Tuesday, May 30, 2006 | 7:22 a.m.
Local resident Amanda Leigh was one of the very first students to step foot in Nevada State College's vitamin warehouse when it opened Sept. 3, 2002.
Thursday she became one of a growing number of alumni to graduate from the Henderson start-up college, and one of the first to complete all of her degree work at the little college that could.
Students and faculty had to "collectively walk in unpaved, unlit and unmarked road" to make the college a reality, while critics argued that the college was a waste of money. But taking the road less traveled has made all the difference, Leigh said, quoting Robert Frost in her commencement speech.
Leigh was one of a handful of students graduating Thursday at the Henderson Pavilion out of the original 177 to enroll in the college. The first class of 13 students graduated in May 2004.
With Thursday's class of 120, 263 students have earned diplomas to date.
About 70 percent of Nevada State's students are teaching or nursing majors. More than 70 percent are female.
Among the graduates Thursday morning at Nevada State's third commencement was Shaun Gibson, son of Henderson mayor and Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jim Gibson. The mayor is on the college's foundation and was a major proponent in getting the college established.
Gibson said he never imagined that when he was fighting to get the college started that his own son would be a graduate someday. Shaun took classes at Brigham Young University and UNLV before transferring to Nevada State to finish his biology degree, primarily because he could actually get into the classes he needed, his father said.
Gibson said he was impressed with the personal attention his son and all students at Nevada State College receive. He believes the state college will provide key access to college while allowing UNLV to realize its aspirations of being a nationally competitive research university.
Speaking of graduates, students who wrapped up their degrees this spring may want to decide quickly if they want to consolidate all of their student loans.
Loan experts expect federal interest rates on Stafford and PLUS loans to rise 1.5 percent to 2 percent over current rates come July, to an estimated 7.13 percent for Stafford loans in repayment and 7.93 percent for PLUS loans. The exact increase is dependent on the Treasury bill auction on Tuesday.
Consolidating allows students to lock in current interest rates and reduce multiple loans taken over the course of several years into one easy payment. If students lock in their loans when rates are low, they can save considerable cash. But they also can get stuck with high interest if rates drop again.
Just two years ago students could lock in interest rates under 3 percent.
For information, graduates can contact their financial aid office or the U.S. Education Department at (800) 557-7392 or at loanconsolidation.ed.gov
UNLV's student newspaper made news of its own this week by winning a national award from the Society of Professional Journalists.
The society named the Rebel Yell as the best all-around, nondaily paper for newspapers published two to three times a week. Jennifer Allen and Nathan Sosa also were honored as finalists for the best editorial cartoon.
UNLV officials praised editor Laura Tucker for the professionalism she brought to the paper.
"This year it was far more like a paper than a club in terms of the way they worked," Rebecca Mills, vice president for student life, said. "They set a standard for other students to continue to strive for."
The paper is not part of the journalism program at UNLV, something Mills said she would like to change, and the quality of publication had waned prior to Tucker. Students had also struggled to keep a faculty adviser on staff.
Tucker graduated in May and is working as a staff writer for the View Neighborhood Newspaper.
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