3 to be inducted into Nevada Business Hall of Fame

By Amanda Finnegan

Thursday, Feb. 17, 2011 | 2:05 a.m.

Three prominent business leaders will be inducted tonight into the Nevada Business Hall of Fame for their contributions to the state.

The inductees are Phil Satre, NV Energy chairman and former chairman of Harrah’s Entertainment (now known as Caesars Entertainment); Donald Snyder, the interim dean of the Harrah Hotel College and former Boyd Gaming president; and Barbara Greenspun, the late publisher of the Las Vegas Sun.

A nominating committee of business leaders across the state reviews the nominations before the UNLV College of Business Executive Advisory Board makes the final selection. The inductees will be honored at a dinner at the Mirage tonight that also marks the 10th anniversary of the Hall of Fame.

“We are pleased to honor these outstanding Nevadans and their numerous contributions to the business community in Nevada and beyond,” said Jay Kornmayer, head of the Wells Fargo gaming division and chair of the Executive Advisory Board.

Satre retired from his post as chairman of Harrah’s Entertainment in 2005 after 25 years with the company. He now serves as the chairman of NV Energy, chairman of International Game Technology and a director of the Rite Aid Corp. Satre also serves as a director of the National Center for Responsible Gaming.

Snyder was named interim dean of the Harrah Hotel College in April 2010. He is chairman of the board of directors for the Smith Center for the Performing Arts. Snyder was the president of Boyd Gaming from 1997 to 2005.

Before that, he was CEO of the Fremont Street Experience and First Interstate Bank of Nevada.

Greenspun will be the fourth woman inducted into the Nevada Business Hall of Fame. She served as publisher of the Las Vegas Sun until her death in June 2010. Among other causes she championed, Greenspun was an advocate for Jewish causes, higher education and women’s health.

With her late husband, Hank Greenspun, she co-founded the Greenspun College of Urban Affairs at UNLV and spearheaded the development of Green Valley, Las Vegas’ first master-planned community.

The Greenspuns also helped to found the city’s first cable television company, now operated by Cox Communications.

Hank Greepspun, who purchased the Las Vegas Free Press and renamed it the Las Vegas Sun in 1950, was also posthumously inducted into Hall of Fame in 2005. He served as the paper’s publisher until his death in 1989.

Previous Hall of Fame inductees include Howard Hughes, Steve Wynn, Jackie Gaughan, Sam Boyd and Bill Harrah.