The Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV was officially established on Aug. 22, 2014, when the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) Board of Regents approved funding for the medical school's start-up costs. On June 11, 2015, Gov. Brian Sandoval signed Senate Bill 514, which provided the start-up funding for the medical school, along with other measures, into law at the UNLV Student Union.
The medical school is Nevada’s response to the need for more quality healthcare in Nevada. According to the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC), in 2010, Nevada ranked 45th in the country in the number of physicians per 100,000 population. A Brookings-SRI report indicated not having a medical school is one of the largest threats to Southern Nevada's economic prosperity.
Tripp Umbach, a national consulting firm involved in the development of numerous medical schools, indicated having a medical school in Las Vegas could have a $1.2 billion annual economic impact and could add 8,000 jobs to the Southern Nevada economy by 2030.
Timeline
October
The Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) conducts its first reaccreditation site visit at the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine on October 27-29.
April
Dr. Alison Netski is appointed as interim dean of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine and interim vice president for health affairs, effective April 19.
March
The school’s continuing medical education program receives a virtual accreditation site visit from the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME).
October
Chase Shropshire, member of the charter class, is chosen as the school's first Alumnus of the Year.
September
UNLV Health, the associated multi-specialty academic medical practice of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine, opens an additional clinic in northwest Las Vegas at 2724 North Tenaya – expanding access to patient care and creating an important new training site for our students, residents, and fellows. This location now serves as the new home for UNLV Health Family Medicine and Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and becomes the second location for general surgery, providing learners hands-on experience across multiple specialties.
Dean Marc J. Kahn and dean of the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) School of Medicine Paul J. Hauptman pursue a 5-5-5 program to get state funding to expand graduate medical education (GME). If each of the schools are given $5 million for each of the two years of the biennium, the schools will create five new GME programs in five years.
August
The school of medicine celebrates ten years since it was officially established back in 2014 (when the NSHE Board of Regents approved the school's two-year budget) on Aug. 22.
July
The Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV Department of Ophthalmology is officially approved as a new department on July 22.
June
UNLV Health partners with Walk with a Doc to inspire positive change through movement and conversation. Family and community medicine’s Dr. Johnson Ukken does the first walk.
For the second year in a row, the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine is part of the NFL's Diversity in Sports Medicine Pipeline Initiative. Medical student Gemma Lagasca is selected to work with the Las Vegas Raiders and perform a one-month clinical rotation focused on primary care sports medicine and/or orthopaedic surgery.
May
Dr. Erik N. Kubiak, professor in the department of orthopaedics and the Optum and Dr. Tony and Renee Marlon Endowed Chair, and Dr. David N. Jackson, professor and Intermountain Healthcare of Nevada Endowed Chair in Gynecologic Surgery and Obstetrics, are honored as the school's endowed chairs during the school's first investiture ceremony, held at the medical education building on May 15.
February
The school of medicine hosts the NFL Health and Safety Super Bowl Medical Summit on Feb. 9 in partnership with the National Football League (NFL), Las Vegas Raiders, and UNLV Health. The event featured numerous NFL physicians and served as an opportunity to earn continuing medical education credit.
January
The school's new rheumatology fellowship receives initial accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME). The program, which is Nevada's first-ever approved rheumatology fellowship, will recruit and train two new rheumatologists the first year.
November
Dr. Allison McNickle, assistant professor and acute care surgery fellowship program director; and acute care surgery fellows Dr. Paul Robert Lewis II, Dr. Robert Rakosi III, and Dr. Matthew Patrick Perryman; serve as the official Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix Race Trauma Surgeons on-site during the race.
October
Dr. David Jackson is selected as the Intermountain Health Endowed Chair in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
The school launches the UNLV Community Clinic under the leadership of Dr. Elissa Palmer. The clinic – a collaborative effort between the school of medicine and Volunteers in Medicine of Southern Nevada (VMSN) – will serve underserved members of the community and will allow medical students, residents, and faculty the opportunity to work alongside each other to deliver care.
