Panel to explore naming controversies on university campuses

Naming change controversies have roiled university campuses in the United States and around the world in the past several years. The Committee to Establish Principles on Renaming is bringing a select group of leading decision-makers and faculty from universities around the country for a moderated conversation on naming and symbols on campuses.

Titled “What’s in a Name? The Naming and Symbolism Controversy on University Campuses,” the event will take place on Monday, Sept. 26 noon-1:30 p.m. in Rm. 120 of Yale Law School, 127 Wall St.

The community is invited. Admission is free.

The panelists will be:

• Edward L. Ayers, the Tucker-Boatwright Professor in the Humanities and president emeritus, University of Richmond
• Daina Ramey Berry, associate professor of history and of African and African Diaspora studies, University of Texas-Austin
• Tomiko Brown-Nagin, the Daniel P.S. Paul Professor of Constitutional Law and co-director of the Program in Law and History at Harvard Law School and professor of history in Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences
• Matthew E. Carnes, associate professor in the Department of Government and in the Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service, and director of the Center for Latin American Studies, Georgetown University
• Brent L. Henry, vice president and general counsel, Partners HealthCare System, and vice chair of the board of trustees, Princeton University

John Fabian Witt, chair of the Committee to Establish Principles on Renaming, will moderate the discussion, which will be followed by an opportunity for questions from the audience.

The Committee to Establish Principles on Renaming is seeking input from community members as it pursues its mission: to develop principles for determining whether to remove a historical name from a Yale building. To learn more about the committee or to submit comments, visit its website.