HIGHER EDUCATION:

Kirk Kerkorian’s gift feeds future

$14 million will fund UNLV institute for seeking grants

Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009 | 2 a.m.

Tiffany Brown

The foundation of Kirk Kerkorian, the billionaire businessman and philanthropist who is the largest shareholder of MGM Mirage, made the $14 million gift to UNLV in honor of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, his friend of 40 years.

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An initiative to raise money to advance education, health care and social services in Nevada will be launched at UNLV today with a $14 million grant from Kirk Kerkorian’s Lincy Foundation.

The gift will fund the creation of The Lincy Institute, with a research and development staff of 10, which will specialize in identifying and landing local, state and national grants to improve the quality of life in Nevada, the university announced in a statement. The institute also plans an academic component by funding 12 faculty fellowships to contribute to the institute’s work.

The institute will work on behalf of dozens of public agencies and nonprofit organizations in Nevada involved with such issues as health care, education, child and family advocacy, homelessness, suicide prevention and physical disabilities.

The institute will report to UNLV’s vice president of research and graduate studies, and work closely with the office of the executive vice president and provost.

Kerkorian, the billionaire businessman, philanthropist and largest shareholder of MGM Mirage, is making the gift in honor of Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, with whom he has had a 40-year friendship.

Nevada’s need for more money to help nonprofit organizations is well-documented. The U.S. Census Bureau reported in October that Nevada ranked last in the dollar amount of federal grants per capita.

The creation of The Lincy Institute, which is expected to win approval from the university system’s Board of Regents next month, comes at a critical time for Nevada: The state is starved for money yet has been identified by the Brookings Institution as one of five Western states poised to become a new American heartland.

The Brookings report concluded that Nevada needs significant investments and cooperation at the local, state and federal levels to develop the programs, services and infrastructure needed to support growth.

The Lincy Institute’s organizers envision helping their partners to identify and address community needs, then help secure the necessary funding to meet those goals.

“This is a terrific day for UNLV and our community,” said Mark Fine, chairman of the UNLV Foundation board of trustees. “It shows what can be done when a wonderful donor like the Lincy Foundation gets an idea of how to bring that which a great university does best — quality research — together with some of the most pressing needs of our community.”

The Lincy Institute is expected to take up residence on the second floor of Greenspun Hall, a location chosen for its proximity to the Greenspun College of Urban Affairs.

Discussion: 13 comments so far…

By LasVegas2009

8/26/09 at 7:37 a.m.

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Mr Kerkorian Thank You Las Vegas and the citizens of the state of Nevada Thank You sir....
By dodgerchuck

8/26/09 at 8:23 a.m.

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yeh,lets hope he doesnt take it back like chancellor rogers did w/his "donation"
By serious

8/26/09 at 8:31 a.m.

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Mr. Kerkorian, who is a quiet and unassuming man, deserves more credit for what he has done for the State of Nevada. From the building and developing major casino resorts and creating thousands of jobs for Nevadans, to his many, seldom mentioned philanthropies, he has done so much for so many for such a long time - at least for some 40 years. Thank You, Kirk!
By Patrick_R_Gibbons

8/26/09 at 8:39 a.m.

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Spending about $8 billion this year hardly qualifies Nevada as starving.
By rejco100

8/26/09 at 9:12 a.m.

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Oh No! The money just fell into the bottomless pit of government employees pensions & benefits; engineering students still have not been able to figure out or design a capture tool for getting it back!
By Critias

8/26/09 at 9:36 a.m.

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Of all the casino moguls, I like Kirk (and his hotels) the best. This article is another reason why.
By porter1rockwell

8/26/09 at 12:42 p.m.

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Geez,
Where's the Harry Reid bashers on this one? Mr. Kerkorian, thank you. In the spirit of Howard Hughes, Hank Greenspun, Paul Price and all the other independent thinkers/ supporters of NEVADA it is a step away from the corporate greed that has entwined Las Vegas and the Great State of NEVADA. Maybe "starving" means more than inept leadership overestimating ones budget. It might mean creation of sustainable processes besides reliance on everything gaming.
By trailspast

8/26/09 at 1:40 p.m.

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rejco 100

Do you ever have anything good to say? You poor pathetic creature.

It is his money and he can do anything he wants to do with it.
By Gregory

8/26/09 at 2:28 p.m.

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Seeing the glass half full, is this a small substitution payment for back taxes never do, all the lost revenues never generated over many years in the past by an investor- lucrative tax structure in Nevada during a long period of growth and prosperity in Clark County which enriched a few entrusted with the licenses, leadership, stewardship and control of Nevada's gaming industry; and how the direction, tone and quality of that growth in recent years (sex-alcohol sales-club life) influenced today's huge socio-economic structure problems in Vegas with big problems, from crime to a Strip Corridor executive structure that is "heads down" out of touch with local community, and how to help fix the problems (?)

Lucrative, record breaking table games revenue just wasn't enough, it had to be re-invested in creating a bad subculture of excess, at the expense of adequate funding for the important things that make up good places to live, long term, and raise a family.

Perhaps this donation is recognition change is now pressing, and one such beginning point to making things better.

But, it's not hard to be somewhat cynical and state the timing and open publicity of this donation is closely dated to a City Center opening soon, as in "see how giving someone can be in giving back"?

Seeing the glass half full, certainly the objective, especially benefiting Southern Nevada qualify of life though the UNLV system, is on the mark. As such, if making this donation public, why not also "publicly" go one big step further by "publicly" challenging other direct gaming competitors to match or better this donation?

Mr. Kerkorian has done many things privately over the years in donations, make no mistake. But as an investor who, by admission, "does not get involved in the operations of his business", MGM Mirage has tragically missed the mark since purchasing Mirage Resorts, with damage to the community well in excess of this amount, cumulative for many hospitality families who have been (or will be) disenfranchised and/or hurt at the expense of shareholders (why not file and relieve employees from high debt structure for years last Spring, accepting loss and responsibility) and executive compensation (see Lanni).

I grew up around big money, I went to school with big money, I know how big money thinks, and I know how big money works to insure making even more big money in the future. It's really not that much different anywhere in the world, with some notable exceptions.

These are challenging words, but Nevada has many challenges to meet in a catch up mode over the next few years. Now that the money has been made, and through high debt structures that remain manageablebly pushed to the limits, however tinkery, the "status quo" of ownership control has been locked in. So, it's time to open City Center, and put something back into the community which creates long term, fundamental quality of life growth as well.
By Gregory

8/26/09 at 2:32 p.m.

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It's time to say, hey, I need new customers.
By Babyboomer

8/27/09 at 8:03 p.m.

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REJO 100 is off his medications again....I can always tell
By mamabear

8/27/09 at 8:54 p.m.

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Okay . . . just to add some reality to this donation that I was always told by the old boys who knew: "There ain't no free lunch."

It all sounds and "looks" so noble, but bottom line, what does K.K. want? What's the motive? Tax write off? This man does not do anything without an agenda.
By smithsez

10/2/09 at 3:13 a.m.

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Speaking on behalf of Kirk's admirers, This fine man's wealth is only what the media says, he is as solid a man as has walked this earth. His true wealth is with his integrity and morals. I have never met another like him.

Tom Smith, CFO of Help the Children Fdn.