New Year, New Name

Alumni still can refer to their alma mater as the Humphrey Institute, as long as they retain their 'school spirit.'" - Outgoing dean J. Brian Atwood

On January 18, 2011—the first day of spring semester—the Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs became the Humphrey School of Public Affairs. Outgoing dean J. Brian Atwood sought the name change to reduce confusion among prospective students and constituents outside of Minnesota.

“This confusion is particularly acute in Washington, D.C., where ‘institutes’ are more likely to be ‘think tanks’ than degree-granting institutions, like ours,” Atwood says. “Also, as we recruit a growing number of international students—especially for our new Master of Development Practice degree program—we need to have a clear academic identity in the minds of prospective students.”

“School” is the term used by virtually all of the 280 schools of public affairs across the nation that belong to the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration (NASPAA). None of the top-ranked institutions use the term “Institute.”

In addition, naming protocols have changed at the University over time. With the July 1, 2010, name change of the Institute of Technology to the College of Science and Engineering, all other academic units at the University are called either “College” or “School.” The other “Institutes” at the University are cross-disciplinary initiatives, such as the Institute for Advanced Studies and Institute on the Environment. All are more narrowly targeted entities than the Humphrey School and none are degree-granting.

Alumni still can refer to their alma mater as the Humphrey Institute as long as they retain their “school spirit,” quips Atwood.