Less than 48 hours after Mississippi University for Women President Nora Miller announced Wynbridge State University of Mississippi as the institution’s new proposed name, state lawmakers introduced a bill to establish “The W” as its official moniker.
Mississippi House Rep. Donnie Scoggin, an Ellisville Republican and MUW alumnus, authored House Bill 1155 to “amend the name of ‘Mississippi University for Women’ to ‘The W,’ with official documents denoting the name as ‘Wynbridge State University of Mississippi.’” The bill lists Rep. Kabir Karriem, D-Columbus, as an additional author. Karriem’s district is in Lowndes County, where MUW is located.
“This bill embodies the university’s promise to its alumni to uphold our illustrious history while advancing into the future,” Miller said in a university press release.
Miller, the university’s first alumni president, has led the school since 2018 and began leading efforts to study a name change in 2022. She said the name change is necessary to reflect the school’s inclusivity.
The president appointed a Naming Task Force that spent more than 18 months selecting a new name for the university. Miller first announced Brightwell University as the new proposed name on Jan. 8. Community members and alumni quickly spoke out against that name and the process the Naming Task Force used in its selection.
The public outcry prompted officials to reverse the decision and take the name Brightwell off the table. Miller said feedback showed that alumni wanted a name that better reflected the history of the university and its beloved nickname, “The W.” A group of alumni even presented a proposal to the board to make the nickname the university’s permanent name.
“Regardless of the name, it’ll always be ‘The W, Columbus, Miss., Mayor Keith Gaskin told those gathered at the February 14, 2023 press conference announcing Wynbridge State University of Mississippi. Photo by Heather Harrison
Community members were asked to submit new name suggestions for consideration. The task force then sent surveys to university stakeholders asking for their input on three chosen names – Wynbridge University, Welbright University and Wynbright University. Miller told the Mississippi Free Press that there was
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