UNLV snubbed by Henderson college

Friday, June 23, 2000 | 11:18 a.m.

ELKO -- In an apparent slap in the face of UNLV, the proposed state college in Henderson chose today to align with the University of Nevada, Reno to work for accreditation.

UNLV President Carol Harter said the decision was "a bit of surprise and a disappointment." UNLV had offered to sponsor the state college, which is to start in the next two years.

Richard Moore, president of the Henderson school, said he wanted good working relationships with both universities.

The Henderson college would have joint programs with UNLV, but the prestigious job of sponsoring Henderson for accreditation should go to UNR, Moore said.

Harter said Moore never talked to her about joint programs, and she said UNR was not a logical choice because of its distance from Henderson and the fact it would be getting a new president.

At today's Board of Regents meeting in Elko, Regents Steve Sisolak and Tom Kirkpatrick, both of Las Vegas, objected to bypassing UNLV. Sisolak said this creates a "morale and image problem" and called it a "step in the wrong direction."

Sisolak said it will make UNLV and Henderson competing schools.

Kirkpatrick said it was unfair to put this burden on a new president to be chosen for UNR. It's "ludicrous " to select UNR as the sponsoring institution, said Kirkpatrick, adding that he was concerned about the schools working together now. A spokesman for the faculty senate at UNLV said it offered to work as the sponsoring institution.

The second day of the regents meeting started with an attack by Dorothy Gallagher, senior member of the board, on Sisolak, calling him an "agent of destruction."

Gallagher said she was embarrassed by the conduct of the board Thursday in a session that featured heated discussion over the operation of the deficit ridden Fire Science Academy in Carlin.

Sisolak posed a number of questions about the environmental problems at the fire academy, which has lost more than $5 million.

Joe Crowley, the retiring president at UNR, which oversees the fire academy, said the financial picture has turned around and it should be making money in the future.

The board also approved the appointment of Dan Miles as interim vice chancellor for finance and administration for the next year. Miles currently is head of the Legislative Fiscal Division.

Also approved was the appointment of Anthony Flores as vice president for finance at UNLV and Dr. Rebecca Mills as interim vice president for Student Life for the next year at UNLV.

Interim Chancellor Tom Anderes also released the proposed salary increases for presidents of the various campuses.

Anderes suggested a 3 percent increase for Harter to $192,532; 5 percent for John Richardson at the Truckee Meadows Community College in Reno to $153,532; Ron Remington at Great Basin College for 5 percent to $141,194; 2.5 percent for Stephen Wells at the Desert Research Institute to $176,300 and Carol Lucey for 2.5 percent to $133,250 at the Western Nevada Community College in Carson City.

There was no recommended salary increases for Crowley since he is leaving and for Robert Silverman at Community College of Southern Nevada and Moore at the state college in Henderson since they both have taken the job recently.

The regents will vote at its next meeting on the salary recommendations.

Regent Howard Rosenberg of Reno said he will make a motion at the August meeting to freeze the salaries in view of a state tight budget. The pay of the presidents was frozen for this year.

Anderes said these salaries are below in the medium in the market place. And these presidents have performed outstanding in tough times, he said.

Sisolak objected to some presidents getting bigger pay raises than others.