Foundation to give $14 million to UNLV

A philanthropic foundation is expected to announce a multimillion-dollar donation to UNLV this morning to establish an institute designed to help coordinate research and social outreach programs at the university.

The Lincy Foundation, established by MGM Mirage majority shareholder Kirk Kerkorian, has long been a supporter of charitable causes in Southern Nevada.

Officials are to announce a $14 million gift to UNLV today at a campus event.

The money is to be used to establish the Lincy Institute, which will employ several executives, about a dozen faculty members and several graduate students.

Neal Smatresk, UNLV's president, said the institute will be operational this fall, but its full staff probably will not be hired until near the end of the academic year.

He said the gift had been in the works for a year.

The foundation donated $5 million last year to UNLV and the state's higher education system to support an initiative to coordinate higher education health sciences programs around Nevada.

And the foundation donated $13.5 million last year to the Clark County School District, partly to restore state funding cuts.

Smatresk said the latest gift could transform how UNLV interacts with the public.

He said the institute will help coordinate various disciplines -- education and health care fields, for example -- that do outreach work.

Also, he said, it would help local nonprofits coordinate with each other.

He described the arrangement as unusual, noting that similar institutes at other universities are often housed within a single college. The Lincy Institute will focus on all of UNLV.

Today's announcement is scheduled for 10 a.m. at the Richard Tam Alumni Center on campus.

Contact reporter Richard Lake at rlake@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0307.