Faculty/Staff Directory

Executive Director

Joe Bertolone

702-895-4989

joe.bertolone@unlv.edu

Operations and Marketing Manager

Craig Ferreira

702-895-2445

craig.ferreira@unlv.edu

Business Manager

Sara Phillips

702-895-2452

sara.phillips@unlv.edu

Administrative Student Worker

Noah Ahmed

702-895-4510

noah.ahmed@unlv.edu

Administrative Student Worker

Rebecca Ross

702-895-4510

rebecca.ross@unlv.edu

UNLV Faculty Lecturers

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Executive Director, International Gaming Institute

Bo Bernhard, Ph.D.

702-895-2935

bo.bernhard@unlv.edu

Adjunct Professor

Greg Gemignani

Director of Research

Brett Abarbanel, Ph.D.

702-895-1764

brett.abarbanel@unlv.edu

Distinguished Fellow in Gaming Law

Anthony Cabot

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Distinguished Fellow

Becky Harris

702-895-4989

becky.harris@unlv.edu

Educational Program Lecturers

Karl Bennison

Karl Bennison retired as Chief of Enforcement in September 2019 after serving 25 years with the Nevada Gaming Control Board (GCB). Karl began his career with the Board in 1994 as an Agent in the GCB’s Reno office, enforcing gaming laws and regulations and arbitrating disputes. He worked his way through the ranks with assignments including the Enforcement Division’s Special Investigations section...

Julie Damavandi

Owner-Consultant, JKD Consulting

Julie Damavandi holds a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (Accounting) and a Master of Business Administration. She earned both degrees from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). While studying at UNLV, she taught Introduction to Business and Principles of Finance. Julie started her gaming career after college working in positions such as an Internal Auditor with Hilton Hotels...

Chris Grove is a nationally recognized subject matter expert on the subject of the U.S. regulated sports betting landscape. His insights and research regarding the sports betting industry have been quoted in hundreds of articles, including outlets such as Bloomberg, ESPN, Forbes, the New York Times, the Washington Post, and the Wall Street Journal. Grove has testified before policymakers in...

Steve Light (Ph.D. Northwestern, B.A. Yale) is a Professor of Political Science and Public Administration, former Interim Dean of Business and Public Administration, and Co-Director of the Institute for the Study of Tribal Gaming Law and Policy at the University of North Dakota (UND). The Institute is the first university research center dedicated to advancing knowledge and understanding of...

John Lukasik has been the Director of Race, Sports, and Esports for Caesars Entertainment since March 2018, where he oversees operations at the Linq, Cromwell, and Flamingo. He brings with him nearly a decade of experience in the gaming industry, where he has worked primarily in gaming operations. John received his Master of Science degree in Hotel Administration from the University of Nevada,...

Ms. McCabe-Ward is the founder of KMC LLC and has over 24 years in the gaming and hospitality industry. She is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and a Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialist (CAMS). Her experience includes VP of Internal Audit for Caesars, over 13 years with Las Vegas Sands Corp. (LVSC) in various executive positions, and six years with the Nevada Gaming Control Board. Kim...

Kathryn Rand (J.D. University of Michigan, B.A. University of North Dakota) has served as Dean of the UND School of Law from 2009 to 2018, the first woman to hold the position. Rand is widely recognized as among the nation’s leading experts on Indian gaming, federal Indian law, and tribal-state-federal intergovernmental relations. She has published more than 50 articles and co-authored three...

Scott Scherer

Shareholder, Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck

Gaming law veteran Scott Scherer uses his unique mix of regulatory, business, policy and legal perspectives to help clients achieve their goals. Scott’s more than 30 years of gaming experience includes serving as a member of the Nevada Gaming Control Board, where he had responsibility for the Investigations, Audit and Technology divisions; as a supervising deputy in the Gaming Division of the...

Tim Schultz started his professional career working as a Revenue Agent for the Internal Revenue Service where he audited partnerships and corporations. He then worked four years for the Nevada Gaming Control Board as an Audit Division agent. Mr. Schultz audited revenue and compliance for table games, slots, race and sports books, keno, bingo, and cage and credit activities. He then transferred...

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