With a cool $2.5 million dollars coming into this university over the next ten years in return for the rights to have the events center named the UCCU center, some may wonder what exactly does it take to get a name on a building here.
Events centers such as the newly named UCCU center require contracts for a certain number of years in order to have their name on the building. This provides an opportunity for name recognition to be built over contract term.
This is not the case, however, for other buildings on campus. Once a name is on a building it is there to stay as long as the building is standing.
According to Vice President of University Relations Val Hale, there are two ways to get a name on a building here. Honorary naming is the first way to get your name on a building. For example, the Sorensen Student Center was named after Wilson Sorensen, a key figure in the evolution of the school.
The second and most common way to get a name on a building is to donate money to the school. This will put a name on a building in perpetuity. A percentage, usually 25 percent, of the cost is paid by the donor and they are then given the naming privilege.
With donors becoming harder to find, it becomes a marketing strategy for the university to match potential philanthropists’ interests with the needs of the school. Some of the other buildings on campus that are up for naming are the incomplete science building, the liberal arts building and the library.
According to Hale, the asking price for the library is in the $8 million to $10 million range. Ultimately, however, the Board of Trustees will make the final decision on what a building’s name will be.
Additionally, following a national trend among universities, UVU is also accepting donations from philanthropists to have their names immortalized on classrooms, bathrooms, benches or trees.
