ST. GEORGE —Offering the community an opportunity to provide input on the Dixie State University name exploration process, the Name Recommendation Committee is launching an open survey.
Created and managed by Love Communications, the Salt Lake City-based communication firm the university is partnering with for the name exploration process, the survey will be available Thursday through April 13, according to a press release Dixie State issued Wednesday.
The survey is a way for the committee to collaborate with residents of southwestern Utah, institutional partners and university faculty, staff, students and alumni, as outlined in Name Change Process for Dixie State University, designated HB 278 in the 2021 Utah Legislature.
“As a DSU alumna and descendent of some of the very first pioneers to settle in this region, I profoundly understand the desire to preserve and share Southern Utah’s revered heritage,” Julie Beck, a DSU board of trustee member and chair of the committee, said in the release. “That is why it is so important that the Name Recommendation Committee hears input from the community throughout the entire name recommendation process.”
The survey asks participants to rank the importance of various factors and theme options in addition to providing a space where respondents can suggest any new ideas not already included in the survey.
After the survey closes at midnight on April 13, the Name Recommendation Committee and Love will review the resulting data and scrutinize different name themes to consider strengths and weaknesses in areas such as trademark and website availability, uniqueness, compatibility to the institution’s history and academic focus, abbreviations and connotations.
With this information, Love will present focus groups to a wide variety of stakeholders and the committee narrow the search down to a finalist theme. To identify a final name to present to the DSU board of trustees, the committee will present specific name options within the final theme in one last round of focus groups.
If the Board of Trustees votes in favor of the name recommended by the committee, it is forwarded to the Utah Board of Higher Education for a vote, who has the potential to pass it on to the Utah State Legislature for a final vote. Otherwise, it is returned to the committee for further deliberation.
The committee, comprised of 19 members who represent students, university employees, community members and industry leaders, was approved by the DSU board of trustees on March 25 after being recommended to the full board by the body’s Executive Committee. The committee’s members, charge and timeline were established in consultation with the Utah Board of Higher Education.
Click here to participate in the survey or learn more about the university’s name recommendation process.
For a complete list of contacts for Southern Utah representatives and senators, click here.
Check out all of St. George News’ coverage of the 2021 Utah Legislature here.
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