By Madelyne VanHemert
The Humanities Division at Vol State implemented a name change and is now known as the Division of Humanities and Fine Arts.
In December the dean of Humanities and Fine Arts Dr. Erin Mann proposed the idea of including “Fine Arts” in the Humanities Division title.
“As for the reason for the change, I don’t always think it’s clear to students if ‘Fine Arts’ (theater, music, visual art, entertainment media in part) are part of ‘Humanities.’ We’re proud of those programs, just like we are of our more traditional Humanities programs, and it should be clear to students and people in the community that they’re part of what we do,” said Dr.Mann.
The goal of the name change is to shed the spotlight on the fine arts and allow it to have its own title, rather than just being grouped under Humanities.
The name change was first discussed with the assistant dean, Dr. Day. This was followed by the division chairs, coordinators, and a handful of other faculty, particularly those in Fine Arts.
“I told them it wasn’t necessary, as I didn’t think our department (or music or theatre) felt bad being lumped in with traditional humanities coursework and it was only a name change. But my understanding is it helps align our college with some of the universities that our students transfer to more closely,” said Professor Smyth of the Humanities and Fine Arts division.
The request was submitted and The Board of Regents approved it quickly.
“Right now we’re focused on updating the website, catalog, and other places online or in the paper where our name appears. I don’t think there’s any plans to update the building name… I don’t know of plans to update other signage immediately, but as things need to be refreshed I’m sure they will get the new name,” said Dr. Mann.
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