We urge the State Board of Regents to recognize Utah Valley University engineering programs for what they are -- engineering programs.

The regents have put some unrealistic constraints on the Orem school, which currently turns out people with a wide variety of engineering skills. But, astonishingly, UVU is not allowed to use the word "engineering" in naming most programs and degrees.

If you go through the computer engineering program, for example, you'll end up with "computer science" on your degree instead of "computer engineering." It makes a big difference when you're job hunting. It's an unfair slight, given the quality of UVU's undergraduate engineering program, comparable to undergrad training at the University of Utah or Utah State.

While it's true that UVU offers no graduate-level engineering -- at least not yet -- its basic program measures up. Nobody is asking to substitute "master's degree" for "bachelor's."

The naming of a degree is no trivial point. Titles do matter. A "computer engineer" can make more money and has access to more jobs than a "computer scientist." And that's just one way Utah's higher education bureaucracy holds back UVU from fully developing its engineering capabilities. A great many more students would enter the program at UVU if the degree more accurately reflected the training received.

How could such a short-sighted view develop?

Actions speak louder than words: The state's top educrats seem to think engineering education in Utah should be limited to the U and USU. One rationalization is that Utah Valley students could attend those campuses. But many prospective engineers already have jobs in Utah Valley, and many of them already support families. They want to live here; they can't just uproot themselves and move to Salt Lake or Logan.

It's also suggested that they could commute. But the trek up north is no simple journey. It is unreasonable to expect that people who have jobs and families also be required to fight traffic, find a place to park, attend class, drive home, do homework, perform family chores, then go to work the next day.

The geographical reality is accompanied by another problem: an apparent bias against the kind of practical programs UVU offers. The U and USU provide excellent engineering programs. But theirs are highly academic, designed to train the professors and engineers who will dream up breakthrough technologies. That's great, but there's also a crying need for engineers who will actually build and run things.

That's where UVU comes in: From its beginnings as a technical school, it has strived to produce people equipped with skills to come in the door and help companies succeed right away. That's what its College of Technology and Computing does right now, in programs that are engineering in everything but name.

Giving UVU's programs the formal moniker of "engineering" would not undercut the other state universities -- it would complement them.

Yet for some reason, state education officials have refused to let UVU hang the word engineering on anything at all, and for the moment, attempts to expand engineering programs on campus have stalled.

For perspective, look at the many other states that offer a plethora of programs at a wide array of campuses. Some UVU officials point to California's higher education system as an example. That state's 11 well-known research universities are supported by 23 regional universities that focus on applied education and research. Together they supply Silicon Valley and other high-tech hotbeds with the engineers they need.

UVU already plays a similar role, but with more state support it could do much more. This is vital, because Utah Valley companies need top-flight technicians and engineers who can turn entrepreneurial visions into reality.

Part of the obstacle in the state education bureaucracy may be a prejudice that UVU engineering programs would not cut the mustard. But that's a decision best left to those who accredit the programs, not made by the regents.

Looking at UVU's impressive record of growth over the years, there are abundant reasons to believe that it will be able to successfully build respected programs that benefit not only students but businesses throughout the region.

The Utah higher education bureaucracy should help, not hinder, the process.