The Intramural Center on the IU Bloomington campus will be renamed as the William Leon Garrett Fieldhouse. The Board of Trustees approved the name change unanimously Friday at its meeting.
Garrett was the first African American basketball player to play in the Big Ten Athletic Conference. He was also named as an All-American in his senior year and graduated as IU's all-time leading scorer. Garrett was also the third African American drafted into the NBA, before being drafted by the U.S. Army during the Korean War.
After serving, Garrett played for the Harlem Globetrotters before returning to Indiana to coach high school basketball. Then Garrett earned a master's degree from Butler University before joining IUPUI as assistant dean for student services.
President Michael McRobbie brought the proposal to the board as part of his proposal of renaming campus buildings. In 2018, Ora Wildermuth's name was removed after concerns over the former trustee's racist views.
In one 1948 letter, Wildermuth claimed the average intelligence of blacks was so far below whites that it was "futile to build up hope for a great future."
READ MORE: Wildermuth's Name Coming Off IU Building
McRobbie also announced the university naming committee will work to evaluate all building and structure names in the coming year including those named for David Starr Jordan which have come under increased scrutiny in recent years.
Contact Matt at mrasnic@iu.edu or on Twitter @Matt_Rasnic.
