Buildings and places play an important role in how community members interact with Oregon State University. When OSU places a name on a building, it speaks to its values and mission to work towards creating and institution that respects and affirms the dignity and value of all individuals and communities.
Oregon State community members have raised concerns regarding several campus buildings and places whose namesakes may have held or espoused racist or otherwise exclusionary views. These community members pose an important question: “What does it mean for OSU to value equity and inclusion if individuals after whom its buildings are named did not?”
The OSU Architectural Naming Committee has created a process by which requests to rename buildings can be evaluated and acted upon. Engagement of the broad OSU community and a committment to reckoning with difficult facets of the university's history is central to this process. This website contains updates and information about the building and place name evaluation process.