An MTSU task force has called on the university to change the name of Forrest Hall. The panel voted Wednesday night, though two members wanted to keep the name of the ROTC building, which was meant to honor Confederate general Nathan Bedford Forrest.
“I chose to formally retire the name of Forrest Hall because I know that we are always making progress and strides to be inclusive and celebrating the diversity on MTSU’s campus,” task force member Lindsey Pierce said.
Opponents point to Forrest’s well-documented history with the Ku Klux Klan, while supporters say he denounced the KKK before his death.
Students in attendance at the hearing in Murfreesboro celebrated the decision while recognizing it’s not a done deal.
“For us, it’s a victory in a war we are fighting,” student Brandon Woodruff said. “But it’s just a battle. We understand that there is still a long process that has to happen in order for the building’s name actually to be changed.”
The task force did not discuss alternatives to Forrest Hall, though at a previous meeting the chairman suggested naming the building after a former professor and World War II veteran.
MTSU president Sidney McPhee, who set up the task force, will now have to decide whether to take the recommendation to the Tennessee Board of Regents and the state’s Historical Commission — a process which could drag on until 2018.
Lauren Frederick contributed to this report.
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