Yes. This is definitely happening. It was happening back in the 70s when I was a student.
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Getting current students to vote for this in March would be big. A bunch of us old guys on a chat page are down, but how do we get their support and how do we educate them that this should be done?
And it’s interesting to go back and see the conversation the last time we tried this.
I’m hopeful to see the name change in my lifetime, but I’m not overly optimistic. There was a small push by several folks after getting football to push towards the name change, but the main issue is that there isn’t an overwhelming majority of students and alumni that want it. With football, even the though the administration was mostly against it, the majority of students and alumni supported the push for football and outnumbered the detractors. There are many that like the name as it is for whatever their personal reason is, but for most they like the UNC cloak. Remember 49erDiva and that thread on here back in the day? She was a Panther cheerleader and openly listed her school as UNC as well as her fandom.
I haven’t given a dime to the university itself in over 10 years, and won’t until the name is changed. It’s the only way I feel like I can fight it with the current Admin resisting any sort of name change push. All of my donations go to Athletics. I have said before and I’ll say again, I’ll donate $1000 to the university as soon as the name change is announced and will begin donating again to the annual fund once it happens. If more alums that support the name change withheld donations and made it clear why, then I think if that number gets big enough maybe the Admin will finally see the light. The only other possibility is what was stated some 10 years ago, and that would be the hope that our next Chancellor would be in favor of it and help get the ball rolling when they take office. Until then, I’ll continue my small financial protest.
clt asks when will the new chancellor happen?
X, it’s your money so you can spend it as you wish. But I prefer to support the University and the Athletic Department. In my opinion, supporting the University itself and its programs makes us stronger and more powerful. There is a lot about our school that makes it unique and distinctive. There are many good colleges within our University. Hopefully more people will see our side and make a name change easier. When asked, I usually tell people that I graduated from Charlotte. I’m 68, hopefully in my lifetime I’ll see the name changed to The University of Charlotte!
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Here is the release from when Athletics went to the Charlotte 49ers name:
Charlotte 49ers Debut New Logo
August 23, 2000
CHARLOTTE, N.C. - With an explosive pick raised high, 49ers Director of Athletics Judy Rose proudly proclaimed, “The 49ers are Charlotte’s pick for college athletics and Charlotte is the 49ers pick for a new logo. Charlotte. Simply Charlotte.”
With that, an animated video displayed the new logo coming together. The 49ers mascot, Norm, then unveiled a 10x15 banner as the 49ers cheerleaders raced on to the court, throwing logo t-shirts into the crowd while spotlights sprayed versions of the logo around the arena and the display board on the scoreboard flashed the new look.
The logo is at once proud, bold and energetic. A pick, raised by a coiled arm and ready to strike, forms a “C” at the beginning of the word “Charlotte”. Charlotte. Simply Charlotte. After years of confusion and misrepresentations that have seen or heard the school’s identity mangled, the athletic department saw fit to simplify its name to “Charlotte”. And while the official school name remains “The University of North Carolina at Charlotte” or “UNC Charlotte”, the 49ers are urging fans and media alike to stop the insanity and call them “Charlotte.” Simply Charlotte.
No more N.C.-Charlotte. No more N.C.-Char. No more North Carolina-Charlotte. No more UNCC. No more UNC-C. No more UNCC at Charlotte. No hyphens, no spaces, no abbreviations. Charlotte. Simply Charlotte. Just as the 49ers Conference USA brethren survive as Memphis, Saint Louis, Cincinnati, Louisville or Houston so too will the 49ers prosper as Charlotte.
In addition to the arrival of the new athletic mark, the 49ers unveiled three secondary logos: The “C” as a stand alone logo, a “4-9-e-r-s” word mark and a logo that incorporates both the “C” and the “4-9-e-r-s” logo. In addition, the 49ers have unveiled two versions of sport specific logos. One version, uses the “C” with the specific sports icon contained inside. The sports specific logo for basketball is the centerpiece for the 49ers new basketball court design.
The new logos replace two old athletic marks: the face of a grizzly old Miner and a “4-9-e-r-s” script logo.
While the Miner logo will be phased out, the “Norm the Niner” Mascot will continue to patrol the sidelines at 49ers sporting events.
“We are proud of our heritage,” Rose said. “We’re proud to be members of the North Carolina university system. But, frankly, we are tired of being confused with other institutions or having our own identity misused and misconstrued. It’s harder to make a name for yourself, when your name keeps getting confused. Not only will this logo simplify matters, but it gives the program an exciting new look that better captures our essence.”
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I also say “I went to Charlotte” too when people ask me where I went to school.
I realize that I’m not helping the university presently by withholding money, but as long as the money keeps pouring in from elsewhere the Admin is not going to consider a name change with the supporters/detractors being what it currently is. If someday the supporters grow to where they number close to the percentage of support we had for football, then the name change may happen despite the Admin not wanting it (as it did with football). Until then though, money is the only way to make them think about it. If there were 100 or so alums doing what I’m doing, they won’t blink. But if that number gets up to 1000 and they all pledge a similar number if the name is changed, it starts to open some eyes.
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I’m stealing this
I was curious about the number of cities with universities directly incorporating the name without “state” or an “____ of ___ at ___” moniker. It’s a fairly large number (26), and represent a bunch of major metros that do not have the flagship university of a state system located within it (like the University of Minnesota being located in Minneapolis, for example).
Also interesting is that these schools run the gamut from state funded, large institutions all the way down to relatively small catholic schools that still claim their city’s name. I didn’t count small college towns like Clemson and Auburn and Towson. I also didn’t count Saint Louis University because it is not actually named after the city. I did, however, count smaller metros like Hartford and Akron. Have a look and feel free to use as necessary when someone argues that it would diminish us to be associated only with the city in our name. Let me know if I missed any.
- University of Akron
- Binghamton University
- Boston University
- University at Buffalo
- University of Chicago
- University of Cincinnati
- University of Dayton
- University of Denver
- University of Hartford
- University of Houston
- Jacksonville University
- University of Louisville
- University of Memphis
- University of Miami
- Miami University (Ohio)
- University of New Orleans
- New York University
- Oklahoma City University
- University of Pittsburgh
- University of Richmond
- University of San Diego
- University of San Francisco
- University of Seattle
- Syracuse University
- University of Toledo
- University of Tulsa
Looking at this list…it’s hard to argue that University of Charlotte wouldn’t be a natural fit.
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University of Cincinnati
University of Louisville
University of Houston
University of Memphis
All public. All former conference mates. Infuriating.
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Worth noting that Memphis State University changed its name to University of Memphis for…reasons.
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Overwhelming the people who are passionate about the university and donate want the name changed. If you attended classes at Charlotte but haven’t stepped foot back on campus and don’t donate your opinion doesn’t carry as much weight IMO.
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Athletes tend to agree with name change. But that is more cause we are used to simply Charlotte already.
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I believe the GA would have to vote on this, should we start going over Phil’s head?
We need to get in touch with the people who made this happen and get some ideas moving forward with our plans.
It was 1994, so I’m not sure how easy it would be to track them down. But it couldn’t hurt to try.