Regents teaching while they’re campaigning

Benjamin Grove

Thursday, Oct. 22, 1998 | 12:10 p.m.

Board of Regents candidate Sherry Colquitt runs into a common question walking the campaign trail one door at a time.

"I get a lot of people asking me, 'What is a regent?' "

Regent candidates say the position they seek is not a high profile one. But they want voters to understand not only their own views but the purpose of the 11-member board, which oversees the operation of the state's two universities, four community colleges and the Desert Research Institute.

Six candidates are vying for three open seats on the University and College System of Nevada Board of Regents.

"I'd like to educate people as to what the colleges and universities have to offer -- the planetarium, the arts, athletics," said Steve Sisolak, who is challenging Colquitt for the District 2, Subdistrict G seat.

Colquitt, 57, describes herself as a lifelong volunteer. She sits on the Clark County District Board of Heath, the board of directors for the health-maintenance organization Healthplan of Nevada and the board of directors for Bankwest of Nevada.

"The regents board is one more step in the 31-year career of volunteering that I've had," Colquitt said. "I believe the future of Nevada will be determined by the strength of its universities."

Colquitt, who has degrees in nursing and finance, said she is most interested in fiscal accountability and in the universities producing more teachers.

Sisolak, 44, also said voters seem concerned about their tax dollars being plunged into new programs such as UNLV's fledgling law school and a proposed dental school.

"People say, 'These are all great ideas, but where is the money going to come from?' " Sisolak asked.

Sisolak also wants to pursue policies that will keep the state's top high school graduates from leaving the state.

Candidate for District 2, Subdistrict F seat Doug Seastrand said Nevada's universities had a bit of a "perception problem."

"We need people to recognize the value of our university system," said Seastrand, 38, an engineer.

Seastrand said the university system needs to adapt to a changing economy in Las Vegas and diversify with it. He said the system should consider new technology training, such as animation technology. He said it was up to the colleges and universities to train the Las Vegas entertainers of the future, such as opera singers and actors.

"We need to look at what the emerging markets are," Seastrand said. "We need to look at what we need to do to make Las Vegas not just a destination, but THE destination in the world."

Challenging Seastrand is Christopher Kindred, who favors creating safer campuses with more lighting and security.

"The (UNLV) campus has always been laid out in a way that is scary," Kindred said. "It's dark."

Kindred, 31, a freelance writer and political consultant, has worked on campaign teams for other candidates but admits that "I haven't spent dime one."

He said he also has concerns about proposals to bring organized athletics to community colleges.

"I'm concerned that what we're going to do is put more money in there that could be going to academic programs for students," Kindred said. "I'm concerned it's an expense that we don't need. Academics has to come first."

The District 2, Subdistrict C race features retired UNLV professor emeritus Tom Kirkpatrick, 70, and Las Vegas physician John Ellerton, 49.

Ellerton, a cancer specialist, is a volunteer member of the teaching staff at the University of Nevada Medical School.

Kirkpatrick said the Board of Regents needs to establish more rigid internal control of its budget.

"We need to make sure we have a good internal audit system so we spend our money wisely," Kirkpatrick said.