On Georgia Regents University

The merger of the campuses of Augusta State University and Georgia Health Sciences University has been in process for some time.  A major part of that process was, of course, naming the new university. Names had been thrown around, but ultimately there were three choices for the Board of Regents to choose from: Georgia Arts and Sciences University, Georgia Regents University, and University of Augusta. 

Popular opinion in the city of Augusta quickly coalesced around University of Augusta. After all, it would have reflected a tradition of the name of the city staying in the title (with Augusta College and Augusta State coming before it) and it would have made perfect sense from a marketing standpoint. While Augusta has The Masters and James Brown as claims to fame, it wouldn't hurt that the new university still keep the name of the city. 

Of course, this meant that the Board of Regents chose the least liked name: Georgia Regents University. As soon as it was announced yesterday (Aug. 7) the uproar was swift and virtually unanimous. For proof of the amount of citizens upset over the decision, just look at the comments against it on The Augusta Chronicle's story, as well as the hastily formed facebook group "Everyone Against Georgia Regents University Sound Off", which has over 2,300 likes after only a day of operation. 

Suffice to say this isn't over, as there's already talk of protests against the name, as well as Regent University in Virginia not being happy about the name either. Expect to see more here, but right now most citizens of Augusta want something more than sharing an acronym with a Russian intelligence agency or the villain from an animated film.