Piedmont College is changing its name.
Early next year, the school in Demorest will become Piedmont University, the college's Board of Trustees decided last week. The proposal was unanimously endorsed by the Piedmont College Alumni Board.
“Increasingly we are viewed as a regional liberal arts university,” stated President James F. Mellichamp. “The name shift not only reflects who we are – but also where we are going.”
Mellichamp said the move was in recognition of dramatic growth and transformation at the institution over the past two decades.
The college’s four academic schools – Harry W. Walker School of Business, R.H. Daniel School of Nursing & Health Sciences, School of Education, and School of Arts & Sciences – will become colleges.
The college, which also has a campus in Athens, is coming off its largest-ever freshman class, has completed several large campus improvements, and recently purchased almost 90 acres adjacent to the Demorest campus for expansion.
The college, which enrolls more than 2,500 students, offers degrees from baccalaureate through doctoral levels. It is developing plans to acknowledge the new name and also celebrate its 125th anniversary in 2022.
“This change opens an exciting new chapter in the history of Piedmont,” said Piedmont Board Chairman Thomas A. “Gus” Arrendale III. “It was made after careful deliberation and discussion and reflects the amazing progress that is taking place at Piedmont.”
