2 days ago
25 years ago, a stunning announcement began Ricks College's transformation to BYU-Idaho
At the turn of the century, the conventional wisdom among Ricks College leaders and students was that the little school in Rexburg, Idaho, would always be a junior college.
Former Ricks College President Steven Bennion once said he was asked at least weekly when Ricks would become a four-year college while he led the school from 1989-97 .
'My answer was always, 'probably never,'' he said.
That viewpoint evaporated on June 21, 2000, after a stunning decision.
'I'm pleased to announce that Ricks College in Rexburg, Idaho, will change from its present two-year, junior college status to a four-year institution,' said President Gordon B. Hinckley, president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the school's sponsor.
'The new four-year school will be known as Brigham Young University-Idaho, with the name change designed to give the school immediate national and international recognition,' he said.
The school and community has spent the past week launching a celebration of the 25th anniversary of the announcement today and will spend the next 18 months honoring the transformation and growth of BYU-Idaho.
That growth has indeed been transformative.
At the time of the announcement, Ricks College had 8,628 students. In 2024, BYU-Idaho served more than 30,000 students on campus using a unique, three-track system that keeps the campus humming year-round, a change also anticipated by President Hinckley.
'BYU-Idaho will shift its emphasis to a year-round activity program designed to involve and meet the needs of a diverse student body,' he said.
The school also has maintained another focus President Hinckley set for it in 2000.
'BYU-Idaho will continue to be teaching-oriented. Effective teaching and advising will be the primary responsibilities of its faculty, who are committed to academic excellence,' he said.
The Deseret News reported that the change was meant to provide more in-depth higher education for a greater number of students. That certainly has been achieved over the past 25 years.
In fact, moving to a university system paved the way for massive growth across the Church Educational System. BYU-Idaho was the breeding ground for BYU-Pathway Worldwide, which launched in 2009 with 458 students. Today, the global online program has approximately 80,000 students supported by BYU-Idaho's extensive online offerings.
Ricks College didn't officially become BYU-Idaho until Aug. August 10, 2001.
A month later, another former Ricks College president, President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ, spoke on campus.
'There is the miracle in how much they have done,' he said. 'In those 15 months, they created a detailed plan, hired new faculty, received conditional accreditation status which could have taken years, and then launched this new venture, BYU-Idaho.
'And change will not end,' he said. 'The phrase 'Rethinking Education' is not to be only a slogan for the transformation from a two- to four-year status. The school is to be a place of educational innovation, permanently.'
Since the changeover, BYU-Idaho has built out more than 100 bachelor's degrees and its online powerhouse.
The celebration of the school's evolution, which began as an elementary school in 1888, will continue through December 2026. It is expected to include three special issues of the BYU-Idaho magazine and a 'Why BYU-I' social media campaign.
The president of the school during the transformation was Elder David A. Bednar. Now a member of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, he has said the move was a watershed moment in the history of the Church of Jesus Christ.
'The creation of BYU–Idaho was one of the most important educational events of the Restoration,' he told the Church News for the 20th anniversary.
