Board of Regents District 2

Thursday, Aug. 15, 2002 | 9:23 a.m.

Former Clark County School Trustee Robert Forbuss will square off against lawyer and accountant Bret Whipple in the race for University System regent, District 2.

The district lost its elected leader, Regent Tom Wiesner, to leukemia this year, leaving the position temporarily filled by Laura Lopez Hobbs until the November election.

The district stretches from Cheyenne Avenue to the north to Desert Inn Way to the south and is bordered by Rainbow Boulevard and Interstate 15 to the east and west, respectively.

Robert Forbuss, who started his career as a high school history teacher, hopes to be an advocate for faculty on the board.

Forbuss says he also wants to bring cutting-edge technology to higher education and bring adequate resources to for institutions to function on their own.

Forbuss was the owner of Mercy Ambulance, a company that started small and grew to one of the largest private paramedic services in the United States.Forbuss has also been heavily involved in the Las Vegas Boys and Girls Club, was president of the Las Vegas Rotary Club and served as a trustee for the Clark County School District for eight years.

Contender Bret Whipple, 36, says he wants to ensure that a college education is affordable. He also wants to produce more teaching and nursing graduates and expand existing programs at the state's higher education institutions to fit economic needs to prepare students in relevant fields.

Whipple is both an accountant and attorney. He has also managed his family cattle ranch outside of Las Vegas on the side for 25 years.