Manchester University
A new horizon dawns, with a new campus, a new Doctor of Pharmacy Program and soon – a new name

The new Academic Center and its Welcome Center provide a new view of the North Manchester campus. (Click on photo for enlargement) Related links: Manchester University Q&A Name change news release More pictures from this article:

Tyler Hoyle ’13ma, who is working on his Master of Athletic Training degree, stretches the hamstring of Austin Rieke ’13 with guidance from Zach Dougal, clinical education coordinator for the master’s program.

BEGINNING JULY 1, 2012, Manchester will be called “University.”

Members of the Board of Trustees reached the historic decision on
April 21 the Manchester way, with deliberate, thoughtful dialogue
respectful of perspectives and passions. They especially mulled: Why Manchester? Why now?

In a nutshell, Manchester today is a more complex institution, growing
beyond undergraduate liberal arts and its residential campus, with:

• a professional doctoral program in pharmacy, with faculty engaged in research agendas
• a non-residential campus in Fort Wayne, with room and ideas for more new programs and community engagement in that space
• graduate programs in athletic training and education, with more possibilities

“University” is strategic, mission-centered. “A new name will help us
communicate to external audiences our expanding educational
competencies and goals,” said President Jo Young ’69 Switzer in carrying
the University recommendation to the Board of Trustees.

The new name reflects Manchester’s new place in Indiana’s educational and economic landscape:

• building on Manchester’s emerging regional roles
• reflecting Manchester’s institutional growth
• conveying more status to potential students and their families, and community leaders
• enhancing international recruiting

“We are innovating and exceeding expectations because we are grounded in our Mission and focused on our strategic priorities,” said President Switzer. “A change in name represents an evolutionary step for Manchester, not a revolution of Mission or purpose.”

“Our Mission is unchanged,” emphasized Marsha Palmer ’68 Link, chair of the Board of Trustees. “We will continue to respect the infinite worth of
every individual. We will continue to graduate persons of ability and conviction, whether they have bachelor’s degrees, master’s degrees or a Doctor of Pharmacy, or some degree we have not yet imagined.”

And Manchester likely will continue to draw the majority of its students from Indiana (85 percent this year) and send the majority of its graduates into
Indiana’s workforce or graduate schools, said Dave McFadden ’82, executive vice president and Manchester’s enrollment and marketing visionary. That’s attractive to employers as well as Indiana business leaders, legislators and grant-givers.

Students still will discover extraordinary experiences on campus, in the community and abroad that will transform their world view. “We are committed to that. It’s what we promise and what we deliver,” said McFadden.

Future generations of students still will look back on their Manchester years and recall comfortable class sizes, faculty who push and praise and share
discoveries. They will recall meaningful service and experiences that prepared them for their journeys. “Only the name is changing,” said McFadden.

The recommendation and the Board’s decision were presaged by conversations with members of the Manchester community – alumni, faculty, current students, staff – as well as “blind” surveys of potential students and community leaders.

Internally, “University” creates an overarching identity that encourages a common purpose and diminishes “home and away,” “us and them” thinking, between campuses, said President Switzer.

Strategically, it creates physical and visionary space for new programs that build on Manchester’s strengths and emerging needs in its market. It is a market reality: Without strong students who choose Manchester and proud alumni who give back, the institution cannot achieve its Mission. “University” opens the windows wide to new programs and degrees, and opportunities at the Fort Wayne campus.

Surveys as current as this spring indicate that potential Manchester students and their families perceive “university” as a more attractive institution, reported SimpsonScarborough research and marketing firm. In-depth conversations with northeast Indiana community leaders, including numerous CEOs, revealed other impressions of a name change:

• renewal, revitalization
• momentum
• one umbrella identity for all that is Manchester
• high-quality, credible, prestigious

Recruiters say University in Manchester’s name will help attract students. Potential U.S. students and their parents surveyed also said “university” sounds more prestigious.

What’s next? Thousands of preparations and decisions.

Also on July 1, the “University” name change will accompany new designations for Manchester’s three academic units: College of Undergraduate Studies, College of Graduate Studies and College of Pharmacy.

“We have done our homework, talking with other institutions that made the change to university, gathering their to-do lists, schedules and budgets,” said McFadden. “We also learned that a name change will not affect our accreditation with any of the agencies that review us. We do not need to apply to any agency to change our name.”

At the College’s request, Lilly Endowment Inc. included funds for a possible name change in its $35 million grant for the Pharmacy Program.

The logo must change, as well as marketing strategies. Design teams are working on those. Awaiting the Board’s decision, administrators delayed
placing letterhead and Campus Store orders. And they were creative on some decisions, including resurfacing the gym floor, which now touts
“Manchester” and “Spartans” and a 16-foot Spartan logo. But no surname.

Great sales of Manchester College gear and keepsakes are under way in the Campus Store, where visiting alumni will continue to find reminders of
their “College” days until the merchandise sells out, said Heather Gochenaur, store manager.

“Besides the obvious changes to publications, websites, signs, uniforms, etc., Manchester’s name is more ubiquitous off campus than we ever imagined,” says Dan Chudzynski, director of marketing. “We’re developing an inventory of dozens of agencies, directories, professional organizations, institutions and businesses – even mapmakers – who will all need to recognize the change.”

Members of the Class of 2013 have a decision, too: Will “College” or “University” appear on their diploma? “It’s their choice,” says Registrar Lila Van Lue ’79 Hammer.

Economics major Brad Murphy ’13 of Fort Wayne wants “University” on his diploma when he graduates next spring, noting, “University seems more prestigious, a better status symbol." Caleb McAfee ’13 agrees. The psychology major from Ossian, Ind., predicts employers will be more
impressed by “University” on his resume.

Alumni can follow the progress of the transition to University on the Manchester website.

BY JERI KORNEGAY