PROVO — Brigham Young University Academic Vice President John S. Tanner said the university has formally changed the name of the College of Biology and Agriculture to the College of Life Sciences.
Two departments also received new names. The Department of Plant and Animal Sciences became the Department of Plant and Wildlife Sciences, to include the sciences related to stewardship of the earth's renewable natural resources.
The Department of Integrative Biology was renamed the Department of Biology to match its focus on general biology, ecology, population genetics and biological science education.
"The name changes more accurately define the restructured focus of the college and of these two departments," said Dean Rodney J. Brown. "Over the past seven years, the college has moved away from production agriculture, recognizing that BYU-Idaho and the land-grant schools of Utah and neighboring states cover these disciplines."
These changes included a reduction from six to five departments, consolidation of 40 undergraduate programs into 21 programs and a 30 percent reduction in the number of courses taught.