So what should we call you, HCC?
Houston Community College may consider changing its name as the institution expands its offerings to include bachelor’s degree programs, administrators said at a Wednesday board meeting.
The possibility is already a hotly debated topic among the board’s trustees, with early discussions yielding split opinions on the necessity and prudence of such an undertaking. Several members agreed that the words “community college” on a baccalaureate diploma might be a tough sell for employers with a plethora of college graduate candidates. Other trustees called a change a distraction, especially with the institution in the hot seat to improve its graduation and retention numbers for better funding from the state Legislature.
“I’m taken aback about why we are even talking about this when we have a whole lot of work to do,” District III Trustee Adriana Tamez said.
“Before you came on board, with all due respect, chancellor, according to my colleagues, the sky was falling here at HCC,” she said later, referencing Chancellor Margaret Ford Fisher’s hiring this year.
A name change would most likely drop “community” from the institution’s brand, mirroring the same action taken at Dallas College in 2020 and other community colleges before that. Lone Star College, for example, evolved from North Harris Montgomery Community College District, and South Texas College was known as South Texas Community College McAllen.
Ford Fisher argued that the board couldn’t undo what it did with the approval of its two new bachelor’s degree programs, which begin classes this fall. Community colleges are increasingly widening their offerings amid changing workforce needs, and four-year universities are exploring the same with certificate programs, she said.
In June, the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges approved the college’s request to offer baccalaureate degrees in artificial intelligence and robotics as well as healthcare management. The name change would help differentiate the school and represent its offerings in both associate’s and bachelors degrees, the president said.
I confess, I missed that earlier story about HCC offering some baccalaureate options, though I did see the story about Sam Houston State gearing up to do some certificate programs. I have no objection to them experimenting and expanding their offerings, though I’m not sure how good a fit any of it is. I’m ambivalent about the idea of a name change. I can see how it might make sense, but maybe we should wait a bit and see how this bachelor’s thing works out before we fully commit to the concept. I would also prefer to not spend too much money on the rebranding, if possible.
If we do go down this road, I think “Houston College” makes the most sense as the new name. It’s consistent with other schools of this type, and it’s not a recent innovation – the community college in San Antonio has been “San Antonio College” since at least the 80s when I was a student at Trinity. We’ll cross that bridge when and if we get to it.