UH-Downtown wants a new name.

"UH-Downtown has undergone a dramatic transformation ... but we're still referred to as a branch campus," President Max Castillo said. "We are not."

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.

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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.