The school creates the Behavioral Health Education, Retention, & Expansion Network of Nevada (BeHERE), a workforce development initiative that aims to increase the number of providers of behavioral healthcare in Nevada.
September
The Kirk Kerkorian Medical Education Building’s prosection lab opens. In addition to cadaveric prosection, students’ gross anatomy instruction is complemented with three transected, plastinated cadavers and virtual anatomy Sectra Tables.
August
The school launches learning communities, an initiative that connects medical students across all four years of undergraduate medical education.
July
The school of medicine’s continuing medical education (CME) program achieves the ability to grant AMA PRA Category 1 credit from the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME).
The Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine welcomes 66 new medical students to the class of 2027, a 10% increase in the class size.
Senate Bill 350, signed on July 17, provides state funding ($8.5 million) for graduate medical education (GME) and ensures that the deans of the two state medical schools will sit on the panel of the Office of Science, Innovation & Technology.
For the first time ever, the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine is part of the NFL's Diversity in Sports Medicine Pipeline Initiative. Medical student Cameron Harris is selected to work with the Las Vegas Raiders and perform a one-month clinical rotation focused on sports medicine.
June
Gov. Joe Lombardo approves Senate Bill 457 on June 12, providing $9.2 million to support the costs of operations to expand the class size of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine and the costs of increasing interdisciplinary opportunities for UNLV health-related disciplines.
May
UNLV Health opens its second Clark County School District (CCSD) school-based clinic at the CCSD Family Support Center (FSC).
January
UNLV Health joins the Silver State Accountable Care Organization (ACO) on Jan. 1, which is designed to manage quality of care for Medicare patients.
The Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) approves the school of medicine’s forensic pathology fellowship, the first of its kind in Nevada and one of 40 in the U.S. The one-year training program is in conjunction with the Clark County Office of the Coroner/Medical Examiner (CCOCME).
October
The school celebrates the grand opening of its first permanent building, the Kirk Kerkorian Medical Education Building, by the Nevada Health and Bioscience Corporation on Oct. 5, 2022.
August
The office of graduate medical education (GME) is approved for $4.4 million in funding to help create two new fellowship programs, a two-year program in rheumatology and a three-year program in hematology oncology.
UNLV Health opens its first Clark County School District (CCSD) school-based clinic, Dr. Gopal & Jeanette Das Healthcare Clinic at William H. Bailey Middle School, where school of medicine faculty physicians will serve students who face financial, transportation, cultural, or language barriers, and wouldn’t otherwise have access to care.
August
UNLV Medicine, the medical school's group practice, renamed to UNLV Health to better reflect the scope of its work.
May
The Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine celebrates the Commencement and Academic Hooding Ceremony of its charter class.
April
UNLV School of Medicine renamed to Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV in honor of Las Vegas icon Kirk Kerkorian.
March
UNLV School of Medicine celebrates Match Day of the charter class.
February
UNLV School of Medicine receives full accreditation by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME).
January
UNLV Medicine with support from the UNLV School of Medicine, UNLV School of Nursing, and nursing programs at CSN and Nevada State College, begins administering COVID-19 vaccines.
October
Groundbreaking on the UNLV School of Medicine's first permanent building, the Medical Education Building (MEB).
UNLV School of Medicine has a virtual site visit from the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME).
July
UNLV Medicine concludes its curbside COVID-19 testing after serving more than 18,000 Nevadans since March 23, 2020, with significant support from the Nevada National Guard.
UNLV School of Medicine admits its fourth cohort of medical students.
April
Dr. Marc J. Kahn begins as dean of the UNLV School of Medicine.
March
UNLV Medicine responds to the COVID-19 pandemic by opening a testing program.
November
Governor Steve Sisolak announces a group of private donors has agreed to pay for the construction of a medical education complex that will serve as the UNLV School of Medicine permanent campus.
October
The Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) grants the UNLV School of Medicine provisional accreditation.
September
Internationally known trauma surgeon Dr. John Fildes becomes UNLV School of Medicine Interim Dean.
July
Founding Dean Barbara Atkinson announces her intention to step down from the day-to-day operations of the medical school.
