Charlotte Hsu

Reporter/ Higher Education

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Henderson college’s grad rate disappoints: Nevada State College, new kid on block, prone to transfers, dropouts; Saturday, July 5, 2008; Of 63 full-time freshmen who began studying at Nevada State College in fall 2002, the school’s inaugural semester, just 10 had graduated from the institution as of spring, according to the college.
Keeping his work alive: When UNLV history professor Hal Rothman died at age 48, he had five research projects in the works. Now his former students and others are finishing them.; Friday, July 4, 2008; The last time Mike Childers talked to him, Hal Rothman was a month away from death.
Southern Nevada’s college options grow with private start-ups: Thursday, July 3, 2008; Have you heard of Regis University? How about National University? Or Touro University Nevada?
On college campuses, talk is all about budget cuts: Town hall meetings offer chance to vent, ask questions, even get news updates; Monday, June 23, 2008; These days, public colleges are filled with employees worried they could be out of a job in a year or so, another product of Nevada’s financial crisis.
UNLV looking beyond GPAs: Admissions using other criteria to attain a well-rounded body; Friday, June 20, 2008; UNLV officials are looking to give more prominence in their school’s admissions process to measures other than grades. Administrators want to consider applicants’ life circumstances when assessing their performance and potential.
World leaders relaxing in the desert?: Mag item touts retreat on Lake Las Vegas, but no one here has heard of it; Monday, June 16, 2008; The idea sounds noble, even if it doesn’t mesh perfectly with the decadence synonymous with Las Vegas.
UNLV’s new look coming at history’s cost: Regents get plan for park-like space along Maryland Parkway; Monday, June 16, 2008; UNLV has a Maryland Parkway address, but the university’s entrance on that street has long been less than grand.
CSN swimming upstream in quest for funds: Thursday, June 12, 2008; Even though the state higher education system is bracing for deep budget cuts, The College of Southern Nevada wants more money.
Amid budget cuts, UNLV pronounces its CSI program dead: University officials say they can’t afford the necessary step of accreditation; Saturday, June 7, 2008; A post-mortem would reveal that the victim had been starved intentionally.
Student rallies UNLV peers against budget cuts via Web: Site lets students register protest easily, instantly; Saturday, June 7, 2008; In one day, UNLV senior Hepi Mita’s Facebook group ballooned to more than 50 people, a sign that officials in Carson City have managed to rile up a constituency known for apathy: students.
Moving in different directions: As UNLV prepares to open the College of Urban Affairs’ new digs, it is also bidding farewell to instructors being let go because of budget cuts; Wednesday, June 4, 2008; The Greenspun College of Urban Affairs’ new home at UNLV will, by all accounts, be dazzling.
Besides classrooms and offices, the 120,000-square-foot building will house state-of-the-art labs and radio and TV studios.
Man, woman, nurse, engineer: Usual associations of these words reflect workforce, concern some in academia; Tuesday, May 27, 2008; The numbers are striking. Of 208 degrees UNLV’s College of Engineering awarded last year, 171 went to men.
Long-term goal for UNLV: Raise graduation rate: Only half as many finish as at major California universities; Tuesday, May 27, 2008; As they celebrated their university’s 50th birthday in the 2007-08 school year, members of the UNLV community were planning their school’s future.
UNLV building project has shot at funding, even in budget crunch: Saturday, May 17, 2008; The state’s financial crisis may not squash UNLV officials’ chances of getting money in the next biennium for their most important construction project — a new academic building for the hotel administration college that would sit alongside a privately funded hotel and conference center on campus.
UNLV nursing student earns one of state’s first Ph.D.s in field: Friday, May 16, 2008; When Lara Carver graduates from UNLV on Saturday, the 37-year-old will be one of the first two students to earn a Ph.D. in nursing from a Nevada university.
Rogers giveth and taketh away, until he gets what he wants: Miffed at lack of support for fundraiser, he pulls diversity luncheon funds; Wednesday, May 14, 2008; Leaders of Las Vegas’ minority communities have met monthly over the past couple of years to munch on catered salads and sandwiches while chatting about diversity in higher education.
With that pay, no way, many would-be graduate students tell UNLV: Sunday, May 11, 2008; “A recipe for poverty,” one student called it. Not something to flaunt, professors agree.
Intent on her doctoral dream: Former high school teacher delves into study, research — leaving life on hold; Sunday, May 11, 2008; None of it happened by accident. The months spent living out of a 1993 Ford Explorer, the mountains of debt, the gamble of putting off having children at 36 years old — everything has been deliberate, everything planned.
A class's varied views of Vegas: Field work teaches students photography is an art of interpretation; Sunday, May 11, 2008; To the person who walks head down, eyes on the ground, the city is a mess of sewer caps and gutters, of cracked pavement, of concrete darkened by the footsteps of countless pedestrians.
