An exterior view of the Nevada System of Higher Education building Thursday, Oct. 14, 2021. YASMINA CHAVEZ
Friday, Nov. 5, 2021 | 7:32 a.m.
The chairwoman and vice chairman of the Nevada Board of Regents reportedly have stepped down from their officer positions on the board amid an investigation of accusations against them by the top administrator of the state’s higher-education system.
Chair Cathy McAdoo and Vice Chair Patrick Carter will remain on the 13-member board but will not serve as its two leading officers for the duration of the investigation, the Sun has learned. The change will become effective Nov. 12, when a special meeting has been scheduled to elect an interim chair and vice chair.
McAdoo and Carter were named in a complaint filed by Chancellor Melody Rose in early October alleging that the two regents discriminated against her based on gender, undermined her authority, committed ethical and code-of-conduct violations and engaged in other inappropriate behavior in an orchestrated attempt to oust her. She claimed that with their actions, McAdoo and Carter had subjected her to a hostile work environment. In response to her accusations, the regents hired a Las Vegas law firm to conduct an investigation.
Regent John T. Moran called for McAdoo and Carter to relinquish their officer positions pending the investigation, but the two initially stayed put until stepping down on Thursday. It is unclear why McAdoo and Carter chose to step down this week, but sources close to the situation said oversight of the higher-education system had been paralyzed during the weeks when they remained in place.
Under the structure of the system, the regents and the chancellor serve in roles similar to those of a school board and superintendent of a public school district. In the case of the regents, the chancellor and the top two board officers normally work together to set the regents’ agenda and prioritize their business.
In the weeks since Rose lodged her complaint, all three meetings that were on the regents’ calendar were canceled or postponed.
This week, the Sun also learned that Karin Hilgersom, the president of Truckee Meadows Community College in Reno, had filed a hostile-workplace complaint against the regents. Details of Hilgersom’s complaint have yet to emerge, but McAdoo and Carter are not believed to be named in it.
Messages to McAdoo and Carter weren't immediately returned.
