As rumors swirl about a possible name change for Sam Houston State University, the members of the Student Government Association are hard at work to ensure the school’s name remains safe.
At an SGA meeting Tuesday night, President Chris Whitaker discussed the Plan of Action for bringing the issue to the Texas Legislature using the power of alumni, local legislatures and a hopefully empowered student vote.
“Our main focus right now is getting students registered to vote,” Whitaker said. “Our goal is to get 3,000 students registered so we can get a polling place on campus.”
Whitaker stressed the importance of the student vote as the only way for students to get their voices heard outside of the university. With a large number of students voting, Whitaker said students could finally get noticed.
“If a lot of students vote, it gives us more of a sway with legislators,” Whitaker said.
SHSU is currently a member of the Texas State University System, which is made up of nine schools in Texas. The system is lead by a Board of Regents who hold most of the decision making power, including the ability to change the university’s name at any time.
The members of SGA hope to pass a new bill taking that ability from the Board and moving it to the Texas Legislature. By giving the Texas Legislature alone the power to change the name, Whitaker said the SHSU name should remain safe.
“Because of all of the alumni we have from our university, I don’t expect the Texas Legislature would be able to take our name from us,” Whitaker said. “We have some very powerful alumni.”