Bard College at Simon's Rock - Name

Name

The name "Simon's Rock" comes from a large rock, a glacial erratic, currently in the woods on the campus, a short walk from the main part of the campus. At the time that Simon's Rock earned its name (in the early 1920s), the woods that now surround it were part of the vast area of land called Great Pine Farm. The rock was a favorite spot for people who lived nearby, especially children. One neighborhood child, named Simon, claimed the rock as his own.

When envisioning the college in the early 1960s, Elizabeth Blodgett Hall deliberately named it nothing more than "Simon's Rock." Her reasoning for this was that even she didn't know if it would be a high school, a college, or something else.

Throughout its short history, Simon's Rock has gone through names such as "Simon's Rock," "Simon's Rock Early College," "Simon's Rock of Bard College" (for a period after 1979, when it was acquired by Bard College) and "Simon's Rock College of Bard".

In 2006, it was announced that the school would once again change its name, making it "Bard College at Simon's Rock". Vice President and Provost Mary Marcy said that the reasons for the change include an effort "to be more clear about identity" and "to be very clear about the Bard College system." Reactions were mixed among students, employees and alumni, many of whom were staunchly opposed to the name. The relationship with Bard College, which is more clear than it has ever been with the new name, has become a point of contention among members of the school community. The name change went into effect in August 2007.