University Committee on Naming Honors


The University Committee on Naming Honors examined new historic names and reviewed contested historic names of buildings, spaces, programs, scholarships, and other celebratory titles that honor individuals at Emory.

President announces follow-up decisions based on Committee Report


The faculty, staff, alumni, and student members of the University Committee on Naming Honors analyzed the legacies of individuals whose names are honorifically recognized and elevated in spaces across our campuses, with the goal of deepening our understanding of the lives of those whom we celebrate at Emory.

After actively evaluating the recommendations of the committee, consulting with experts, and considering the perspectives of Emory students, faculty, staff, leadership, and alumni, President Fenves announced additional decisions about the names reviewed by the committee.

Read the announcement from President Fenves
close up of emory main gate with blue sky behind

Emory Libraries Naming Honors Research Guide

Emory Libraries has developed a research guide for the names reviewed by the Committee on Naming Honors. The guide provides a number of resources on the life of and times of select individuals that help to contextualize the university’s recent examination of its named spaces and programs.

Explore the Research Guide
Emory entrance white marble wall

Emory to Rename Campus Spaces and Professorships

Emory University President Gregory L. Fenves will rename campus spaces and professorships honoring Robert Yerkes, a psychologist who vigorously supported eugenics, and L.Q.C. Lamar, who was a staunch defender of slavery.

Read the Full Story

The Committee's Charge


Serving in an advisory capacity to the president, the University Committee on Naming Honors examined new historic names and reviewed contested historic names of buildings, spaces, programs, scholarships, and other celebratory titles that honor individuals. Furthering work done by previous committees and using as a guide the “Proposed Principles for Bestowing Naming Honors at Emory University,” developed by the Task Force on Legacies, the committee was authorized to:

  • review historic names associated with buildings, spaces, programs, scholarships, and other honors that have become contested. It may conduct historical research on names submitted for review and evaluate the appropriateness of the reviewed names of buildings, locations, named professorships, and other honorific titles; and 
  • conduct research on potential new names submitted for evaluation.

The committee submitted its report to President Fenves on May 8, 2021.

Read the Final Report

Committee Membership

Fred Smith Jr.

Committee Chair and Associate Professor of Law, Emory School of Law

Faculty
NameTitle
Dabney P. Evans 98PHAssistant Professor of Global Health, Rollins School of Public Health; Director, Center for Humanitarian Emergencies
Allison Collis GreeneAssociate Professor of American Religious History and Director of the Master of Theological Studies Program, Candler School of Theology
Jill HamiltonAssociate Professor, Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing
Daniel LaChanceWinship Distinguished Professor in History, 2020–2023, Emory College of Arts and Sciences
Carlton Mackey 05TDirector, Ethics & the Arts and Associate Director, Ethics and Servant Leadership, Center for Ethics; Adjunct Faculty, Department of Film and Media, Emory College of Arts and Sciences
Carolyn MeltzerExecutive Associate Dean, Faculty Advancement, Leadership, and Inclusion; Chair, Department of Radiology and Imaging Sciences; William Patterson Timmie Endowed Professorship, Emory School of Medicine
Giacomo NegroProfessor of Organization and Management; Goizueta Term Chair, Organization and Management, Goizueta Business School; Professor of Sociology (by courtesy), Emory College of Arts and Sciences
Salmon ShomadeAssociate Professor of Political Science, Oxford College

Students
NameSchool
Gabrielle Buchbinder 21BBusiness
Adaora Ede 21NNursing
Samantha Lanjewar 24GLaney Graduate School
Ronald Poole II 23CEmory College

Research Assistants
NameDepartment
Danny BallonGraduate Division of Religion
Kim NealDepartment of History

Staff
NameTitle
Darlene BerryExecutive Administrative Assistant, Office of the Provost; Administrative Support
Melissa DalyAssistant Vice Provost and Chief of Staff; Liaison to Office of the Provost
Anjulet Tucker 00C 09PhD
Director of Presidential Initiatives and Special Projects; Liaison to Office of the President

Administrators
NameTitle
Laura J. HardmanTrustee Emerita
Joshua NewtonSenior Vice President for Advancement and Alumni Engagement
Staff
NameTitle
Darlene BerryExecutive Administrative Assistant, Office of the Provost; Administrative Support
Melissa DalyAssistant Vice Provost and Chief of Staff; Liaison to Office of the Provost
Anjulet Tucker 00C 09PhD
Director of Presidential Initiatives and Special Projects; Liaison to Office of the President
Philip Wainwright 85G
Vice Provost, Global Strategy and Initiatives