Richards CSN’s likely pick, pleasing higher ed chief: Looks like interim head will get nod after near-$100,000 search; Thursday, May 1, 2008; Michael Richards wasn’t the “warmest” or “fuzziest” candidate for the College of Southern Nevada’s presidency, in the opinion of university system Chancellor Jim Rogers. Nevertheless, Rogers thought Richards would be the best man for the permanent job — so much so that he encouraged Richards to apply.
Thinking globally and acting locally: In a competition involving more than 1,000 colleges and universities, students at UNLV excel at increasing awareness of world poverty; Saturday, April 26, 2008; We’ve heard it all before.
UNLV students are apathetic. The school is full of commuters, and people juggling classes, jobs and children simply don’t have time for extracurricular activities on campus.
Familiarity may breed acceptance for CSN contender: Thursday, April 24, 2008; Michael Richards’ insider advantage was on display Wednesday as he made the case that he, rather than an out-of-state contender, should be appointed president of the College of Southern Nevada.
Stability at CSN helm: 3 choices: Two outsiders, one insider say they’d stay, and share what they’d bring; Wednesday, April 23, 2008; The College of Southern Nevada has had five temporary or “permanent” presidents in as many years.
So it’s no shock that stability is a topic that keeps popping up in conversations about who will lead the school next.
Here’s a chance to query CSN presidential finalists: Monday, April 21, 2008; Members of the College of Southern Nevada community will have an opportunity this week to vet the final candidates for the presidency of their school, which enrolls more students than any other Nevada college.
Online learning is higher education’s growth track: Studies find employers, however, favor traditional degrees, but tide may be turning; Saturday, April 19, 2008; Here in Las Vegas, we thrive on a frenetic pace of life. So it might seem only natural that our valley’s public colleges are on the menu of 24-hour offerings, competing in what was once the domain of for-profit giants such as the University of Phoenix.
Trash talk to thousands at once, anonymously: JuicyCampus Web site gives UNLV students free rein; Thursday, April 10, 2008; By putting a modern twist on the age-old tradition of talking smack, a new Web site is giving students a place to make public the types of rumors they’ve long traded privately. JuicyCampus, launched in October, has become popular in the past few weeks at UNLV, one of about five dozen colleges with its own message board on the site.
Virtual world, real college class: UNLV is the latest university to get with the Second Life program; Monday, April 7, 2008; Bigbabyjezus Undercroft, sporting a black suit, sunglasses and gaudy jewels, is actually Dane Young, a senior who enrolled in the course because he was an enthusiast of games, such as World of Warcraft, that take place in virtual worlds. He quickly discovered that unlike Warcraft, Second Life has no objectives — no monsters to slay, no quests on which to embark.
In Second Life, people do whatever they want — dance, shop, build homes, start businesses, or, in the case of Kalana Mount, act as slaves or slavers.
The diversity of activities in which users can engage is part of what makes Second Life appealing to colleges.
Scholars can conduct “in-world” interviews with Second Lifers who hail (in real life) from different countries, religions and fields of work. Mullen has four avatars, one of which is a “furry” — an animal-like incarnation — that he uses when studying communities of furries.
‘Interim’ could be removed from CSN president’s title: Monday, April 7, 2008; College of Southern Nevada’s interim president will be a candidate for the permanent post.
Program will teach how to teach deaf pupils: Friday, March 28, 2008; Nevada State College officials are preparing to launch the state’s only program that will train educators to teach students who are deaf or hard of hearing.
Legal eagles don't fly far from the nest: UNLV’s William S. Boyd Law School marks 10th anniversary; Wednesday, March 26, 2008; As it celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, Nevada’s only law school has earned its share of praise.
A youngster in the legal world, it nevertheless made U.S. News and World Report’s best law schools list with a tie for 100th place.
Talent drawn to former warehouse: Monday, March 24, 2008; Housed in a converted warehouse on American Pacific Drive in Henderson, Touro University Nevada isn’t an extravagant place. The school, which opened in 2004, offers degrees in medical and education fields. It has fewer than 1,200 students. The university’s community is so intimate that students store lunches and dinners in refrigerators in common areas.
UNLV wants to open campus in Middle East: Region’s tourism hot spot a good fit, dean says; Friday, March 21, 2008; Tucked between Saudi Arabia and Oman, with beaches kissed by the Persian Gulf, the United Arab Emirates might seem alien to Nevadans. But the oil-rich Middle Eastern federation with a population of more than 4 million has close ties to Las Vegas.
College’s first permanent building to meet many needs: Saturday, March 15, 2008; Nevada State College’s first permanent building is nearing completion.
‘Howdy, pardner,’ colleges saying to developers wanting to build on campus: Friday, March 14, 2008; In 1955, when state lawmakers gave $200,000 toward UNLV’s first building, the money came with a condition: Southern Nevadans would have to come up with $35,000 to buy land that would become part of the university’s Maryland Parkway campus.
