You’d think a bill making a one-word change to a college name would be a pretty pro forma matter.

Think again.

Senate Bill 21-008 would remove the word “junior” from the names of three colleges in rural Colorado: Trinidad Junior College, Otero Junior College in LaJunta and Northeastern Junior College in Sterling.

The bill won unanimous approval from the Senate Education Committee on Feb. 24 and was placed on the consent calendar, meaning it was likely to pass with little debate and near-unanimous approval.

Apparently, somebody forgot to ask Northeastern Junior College alumni and residents of Sterling what they thought about it, according to state Sen. Jerry Sonnenberg, R-Sterling.

Over the weekend, Sonnenberg asked his constituents. The reaction wasn’t positive, with the majority opposed to the change. Four supported and 100 were against, including students, faculty, administrators and the community.

Among the comments, Joyce Maker, a first-year student , wrote that “I strongly feel the name should remain as Northeastern Junior College … . NJC is a campus with big-school experiences at a small-school cost.” It’s a good step to take before going to a university, or a two-year college for others, she added.

Sen. Cleave Simpson, R-Alamosa, whose district includes Trinidad, told the Senate, somewhat ruefully on Tuesday, that “there are no simple bills,” a harbinger of what was to come.

Sonnenberg said he asked NJC President Jay Lee why he wanted to change the name. The word “junior” is detrimental to recruiting, he was told. But when Sonnenberg asked Lee what the college’s advising board thought, it turned out he had never asked them, although four members of that board sent a letter of support for the bill. Did the college talk about the name change with the alumni or the community? No, Sonnenberg was told.

“I don’t know if it’s good or bad,” Sonnenberg said, but it’s indicative of “systematic problems” at the college, which he said is facing declining enrollment. The college has a good reputation, and removing the name “junior” doesn’t change that, he said. 

Sonnenberg also blamed Joe Garcia, the president of the community college system, for pushing the change through.

“You can’t have somebody in Denver telling NJC this is the way it’s going to be without some sort of community engagement. This is the ultimate urban telling rural, ‘this is what’s better for you,’ ” Sonnenberg said.

But Simpson said he had gotten support from the community, back in January. That included letters of support from the four of the six advisory board members, the Sterling City Council, and two of the three county commissioners in Logan County. He also spoke to Garcia, who pledged to continue engagement with the community. “I was comfortable sponsoring the bill,” believing that community engagement had taken place, Simpson said.

But Sonnenberg said those who support the bill did so without any public discussion. “There’s a reason there isn’t a sponsor from northeastern Colorado,” Sonnenberg said. The House sponsor, Rep. Richard Holtorf, R-Akron, has Otero and Trinidad in his district but not Northeastern. 

Sonnenberg offered an amendment on second reading Tuesday that NJC be removed from the bill, to give the college time for community engagement, but the amendment failed to win enough support. 

Senate Minority Leader Chris Holbert recalled when he served on the House Education Committee that Mesa State College came to the legislature for a rebranding, to Mesa State University. Name changes for the institutions of higher ed are familiar, he said.

They came with an incredibly detailed marketing package, polling data and input from the community, faculty, alumni and students. That name change was handled in an outstanding way, Holbert said. “It reminded me of a private sector marketing campaign,” he said. What frustrates him is that a similar type of engagement did not appear to take place in Sterling. 

The president of NJC should follow the example of Mesa, Holbert said. “It’s not too late to encourage that,” he said.

Sen. Rhonda Fields, D-Aurora, is a graduate of a junior college, and said she did not get the reasoning for removing “junior. Many of our community and junior colleges offer concurrent enrollment for high school students to earn college credit,” she said. “We don’t need more confusion on the difference between a junior college and community college … . What’s so bad about the word ‘junior’?”

Wednesday, Sonnenberg sang a markedly different tune, asking for a “yes” vote on the bill. There’s discussions afoot in the House, he said, and he asked that the bill head to the House and let them resolve the issue. Two of the three colleges have done their due diligence and deserve to have their needs met. 

Fields also changed her tune on Wednesday. The term “junior” is outdated. “I was stuck in the past … words do matter; it’s time to update the term.”

The bill passed on a 34-1 (Sonnenberg the lone “no” vote) and now heads to the House.