Preferred name policy to allow students to go by nicknames in U. directory
Michael GranovetterUniversity students who go by a first name other than their legal one will now have the option to change their name in the student directory, University Registrar Polly Griffin announced in an email sent to the student body last week. Under this new “preferred name policy,” the email explained, students may designate their “preferred” name in the directory through SCORE. “As long as the use of this preferred name is not for the purposes of misrepresentation, the University acknowledges that a ‘preferred name’ can and should be used where possible in the course of University business and education,” Griffin stated in the email, adding, “We know that this feature is important to many students, and we are pleased to be able to offer this option.” Griffin deferred comment to University spokesperson Martin Mbugua, who explained that the administration had been discussing this policy change over the past several months after receiving numerous requests from students who prefer a name other than their formal one.
