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Summer 2004 | Vol. 12, No. 2
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  Associate professor of music and director of orchestras
George Edward Stelluto was awarded the Bruno Walter
Memorial Prize and invited to join the Artist Diploma Program
at the Juilliard School in New York City. Stelluto is the first conductor
invited to join this highly competitive professional development
program. The program is designed to develop
both the artistry and professionalism in performers who possess
the ability to realize their talent in the contemporary
world. Stelluto is the music director of the Las Vegas Music Festival,
which will be held July 27 to Aug. 15. He is also an artistic advisor for the
Chernigov Winter Festival in the Ukraine.
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 John Readence, professor of literacy education, was named
as the dean of the recently created University College. He joined
the UNLV faculty in 1993.While working for the department of
curriculum and instruction, he focused on adolescent and content
area literacy, as well as teachers’ thought processes and instructional practices. He also mentored doctoral students, coauthored more than 25 textbooks, and served as editor of Reading Research Quarterly. University College will begin serving students this fall. It is the academic home for students exploring their academic options before choosing a degree program. Under his direction, the college also will offer the Bachelor of University Studies, an interdisciplinary degree program. |
| Andy Nazarechuk of the tourism and convention administration program was
named Tourism Educator of the Year for 2003 by Zhejiang University and the Zhejiang
Hotel Association. The university is the largest comprehensive university in China and
the association has more than 400 hotel members and is the largest provincial association
in China. Recently Nazarechuk spent two semesters teaching in China and continues
to write articles about tourism on a regular basis. |
| Eugene Moehring, professor of history,
and Dina Titus, professor of political
science, each received an Outstanding
Faculty Award from the UNLV Alumni
Association. Moehring, a faculty member
since 1976, specializes in U.S. urban history
and teaches courses in business history,
Nevada history, and history of science. He
has also published three books and written
numerous articles. Titus has been a
faculty member since 1977 and has taught
numerous courses in political science and
public administration, in addition to publishing
two books and writing hundreds
of articles on Nevada politics and the
nation’s atomic legacy.
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| Joanne Goodwin of the history
department was appointed to the National
Advisory Board for the Status of Women
and Girls in the States. The Institute for
Women’s Policy Research in Washington, D.C., made the appointment. Since coming to UNLV in 1991, she has become intensely involved in writing histories of women who have helped build the community. She chaired the advisory board for the Nevada Women’s Archives and directs the Las Vegas Women’s Oral History Project and the Women’s Research Institute of Nevada. |
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Kruger Named Head Basketball Coach |
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By Andy Grossman Photo by Aaron Mayes |
A coach with years of experience at both the collegiate and NBA levels, Kruger became the 10th full-time coach in the history of UNLV men’s basketball. A primary goal of the search was finding a college coach with success at more than one university, Hamrick said. “We wanted a coach who knew what it took to get into postseason play.We wanted a coach who knew how to get to the Final Four.We found a coach who took a program that was down and out and within three or four years took it to the top. “But most important, we wanted an individual who had class, integrity, and who did everything the right way.” Hamrick said the decision to hire Kruger was easy. “Every time I got on the phone to talk with the so-called basketball gurus about potential candidates, Lon Kruger’s name was the one that brought the conversation to an end.” A veteran of two decades as a head coach on the collegiate and professional levels, Kruger came to Las Vegas after a four-year stint in the NBA. Following an 18-year career as one of the nation’s most successful college coaches, Kruger spent three seasons (2000-03) as the head coach of the Atlanta Hawks and part of this season as an assistant with the New York Knicks. At the collegiate level, Kruger compiled an impressive 318-233 (.577) overall mark in 18 seasons as a head coach at Pan American (1982-86), Kansas State (1986-90), Florida (1990-96), and Illinois (1996-2000). He led all four programs to 20-win seasons and is one of only a handful of active Division I head coaches to have taken three different programs to the NCAA Tournament. Kruger mentioned several reasons that he and his wife, Barb, decided to move to Las Vegas, including the standard for winning set by past teams and the supportive community. “After visiting with Dr. (Carol) Harter,Mike, Jerry Koloskie, and others in the community, we knew this was a great fit. People are excited. They’re hungry. They’re supportive of the basketball program.” Kruger piloted his teams to the postseason on 11 different occasions, with nine appearances in the NCAA Tournament and two in the NIT. He compiled seven 20-plus victory seasons, was a two-time SEC Coach of the Year (1992 and 1994), and led his 1993-94 Florida squad to the NCAA Final Four. “UNLV is a place you can win,” Kruger said. “And you can win because you can attract the quality of student-athletes that it takes to win on a national scale. Las Vegas is a town that is recognized by recruits everywhere. They’ll listen to you and once you get them on campus and give them the chance to experience the feelings that exist here, it will be very appealing for them to go to school here.” |
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Filling the Slots |
Since joining UNLV this spring, head basketball coach Lon Kruger has hired four new staff members.
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Engineering Professor
Receives University’s Highest Honor |
UNLV recently named Robert Boehm distinguished professor, the highest honor awarded to a faculty member at the university. President Carol C. Harter named Boehm, a member of the mechanical engineering department faculty, a distinguished professor based on the recommendation of a university committee. The designation of distinguished professor is not bestowed every year. Nominees must have demonstrated extraordinary qualities both as teachers and scholars and must have achieved national and international recognition in their fields of study. “Robert Boehm is not only an exemplary teacher but also an exceptional scholar,” said Harter. “Through his dedication to students and commitment to research, he has made invaluable contributions to the field of engineering and to the community of Southern Nevada and beyond. His accomplishments embody the very goals of this institution.” Since joining the faculty in 1990, Boehm has created and taught courses on solar energy use, radiation heat transfer, design of thermal systems, and entertainment engineering. In 1995, Boehm established the Center for Energy Research at UNLV, an interdisciplinary entity that focuses on solar and renewable energy and the development of energy-efficient technologies. He has collaborated in developing a hydrogen-fueled combustion engine for buses that could potentially reduce pollution and significantly improve air quality in urban areas. “It is a privilege to be designated as distinguished professor,” said Boehm. “In receiving this honor, I owe a great deal to our excellent students, the encouraging atmosphere for research at UNLV, and the opportunity to develop interdisciplinary programs.” Boehm has published several books on the design of thermal systems and heat transfer, has written more than 300 articles in refereed journals and collections, and has been a featured presenter at conferences and workshops around the world. |
UNIVERSITY
PEOPLE
As far as Athletics Director Mike Hamrick
is concerned, UNLV found everything it was looking for in its next Runnin’ Rebel
basketball coach when it hired Lon Kruger.