To whom it may concern,

We, the undersigned student doctors of SHSU-COM, strongly oppose the renaming of physical locations at the SHSU-COM campus to honor any congressmen or congresswomen. While we recognize the contributions of elected officials, such as promoting the bill that allowed our school to receive state funding, we do not agree with other bills that they have authored, voted in favor of, or signed into place. We have concerns that naming public spaces after politicians will lead to politicization of our campus and will not accurately represent the diverse communities that utilize said spaces.

Should they be renamed at some point, the Teaching Theater and ALC should be named after individuals who encompass the beliefs and spirit of the school. As an osteopathic medical school, we strive to learn and heal. The policies supported by the aforementioned congressmen time and time again have demonstrated their opposition to our school mission.

A selection of pertinent bills demonstrating Senator Creighton’s opposition to the school mission is as follows:

Sponsor and Voted YES to HB89: Prohibits Specific State Contracts or Investments to be made with Certain Companies that Boycott Israel

Sponsor and Voted YES to  SB17: Repeals Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Trainings and Initiatives at State Universities

Sponsor and Voted YES to HB3979: Prohibits the Teaching of “Critical Race Theory” in Schools

Voted NO to HB950: Requires Equal Pay for Women

Voted YES to HB1280: Prohibits Abortion if Roe v Wade is Overturned by the Supreme Court

Voted NO to HB2962: Children’s Health Care

Voted NO to HB109: Child Health Care Expansion

Voted YES to SB1311: Prohibits Certain Treatments for Transgender Children

A selection of pertinent bills demonstrating Representative Metcalf’s opposition to the school mission is as follows:

Co-Sponsor and Voted YES to HB793: Prohibits Specific State Contracts with Certain Companies that Boycott Israel

Voted YES to  SB17: Repeals Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Trainings and Initiatives at State Universities

Sponsor and Voted YES to HB3979: Prohibits the Teaching of “Critical Race Theory” in Schools

Co-Sponsor and Voted YES to HB1280: Prohibits Abortion if Roe v Wade is Overturned by the Supreme Court

Voted NO to HB3285: Establishes Services for Substance Use Disorders

Many students can attest to being directly impacted by the aforementioned actions, which have contributed to the death of loved ones overseas, taken away personal healthcare rights, and discounted the voices and rights of many groups represented at this school. 

We cannot imagine entering rooms named after men who support policies. These rooms were built for the benefit of medical students and faculty that spend countless hours here daily, with the intention of promoting focus towards academic progress. In the scenario that certain spaces are renamed after the above congressmen, we believe that the intended goal of these spaces would be compromised. 

Instead of naming public spaces after politicians whose views do not align with the entirety of the SHSU-COM student body, we are advocating for an alternate way of appreciating efforts made, and keeping all current lecture hall names to maintain the neutral environment of campus. 

We urge the decision-makers to reconsider any proposals to rename physical locations after these congressmen. The students at SHSU-COM undoubtedly are grateful for the contributions and the efforts of everyone that has been involved with the arduous mission of promoting funding and expansion of SHSU-COM. Naming the Teaching Theatre and the Active Learning Classroom after only two people that have had small involvement diminishes the collaboration and efforts of the multitudes of people since the creation of this school that have received far less attention.

Furthermore, any discussions regarding changes to SHSU-COM campus should require student and faculty insight and dialogue in the future, as they will be impacted the most with said changes. Continuing to neglect the opinions of the students that are actively supporting the success of SHSU-COM through choosing this school for their career education and in paying tuition, and faculty that have chosen this as their place of work, will only perpetuate feelings of disrespect.