ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The University of Michigan is taking steps to strip the name of a former president from a campus science building.

Clarence Little was president for four years in the 1920s. Critics say he lent his scientific expertise to groups that were in favor of selective reproduction, also known as eugenics. He also was accused of sowing doubt about smoking and cancer.

The Clarence C. Little Science Building at the University of Michigan.

President Mark Schlissel is in favor of removing Little’s name. The Board of Regents will vote Thursday.

Little’s name is also on a building at the University of Maine, where he was president before moving to Michigan in 1925.

Regents also will consider removing the name of late professor Alexander Winchell from a residence hall. He wrote a book that is cited by white supremacist groups.