Much More Than a Building

I have long maintained that a dynamic partnership should exist between universities in metropolitan areas and the communities in which they reside. The former mayor of Atlanta, Andrew Young, once spoke eloquently of this notion, advancing a challenge to urban universities throughout the country: “At a local level,” he said, “there’s a crying out in urban America for people to do for urban America what state universities did in the last century for rural America. We have the most productive agricultural system in the history of the world. It did not come about by accident. It came about through land-grant colleges. It came about through state farm programs. It came about as a result of the integration of the university system with the agricultural community. The benefits that accrued from that relationship fed not only America but the whole world. A similar kind of relationship between universities and the cities is necessary.”

I often refer to Mayor Young’s insightful call for support when I discuss our mission at UNLV. He so clearly articulated the powerful impact urban universities can have when they offer their commitment, time, and intellectual resources to their communities. At UNLV, we have taken his words to heart, establishing close and productive ties to the community and state through the integration of our important functions – teaching, research, and service. I have frequently written and spoken of our past endeavors in this area and of our continuing responsibility to seek new and innovative ways to partner with government agencies, private industry, and other institutions in Southern Nevada and the state for the benefit of all involved.

I revisit this issue now because before us on the horizon lies the potential for one such partnership that may well be UNLV’s most significant opportunity to contribute to our community and the state of Nevada to date: the partnership that could produce the new Science, Engineering, and Technology Complex at UNLV.

It is clear that this facility will benefit UNLV. We are in desperate need of additional space for teaching and research; our continuing growth in enrollment is pushing the limits of what our current facilities can hold. We witnessed a dramatic 9.4 percent increase in full-time equivalent student enrollment last year, and we expect our headcount to approach 25,000 this fall. Also, most doctoral-degree-granting institutions have more than 300,000 square feet of research space for science and engineering; UNLV has less than 100,000 square feet for the same purpose. We are truly in need of new building space to accommodate the expansion of our research endeavors and the growth in our enrollment and programs.

But the value of the proposed Science, Engineering, and Technology Complex goes far beyond meeting the needs of the campus. It is also viewed as an important step toward diversifying Nevada’s economy through education and the development of technology. By way of background, I should perhaps note what many Nevadans already know: that our state is reliant on a single industry – tourism – and that the need to bring greater economic diversification to the area is an ongoing and well-recognized goal. A city with a healthy economy, the economists tell us, must have diversity in its industries.

The value of economic diversification to the state is supported at many levels of government and by the business community, and the impact the Science, Engineering, and Technology Complex could have on diversification efforts is widely recognized. (The project has the formal endorsement and enthusiastic support of the Nevada Development Authority, for instance.) It is viewed on many fronts as a magnet for scientific, intellectual, and economic growth. The complex will help house, attract, and support accomplished faculty scientists and engineers, who will, in turn, use the facility to conduct top-notch research, fostering discoveries and technological advancement. Simultaneously, these faculty members will be providing instruction to the ever-growing population of Nevada students who want and deserve the very best technological and scientific education. The availability of a highly trained work force, combined with the opportunities created for even greater business/university partnerships and for the continuing education of employees, will serve to attract high-tech companies to the area.

Given the clear contribution this type of facility can make to our community and state – along with its importance to the future of the campus – we are very hopeful that it will be funded. We have already received a substantial $8.8 million from the Legislature for advance planning and infrastructure development – an encouraging show of commitment – and the complex has been ranked second on the list of capital improvement priorities identified by the University and Community College System of Nevada. With an additional $41 million from the state, to be supplemented by $25 million in private funds from UNLV, we hope to move ahead with the project.

We are, however, at a critical juncture in our efforts to proceed with the plans to build this facility. State funds are quite limited, ironically, as result of a drop in tax revenue that stemmed from the downturn in the economy. We are told that it may be difficult for the state to find enough funds to give us the green light. Yet, we are eager to get started on a building that could have such a beneficial and far-reaching impact on the future of our campus and our state.

Like Mayor Young, I believe that the changes we can help effect could be of monumental importance. As an institution, we are as committed to contributing to the health and prosperity of this community as we are to building our own success; it is clear that the success of one inevitably serves the other. I am convinced the mutually beneficial nature of this new facility will produce wonderful opportunities that will be viewed over time as pivotal to the evolution of our city and state. However, ensuring that the proposed facility becomes a reality will require a true partnership be formed between UNLV and its supporters, state legislators, and the people of Nevada. Like the marvelous agricultural advances of the last century to which Mayor Young referred, this kind of partnership – and the resulting powerful impact it can have on our state’s future – does not come about by accident. We must find ways to make it happen. The progress of our university and community will, in large part, depend on it.