Lawmakers push for state college

CARSON CITY -- Fears have been expressed that creating a new state college in Henderson might drain money away from the existing university and community college in Southern Nevada.

But Assembly Majority Leader Richard Perkins, D-Henderson, told fellow legislators it would be a "wash" because the state will have to support students whether they go to the university, the community college or a new state college.

Perkins and others testified Monday before the Assembly Ways and Means Committee on Assembly Bill 220 to allocate $1 million to study the feasibility of creating a third leg of the higher education system. Perkins said that the cost could be reduced to $500,000.

Richard Bennett, director of government relations for UNLV, said the school supports additional campuses in such places as Henderson and Summerlin. The issue is whether it should be a separate school or affiliated with UNLV.

"Some feel the current institutions are not adequately funded," he said, noting that a new campus would mean additional demands on the state budget.

Bennett said he was irked by comments Perkins had made about the UNLV campus not being safe. "To suggest UNLV is unsafe, I'm offended by that," he said. "Our campus is safe,"

Perkins said he was not talking about the campus itself but about its surrounding area.

"You go across the street and you enter into a different world," Perkins said.

After the hearing, Perkins told reporters the area adjacent to UNLV has been a police problem for years but that it is getting better.

Richard Jarvis, chancellor of the University and Community College System of Nevada, said the Board of Regents wants the opportunity to study creating a third leg in higher education. The regents, he said, have not made up their minds on the subject.

A state college would cost less than a university satellite campus, Jarvis said. Teachers spend more time in the classroom and are paid less, and there are not as many graduate programs or research projects.

Jim Richardson, lobbyist for the Nevada Faculty Alliance, said there are worries at the other schools that they might lose state support if a new state college is created. But he said more student capacity is needed.

In addition, Richardson, whose group represents professors and other instructors at the universities and community colleges, said there will be the need for a "significant increase" in state support for higher education in the future.

Perkins said Henderson has agreed to donate 200 acres for the site. There are several alternate parcels available that are close to transportation routes in Clark County. And several million dollars in private contributions have been pledged, Perkins said.

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