Campus discusses uniting under one name

Cal State Long Beach was originally named Los Angeles-Orange County State College upon its founding in 1949. Thirteen years and three names later, the school became California State University, Long Beach, a name that has been steadfast for the past 42 years — until now.

Terri Carbaugh, associate vice president of legislative and external relations, said the campus needs to unify under one name for marketing purposes and to brand the institution.

Currently, campus community members and media outlets refer to the university by several names, including CSU Long Beach, Long Beach State, The Beach and Cal State Long Beach.

Carbaugh said the name of the university itself would not actually change; it would only be a name change for marketing and publication purposes. She said the university is leaning toward rebranding itself as Long Beach State University, but the decision is still up in the air.

The decision to rebrand the university came after the Division of University Relations and Development hired a marketing consulting firm, 160over90, Carbaugh said. The firm, which has helped publicize other universities such as Notre Dame and Michigan State University, suggested that CSULB unify under one name, among other things.

“They recommended having a style guide that promotes a similar-looking feel in our publications,” Carbaugh said. “[It] would be a singular, dominant identity for those who are external to our campus.”

Chair of CSULB’s Academic Senate Dan O’Connor said the Division of URD has already held focus groups, given presentations, interviewed faculty and staff, and talked with different representatives from the campus community.

The presentation addressed how the Division of URD plans to kick off its campaign in the fall to raise money for the university. O’Connor, who saw the presentation three times, explained why the university is considering rebranding itself.

“One finds [identity confusion] when going to the bookstore and seeing [merchandise with] Cal State Long Beach mom and Long Beach State dad,” he said. “They’re talking about changing the website to give everything a more streamlined look.”

Carbaugh said the process requires input from several voices on campus.

“A name for the university is a significant campus asset,” Carbaugh said. “I think we would only settle on a dominant name after we’ve had a lot of conversations with … students, faculty, staff [and] … input from experts who have expertise in helping universities market and brand themselves.”

CSULB English professor Norbert Schürer said he believes the university should market itself as CSULB rather than LBSU.

“In my opinion as a faculty member, [CSULB] sounds more serious and more helpful … with being taken serious on a national and international level [compared] to Long Beach State, which sounds informal, not rigorous [or] serious,” Schürer said.

Kevin Argueta, a sophomore political science major, said he preferred Long Beach State but for the same reason.

“I like the acronym, and it sounds more prestigious,” Argueta said.

Maxine Pate, a junior industrial design major, does not agree with Argueta and said she likes the succinctness of Cal State Long Beach.

“I feel it’s weird when people say Long Beach State, [but] California State University, Long Beach is too long to say,” Pate said.

Schürer said there needs to be more disclosure on the issue and proof of how it would improve the university’s “identity crisis.” He also said he would like to see the numbers behind it, including how much the marketing firm’s services would cost and how much has already been spent.

On the other hand, O’Connor said the name change would not affect much on campus, considering it is merely for branding and marketing purposes.

“People [can] refer to this campus by however they wish to refer to it,” O’Connor said. “But for the media and marketing relations program, there is an interest in having a common name and reference, and I think that’s where we see a lot [in] Long Beach State University.”

Schürer said another concern about the fundraising campaign is where the money generated through the campaign would be funneled.

“It’s great if there’s a lot of money in the foundation,” Schürer said. “[But] for students, that’s completely pointless unless they’re actually spending that money on [them] and not on … building a new pyramid or giving the volleyball team a bunch of scholarships. That will not help the majority of students on this campus.”

Carbaugh said there are many conversations about this issue but that nothing is solid yet, and the university is still in the planning process.

“The campus has a long history of assessing and re-assessing its priorities, and at this moment in time, it’s important for universities to do a better job of convincing the public of its value,” she said.