Board of Regents District 6

Until now, Michael Wixom has never been challenged for his seat on Nevada’s higher education board — an elected position he has claimed for more than 11 years.

As the second-longest serving member on Nevada’s Board of Regents, he has coasted through two elections without facing a single contender since former Gov. Kenny Guinn appointed him to the job in 2005. Four candidates are hoping to unseat him, energizing what has long been a low-key race.

The District 6 candidates share some common interests, such as boosting training for health and technology professionals.

Although some of them think the board should consider overhauling the Nevada System of Higher Education to better accommodate its four community colleges, others want it to remain intact. Their opinions also vary widely about the struggles facing Nevada’s colleges and universities.

Patrick Carter said the state’s higher education system is hamstrung by a political climate that prioritizes the needs of Nevada’s universities over its two-year colleges. He said he would be an equalizer — unlike other candidates, he won’t be guided by personal bias because he doesn’t have any strong ties to any institution within the system.

Addressing calls from some legislators and community leaders to dismantle the system, Carter said it’s too small to split up. Instead, he thinks it and the Board of Regents need to be more responsive to community colleges.

“I think people are just kind of fed up with the way things are in the political system as a whole,” Carter said. “It’s just time to … get rid of people that have kind of been juiced into the system and kind of start fresh.”

Candidate Angelo Casino could not be reached for an interview after numerous attempts.

Las Vegas attorney Peter Goatz wants to make college more accessible and bring down the cost of higher education. One way to do that, he said, is by ensuring that all students apply for federal financial aid. He also wants system schools to reduce tuition by seeking alternative revenue sources, such as research dollars.

Referring to community colleges as “the lifeblood of our workforce,” Goatz said the board should reform the system to better meet the needs of its two-year schools.

“Right now, the structure isn’t producing enough students to take over (health and technology) jobs,” Goatz said. “Anything we can do to restructure NSHE to better support the business community and students, I think, is a win-win.”

Frederick Kuch, a UNLV master’s student, said he’s running because he thinks he “can do some good” for fellow college-goers.

Kuch thinks the biggest problem hindering Nevada’s higher education institutions is a lack of visibility in the community. If elected, he said he would seek more legislative funding because the system “could always use more money.”

Like Carter, Kuch doesn’t think the system should be dismantled because it is too small.

“If there are people that want to change the structure, it’s usually because their needs aren’t being met,” Kuch said. “Maybe if someone were to pay attention to what the community college people are saying and meet those needs, then the whole issue wouldn’t even occur.”

Wixom cites dropouts as the biggest challenge facing the state’s public colleges and universities. To boost graduation rates, he wants to keep backing efforts that encourage students to take at least 15 credits per semester. He’s a proponent of a systemwide funding formula, which allocates money to schools based on completion rates.

Wixom said he would consider reforming the higher education system, but dividing the agency would be a “profound error” that would isolate community colleges. Instead, he thinks the board should focus on ways to help student retention at all schools, such as partnering with local school districts and adopting a trimester system that would keep colleges open year-round.

“What I want to do is stop thinking in traditional models,” Wixom said. “We’ve been thinking traditionally for far too long.”

Contact Ana Ley at aley@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5512. Find @la__ley on Twitter.