Moore wants Henderson college's top post

Richard Moore, president of the Community College of Southern Nevada, is lobbying higher education system officials for the job of building from the ground up a four-year college in Henderson.

One of the school's primary missions would be producing more teachers for the Clark County School District.

"It's a job that intrigues me," Moore said Friday.

For a couple of years, with help from Clark County public schools chief Brian Cram, Moore quietly has been pressing for a four-year teaching program at the two-year community college.

Although Moore played down his efforts to garner support for the Henderson appointment, two regents talked Friday about his lobbying efforts.

"I know that he's interested," said Jill Derby, chairwoman of the Board of Regents. Derby said she would support Moore for the appointment that could become effective in January.

Regent Steve Sisolak, on the other hand, said he worries about the instability such an appointment could cause the fast-growing community college and the message it would send to the public about the board's commitment to searching nationally for the best leaders.

Additionally, Sisolak said, "I don't want to hear this sucking sound coming out of the community college over to Henderson. I don't want to see the health of one institution torn down at the expense of another."

But Moore said he would not raid the community college's staff or in any way harm the community college if appointed founding president of a Henderson state college. He said there are other "great pools of people" from which to draw, including high school principals.

"State colleges are the best friends of community colleges," Moore added. He anticipates that a large percentage of community college students would transfer to the state college.

The Board of Regents on Wednesday will hear from a legislative committee that backs opening the Henderson campus. The 1999 Legislature gave the committee $500,000 to study the idea and begin planning for the facility's operation.

Regents are expected to go along with the idea of opening a state college in Henderson, Derby said. There are no estimates on how much the campus would cost to build or how many millions of dollars the state would set aside for operating expenses.

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