Over the past several weeks, roughly 1,500 people have weighed in on whether a name change is right for Northwest College. A sizable majority of the responses submitted through Monday night — including many from alumni — oppose a change.

The NWC’s board opened an online survey and began taking public input following its September meeting, where Trustee John Housel reopened the idea of renaming the institution Yellowstone College.

At Monday night’s board meeting, trustees heard from eight people — five in favor and three opposed — during its normally quiet public comment period.

NWC Foundation Board President Steve Rockhold read a letter stating that the foundation opposes a name change at the present time due to too many unknowns, such as worries over the effect to donations and other financial implications.

“After much discussion, the foundation implores the board of trustees to conduct thorough market research and present solid rationale and benefits for a name change, noting that if any change is made too quickly or poorly executed, it could cause lasting harm,” Rockhold read. “Absent further exploration on the matter, the foundation board is not in favor of the resolution [for a name change] …”

Supporters, meanwhile, included students, faculty and “lifelong learner” Richard Jones, who came armed with printouts showing the number of colleges with names similar to Northwest’s.

Professor Elaine DeBuhr, head of the Visual and Performing Arts and Humanities Department at NWC, noted many of the arguments listed in the resolution that Housel put forward.

“Yellowstone is a name that the world recognizes. Yellowstone is a gold mine for recognition and essentially free advertising. It is name that commands people's attention,” she said, adding “Imagine that we are creating a new college today. Would we call it Northwest College? I doubt it.”

The open forum came right after an updated enrollment report, and commenters on both sides of the debate dipped into the stats to further their argument.

According to Institutional Research Manager Lisa Smith’s report, enrollment is up this fall after years of declining or flat enrollment. However, the news is tempered by an expected drop in the number of upcoming high school graduates from Park, Big Horn and Washakie counties, which represent the college’s main pool of future students.

“We have to pivot and evolve to this digital age and what the students are looking for and help them find us,” said college marketing and graphic design specialist Jeremiah Howe, adding that a change to Yellowstone College would mean a lot of free publicity.

“This is not about the people that already know about us and nostalgia and memories,” Howe added. “I'm an alum from this college, and I love this college. I want to see this college benefit future students for years and years to come.”

However, former enrollment office employee Laura Riley — who saw three of her children go to the school and her husband work there as a longtime professor — urged the trustees to wait on a decision.

“We're in the process of almost being able to open our brand new student center, and when that was built, it was with the understanding to the community that it was going to help increase our enrollment,” Riley said. “And now we're adding more to the pot, saying that we're going to increase our enrollment by changing our name. I think we need to step back and see how our enrollment is handled.”

Monday’s meeting also offered another chance for trustees to weigh in.

Housel spoke extensively about his evolving thoughts on the matter — from initially voting against a name change years before, to becoming a founding member of an ad hoc committee to explore the concept.

The other member of that committee, Trustee Mark Wurzel, said that while he is “philosophically in support” of the name change as a way to increase enrollment, trustees need more information before making a decision.

“I think we need a current estimate of the cost — not an off the cuff kind of thing, which is kind of what we got,” Wurzel said. He also wants to know how long it would take to implement the change and “a best guess outline of the process to accomplish this, including increased recruitment staff if needed, and a budget if the name change is to increase recruitment.”

Meanwhile, Trustees Denise Laursen and R.J. Kost reiterated and expanded on points they made at the September meeting opposing a change at this time.

Laursen said the college could do more recruiting, mentioning that NWC was one of only two Wyoming community colleges that didn’t have representatives at state FFA in Cheyenne.

“We’ve got an amazing recruitment staff,” she said. “I’m not blaming anybody, I’m just saying we need to get those people up here.”

Kost once again asked for more evidence of how a name change would help.

“You know, the bottom line for me is, if we're going to change the name, then I better have some strong evidence of what it would do to guarantee that we have success,” he said.

Kost also noted the recent survey results opposing a name change and said he feels “bound to my community.”

“Do I say I'm going to ignore all that and do as I please, or do I respect the wishes of my community?” he asked rhetorically.

It’s expected that trustees will consider a vote on the resolution at their Nov. 11 board meeting.