DeSantis signs TCC rebrand
NSF Staff Report
Gov. Ron DeSantis announced that he signed a measure that will rename Tallahassee Community College as Tallahassee State College.
The renaming of TCC follows nearly every other school in the state’s network of 28 colleges shedding the “community college” label in favor of “college” or “state college.”
Hillsborough Community College will be the only remaining school in the system to keep the community college moniker.
TCC opened as Tallahassee Junior College in 1966. The name was changed to Tallahassee Community College in 1970 to reflect its community orientation and involvement. Now in its 57th year, the College is one of the top-ranked two-year institutions in the nation, having earned prestigious recognitions from organizations like the Aspen Institute, the American Association of Community Colleges, and Achieving the Dream.
The College is recognized as the top transfer institution to both Florida State University and Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University.
In announcing that he signed the bill, DeSantis said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, that the name change for TCC will be “conforming it to other institutions in Florida that are branded as state colleges.”
The measure (SB 522) will take effect in July.
“We are so grateful to the governor for taking the time to mark this significant occasion with us,” TCC President Jim Murdaugh, Ph.D., said in a news release. “The new name reflects who we are as an institution, better recognizing our institutional status and impact. We look forward to moving into the future together as Tallahassee State College.”
The name change is estimated to cost about $500,000 according to a legislative analysis of the bill. Expenditures would be related to signage, publication, documentation and advertising.
The cost “will be absorbed by the institution, and expended over two fiscal years,” the analysis said.
A group of TCC leaders attended the signing, including Murdaugh, Trustees Eugene Lamb, Jr., Frank Messersmith, Karen B. Moore, Monte Stevens, and Charlie Ward, Jr., Vice President and Chief of Staff Candice Grause, and Student Body President Jullion Griffin.
They were joined Sen. Corey Simon, sponsor of the bill, and Sue Dick, President and CEO of the Tallahassee Chamber of Commerce.