From desert to Antarctica: Searching for climate clues: Nevadan heads team studying ancient ice core; Tuesday, March 11, 2008; Hundreds of miles inland on Earth’s coldest, windiest continent, the snow-covered terrain is flat and vast, the sky huge.
Valley college students create their own work-study: Education suffers when they delay graduation or drop out, colleges say; Monday, March 10, 2008; Her eye shadow sparkling, her lips painted a bold red, Imperial Palace “dealertainer” Nichole Shields high-fives players at her table who have just won a hand of blackjack. It’s just before midnight, and around her on the casino floor, dealers, tourists, locals, pit bosses and long-legged cocktail servers waltz to Vegas’ music: cheers and laughter, chips clinking, the dizzying sounds of slot machines singing. A UNLV student by day, Shields, 23, impersonates Madonna by night. She’s wearing white stiletto boots, fishnet stockings, a white corset and a long blond ponytail.
Student’s plan illustrates quirk in local job market: She may spend years working on Strip before using degree; Wednesday, March 5, 2008; Felicia Hersh, a junior at UNLV and an aspiring museum curator, says she will probably pursue a master’s degree in history after she finishes her undergraduate studies.
Slip in award’s value worries first Millennium scholar: Monday, Feb. 25, 2008; Daniel Coming, who returned to Nevada last year to work for the Desert Research Institute, is worried that other young, ambitious Nevadans won’t have the same educational opportunities he did.
Cellist’s ties to teacher benefit UNLV: Young man’s talent praised for its unpredictability; Tuesday, Feb. 19, 2008; UNLV music professor Andrew Smith recognized Aleks Tengesdal’s talent the day the two met about a decade ago in Tengesdal’s North Dakota hometown.
Some say setting fees every two years gives universities a blank check: Students don’t realize big hikes are possible halfway to graduation; Saturday, Feb. 16, 2008; A freshman who entered UNLV in fall 2007 knew registration fees for a full load would be $3,503 his first year and $3,885 his second.
The price tags for the remaining years of his college education were mysteries.
How budgets cuts have bled students, faculty: Regents hear stories of how CSN has been hurt; Monday, Feb. 11, 2008; The CSN community, like others in the Nevada System of Higher Education, is struggling with budget cuts and the student fee increases the regents discussed Thursday.
New programs, few students: Quick to add classes, colleges often overestimate demand for fresh offerings; Saturday, Feb. 9, 2008; George Ladkany is the type of scholar UNLV officials would hate to lose as they try to burnish the university’s reputation.
A student in the Master of Science program in biomedical engineering, he is working with a team of researchers on a U.S. Army-funded project aimed at better protecting soldiers from explosions.
Well-spoken and opinionated, Ladkany is enthusiastic about the university and the opportunities it offers students.
CSN leadership left in lurch: Four of former president's cohorts leave, creating key vacancies at college; Friday, Feb. 8, 2008; Since Richard Carpenter left his post as president of the College of Southern Nevada, three of the school's top administrators have followed him to Texas, and a fourth, who had also worked with Carpenter in another state, quit early this year.
Third try: Tech guru needed for overhaul: New hire would ride herd over upgrade up to $100 million; Saturday, Feb. 2, 2008; The search for a director to oversee an overhaul of college computing services statewide will begin anew for the third time.
Is the Web turning youths into voters?: Friday, Jan. 25, 2008; Presidential hopefuls are talking to young people through online social networks — posting profiles and jousting in debates sponsored by YouTube and Facebook.
State's universities split on using fees in response to budget cuts: Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2008; For years, students at UNR have paid the same registration fees as those at UNLV. But this fall, UNR students could have to cough up more for their education than their peers down South.
Small-town sports: He’s got ’em covered: Online reporter crisscrosses southern Nevada, highlights what brings isolated communities together; Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2008; Now in his last year of college at UNLV, Ben Rowley reports on high school sports on a blog he stated for a journalism class. His project provides a service to rural students and fans who do not get much coverage.
Undecideds find little help in debate: Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2008; Jan Strout, left, and Lauren Mayeux watch the debate at the Applebee’s on West Charleston Boulevard. They were part of a group of voters with a particular interest in health care issues.
He collects art, adventures: UNLV lecturer tells mesmerizing tales from the world over; Tuesday, Jan. 15, 2008; To enter George Cohan’s Henderson home is to walk into another world. A statue of Ganesh, a Hindu deity, greets guests in the living room. Japanese prints on rice paper adorn the walls. On shelves and tables sit curiosities from every end of the Earth a painted ostrich egg, a Chinese cricket cage, a 400-year-old pocket Quran with tiny gold lettering. Here, every trinket is a treasure. Every souvenir, the subject of a story.
Richardson camp ready for new hero: Campaign workers sad but dedicated to the party; Friday, Jan. 11, 2008; With several candidates still in the running, the downtime for Richardson backers may not last long.