DALLAS — Updated at 4:47 p.m. with comments from the chancellor.
One of Texas' largest community college systems will now be known as "Dallas College" starting in the fall semester of 2020.
The Dallas County Community College District board of trustees approved the name change on Tuesday. It's the first major change in the educational organization's 54-year history.
The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges will give final approval in June.
School leaders decided in February to make the unprecedented move of consolidating their seven separate colleges into one. Chancellor Joe May said this "One College" plan will better serve the students and give them access to more classes in more locations.
"The name change is something that we didn't take lightly at all," May said. "We're looking for another 50-plus years or longer for that to be a relevant name for the institution."
The board of trustees considered hundreds of suggestions during the past few months, using focus groups for different perspectives. They talked to hundreds of people including students, business leaders and faculty.
They eventually picked Dallas College in order to "build on the equity of the previous name and the global awareness of the Dallas area itself."
"Some individuals wanted it even more specific about the geography in the area," May said. "Others thought it should be something separate or part of the history of Dallas and North Texas. At the end of the day, Dallas College was the one that made the most sense for us."
The new Dallas College will include Brookhaven, Cedar Valley, Eastfield, El Centro, Mountain View, North Lake and Richland colleges. These will be called campuses pending accreditation.
May said one of the main reasons school leaders considered making this change is to help students finish their degrees.
Current accreditation rules require a student to earn at least 25% of their credits from one institution. Now that Dallas College will be acting as one educational institution, students can count courses taken from all locations for their potential degrees.
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