Today the Texas A&M University System Board of Regents approved the change of the name of Texas A&M University-Commerce to East Texas A&M University.
With the change, “East Texas” returns to the school’s name for the first time since 1996. That’s when East Texas State University was renamed Texas A&M University-Commerce. That nomenclature reflected the university’s move from the Texas State University System to the A&M System.
The school known to many as “Old E.T.” was founded in 1889 as East Texas Normal College. Over the years “East Texas” was the constant foundation of the institution’s name. The college evolved into East Texas State Normal College 1917, East Texas State Teachers College in 1923, and then East Texas State College 1957. In 1965, the school became known as East Texas State University, a name it bore until 1996.
The university has published an official statement on the name change, along with a video and a FAQ page. All of those are viewable at the university’s website, which remains, for the time being, tamuc.edu.
