Discussion on future of UNLV presidency draws big crowd

The governance structure of the Nevada Board of Regents and the stability of UNLV were among the top concerns faculty and students brought to the attention of Chancellor Thom Reilly during an open forum at the university Monday.

About 200 people attended the forum, where Reilly and the chair and vice chair of the board fielded questions about the presidential transition as UNLV President Len Jessup prepares to leave for a new job.

Imad Mehanna, project manager for planning and construction at the university, was the first up with a question.

“How are we going to be able to invite some strong candidates to come and lead this university, when they already have in mind, ‘Oh, I might be there for three years or less?’ ” he asked.

Jessup is leaving with about two years left on his five-year contract and has cited difficulties with the board as being the catalyst for his decision.

Reilly said there must be “clear expectations” on both sides, with candidates needing to be confident that they can work under the governance structure. He also referenced the long tenures of former presidents Carol Harter and Robert Maxson. Reilly said he is confident that UNLV can find a replacement for Jessup, saying that while some might shy away from controversy, others see it as an opportunity to make change.

“It’s not just us vetting them, but them vetting us,” he said.

He also fielded questions about the new chief operating officer position. Reilly said that the operational deficiencies he identified “are not going to disappear” and that he wants the university to own the issues and “run them into the ground.”

The five areas of concern are safety on campus, the School of Medicine, the School of Dental Medicine, human resources and compliance.

Compliance is of particular concern given that all the issues reached his office from whistleblowers.

“Which signals to me that perhaps there’s not a comfort level to addressing those issues here,” he said. “They’ve all kind of elevated themselves to the chancellor’s office, and what I want to occur is for UNLV to take them back and own them and resolve them.”

The open forum was one of 10 meetings Reilly attended at the university Monday to take a pulse on how campus constituents want to move forward.

A majority of forum attendees raised their hands in support of the board appointing an acting president and searching nationally for a permanent replacement. Reilly said that he’s already received recommendations and that there’s some consensus around at least six names.

If the board decides to search nationally, that could be postponed until the fall, Reilly said. These decisions will likely be made at a special meeting of the board during the third week of May.

Contact Natalie Bruzda at nbruzda@reviewjournal.com or 702-477-3897. Follow @NatalieBruzda on Twitter.