation to his experience in the Enrollment and Marketing field. He wrote, “For our international and Canadian students, the word ‘College’ is more equivalent to junior or community college and as a result, requires significant explanation if they return to their home country for employment. Further, in the recruitment process many of those students will not even consider us [Houghton] because we are a college.”
The second reason is in regards to Houghton’s preexisting graduate programs. In the eyes of students who are seeking a graduate program, Houghton’s status as a college may turn them away due to colleges sometimes being seen as “pre-graduate” schools that do not offer graduate programs. Houghton is trying to change this because it already offers graduate programs in Business Administration, Education/Literacy, and Music, which all meet the criteria for university status.
The third reason is regarding local competition, particularly in Buffalo, having made this change recently. Towers explained, “Several of our local competitors in Buffalo have recently changed from College to University and this change will allow us to remain competitive with them. Further, it provides evidence of our commitment to historically underserved areas.” ★