UNLV School of Medicine admits its third cohort of medical students.
July
UNLV School of Medicine admits its second cohort of medical education students.
July
The charter class of 60 medical students arrive at the campus on Shadow Lane in Las Vegas to begin their education. UNLV Medicine, the School of Medicine’s faculty practice plan, begins operations.
June
2017 Nevada Legislature approves additional base operating funding to the school by $13 million.
An anonymous donor contributes a $25 million gift to the Medical Education Building project with a matching legislative appropriation of $25 million.
November
Renovation and improvements to the UNLV Shadow Lane Campus Building B are completed to support the medical education of the school’s charter class. The space encompasses 20,000 square feet and includes classrooms, a virtual anatomy laboratory, a medical library, small group study rooms, a student lounge, recreational gym, and more.
October
The UNLV School of Medicine launches its medical student admissions process on Oct. 29. The school was granted preliminary accreditation by the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME) on Oct. 18.
The UNLV School of Medicine opens its first clinical practice on Oct. 13 in partnership with the Grant A Gift Autism Foundation. The new center provides families a full complement of autism and neurodevelopmental care including diagnostics, treatment, behavioral support, and transition planning all in one place.
August
The School of Medicine is granted accreditation from the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) as an institutional sponsor of graduate medical education (GME).
June
The Clark County Commission approves transferring 9.11 acres at 625 Shadow Lane to the UNLV School of Medicine for its first academic building.
April
The School of Medicine receives a $3 million grant from the United Health Foundation to develop innovative programs in bioethics, hospitality in healthcare, and population health.
March
The Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) Board of Regents approve the framework for the medical school's faculty practice plan.
February
The UNLV School of Medicine is one step closer to accepting its first class of students. The national accrediting body for allopathic medical education confirms that documents submitted in December 2015 have earned the school a site visit in July.
December
The NSHE Board of Regents approves UNLV School of Medicine Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree.
November
Dr. Barbara Atkinson is officially named founding dean of the UNLV School of Medicine on Nov. 10.
October
The Nevada Legislature Interim Finance Committee (IFC) approves releasing the medical school’s remaining $18.4 million over the biennium Oct. 24, 2015.
September
The Tony and Renee Marlon Charitable Foundation makes a $2 million gift to help fund faculty for a new department of orthopaedic surgery at the UNLV School of Medicine.
The Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) Board of Regents approves the UNLV School of Medicine organizational structure establishing 24 teaching departments.
Tate Snyder Kimsey Architects from Henderson, Nevada, and CO Architects based in Los Angeles are selected to design the new medical school building. Both firms have extensive experience in large and complex institutions. CO Architects has specific expertise in medical education and health sciences facilities.
June
The Nevada Legislature approves full funding — nearly $27 million — for the UNLV School of Medicine. Gov. Brian Sandoval signs Senate Bill 514 — the state’s appropriations bill into law at UNLV on June 11. The Founding Scholarship campaign wraps up in less than 60 days with $13.5 million to secure 135, four-year student scholarships.
April
The UNLV School of Medicine announces its Founding Scholarship Leader program for the inaugural class of 60 students. Scholarships are $100,000 each and represent the approximate cost of tuition of four years. Within 30 days, community leaders make commitments to fund 52 scholarships.
September
The UNLV School of Medicine begins the 18-month accreditation process by submitting its application to the Liaison Committee on Medical Education (LCME).
August
The UNLV School of Medicine is officially established Aug. 22, 2014, when the NSHE Board of Regents approve a two-year budget and submit it to the governor and Nevada Legislature.
May
UNLV hires Barbara Atkinson, MD, as the planning dean for the UNLV School of Medicine. The Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE), University of Nevada (Reno) School of Medicine and UNLV sign a memorandum of understanding to authorize the creation of an independent UNLV School of Medicine.
October
The Lincy Institute commissions nationally recognized consultant Tripp Umbach to prepare an economic impact report on the effects of developing a four-year allopathic medical school in Las Vegas. The report details how a new UNLV School of Medicine will generate $1.2 billion in economic impact and create 8,000 jobs by 2030.