Rogers wants state surplus for education

Friday, Jan. 28, 2005 | 11:12 a.m.

Interim university system Chancellor Jim Rogers plans to ask state lawmakers on Monday to use some of the state's budget surplus to increase higher education funding.

Rogers targeted the $300 million in extra money Gov. Kenny Guinn wants to give back to taxpayers in a refund of motor vehicle taxes.

The University and Community College System of Nevada is severely underfunded and needs at least $47 million more for capital construction projects not included in the governor's budget proposal, Rogers told a group of businessmen this morning at the private Faith Lutheran Junior Senior High School.

Rogers' speech was part of a breakfast for the school's business advisory council.

If the state can at least give the university system a good foundation in meeting its immediate growth needs, Rogers said he would be better equipped to solicit money from the business community.

Currently, the governor's budget proposal recommends funding the system's institutions at about 84 percent of the funding formula, Rogers said.

That formula, however, is based on the median level of funding at peer institutions, meaning the state is funding the university system at only a little more than 80 percent of "mediocre" funding levels, Rogers said.

"That's a formula for failure," Rogers said. "We can't compete (with other institutions), because we don't invest."

Rogers said he is already wrangling with top businessmen in the community to raise donations of up to $25 million for UNLV's capital campaign. Rogers will be spearheading the campaign later this summer, after he steps down as interim chancellor. Rogers, millionaire owner of Sunbelt Communications Co., has pledged more than $29 million of his own money to UNLV's William S. Boyd School of Law.

Rogers also told businessmen about a public-private partnership in the works with the Thomas & Mack Development Co. to build a $2.5 million moot courtroom for UNLV's law school. The Thomases want to use their own contractors and architects to build the facility, for which they will donate the money.

Rogers said he hoped that partnership would lead to similar endeavors to build facilities at the Community College of Southern Nevada.

Two items not on the governor's capital construction budget that Rogers said the system desperately needs are the Desert Research Institute's Computer Automated Virtual Environment Facility and the community college's auto technology facility.

Rogers will make a similar speech to state lawmakers Monday when the university system has its first budget hearing. Monday's meeting will be in Carson City, but will be broadcast live by video-conference at the Grant Sawyer State Office Building in Las Vegas, beginning at 8:30 a.m.