Updated Feb. 22: Revised to reflect that Nancy Kolsti has resigned.

A member of the University of North Texas communications department has resigned after referring to a petition calling for a new campus residence to be named for a woman or person of color "a form of reverse racism."

Nancy Kolsti (University of North Texas)

Nancy Kolsti, who had worked for the college for 26 years, resigned this week for personal reasons, UNT spokeswoman Julie Payne told the Denton Record-Chronicle.

Kolsti emailed Student Government Association senator Misaki Collins from her personal email account in response to the petition, which Collins posted on Twitter on Feb. 6, along with her contact information.

"You can certainly suggest individuals whom you think should have the residence hall named after them," Kolsti wrote, "but you must realize that there are many longtime UNT administrators who are deserving of the honor and were beloved on campus, and they happen to be white males ....

"If UNT is to be a truly inclusive campus," Kolsti continued, "then it must be color blind and gender blind in many of those decisions, including deciding who gets a residence hall named after them. ... Insisting that UNT must have a residence hall named after another woman or a 'person of color' when there are other deserving individuals is imposing a quota system, and, to me, that is a form of reverse racism."

Collins, a junior majoring in political science, told the North Texas Daily that she launched the petition after gleaning through campus tours "that none of the buildings are really named after a person of color or a woman" despite the school's efforts to espouse diversity and a 50 percent undergraduate minority population. "I knew there had to be a change."

Only two of UNT's 87 primary buildings meet those criteria, she said: Clark Hall, a freshman residence hall, and the off-campus Kristin Farmer Autism Center, both of which are named for women.

In her email, Kolsti said UNT buildings should be named for those who deserve such an honor, "not individuals who are chosen to fill a quota system that you think the university should have because you feel that it is important 'to promote diversity in every aspect of the student experience.'"

Collins, 20, tweeted a statement in response to Kolsti's email saying that the reverse racism argument "is in itself racist. It's ignoring that people of color are disproportionately affected by our country's systems. ... The sentiments presented in this email further solidify why it's important to promote representation on our campus."

In a statement attributed by the North Texas Daily to UNT spokeswoman Kelley Reese, the university said it had investigated the matter and determined that Kolsti had expressed her views as a private citizen, as she had a right to do, and was "not speaking in her capacity as a UNT employee."

"In fact, the university believes that the naming of our buildings and how our campus appears are very much a part of the student experience and should reflect the core values we hold dear," the statement read. "Honoring our diversity is one of our most important values."

Response to the petition inspired Collins to draft a student government resolution that she will submit, along with the names of possible honorees, to UNT President Neal Smatresk, the Board of Regents and UNT System Chancellor Lesa Roe, among others.

Collins' petition, which closes Feb. 28, has more than 750 signatures so far from UNT students, alumni and several professors.

Staff writer Tom Steele contributed to this report.