URBANA, Ill. — A plan to name the business college at the University of Illinois after a donor who gave a record $150 million to the school has been approved, but with some debate.
The News-Gazette reports that the proposal to name the college after alumnus Larry Gies was approved after an amendment was added saying the vote wouldn’t serve as a precedent for renaming other colleges.
The university’s Academic Senate says administrators failed to follow the established procedures for changing the name of a college. They said a vote is required by the faculty within the college and the senate.
Administrators say they consulted with the university’s lawyers about the college’s name and determined they only needed to follow the Campus Administrative Manual’s rules, which requires senate advice, not approval.