Think back to the year 2000 – which for many of us doesn’t seem that long ago – when UNLV had just recently opened Nevada’s first law school and a new library for the university’s 20,000 students was about to debut. Schools of Dental Medicine and Public Health were still a few years away, and discussions on a medical school were even farther off.
For those familiar with the UNLV campus today, also missing just 25 years ago were Greenspun Hall and Hospitality Hall, Cox Pavilion and Mendenhall Center, Beam Music Center, the Science and Engineering Building, and of course the new Medical Education Building and Advanced Engineering Building. On top of that, the Student Union, the Rogers Literature and Law Building, and Wright Hall had yet to be renovated.
A lot can change in a relatively short period of time, which kind of makes you wonder what UNLV will be like in the next 10, or even 25 years?
During his fifth State of the University Address, UNLV President Keith E. Whitfield asked a packed audience of faculty, staff, and community leaders gathered in Judy Bayley Theatre to ponder how far the university has come and to “imagine the possibilities” that lay ahead.
To Maryland Parkway … and Beyond
Growth is evident throughout Southern Nevada and at UNLV. The local population has more than doubled since the year 2000, and this fall the university’s enrollment reached an all-time high with just under 33,000 students.
As the university sets its focus on 40,000 students by 2030, and even more by 2050, Whitfield asked attendees to imagine how the physical campus — or campuses — will evolve over the next decade.
“We grew our enrollment by nearly 6% over the past year,” Whitfield said. “We’re a very dynamic university that’s growing in a lot of different ways, and we have to keep thinking about where we’re going to be. We can’t just wait until we’re already there.”
Whitfield said that he expects the Maryland Parkway campus to add a number of new buildings in the coming years to meet the needs of the university’s rise as a research institution, and to support continued record-breaking student enrollment.
This includes more research space, planned expansion of the Lynn Bennett Early Childhood Education Center, and a vision for a possible freshman-focused residence hall and perhaps a second Student Union to support current and future student needs. He also discussed the importance of new facilities and programs to support mental health.
“A greater focus on mental health fits perfectly with what’s going on in society, as we need to be prepared to support our students and develop new degrees that can help bolster our mental healthcare workforce,” Whitfield said. “We’ve been thinking about additional master’s and undergraduate programs to be able to provide additional care we need to move our society and our community forward.”
UNLV has also made moves in recent years to expand its physical footprint surrounding the main campus. The university has acquired property on the east side of Maryland Parkway, which adds to undeveloped land on the Paradise Campus to the south and a 42-acre parcel west of the main campus near the Las Vegas Strip.
Though UNLV initially made its home on Maryland Parkway, its footprint today stretches throughout Southern Nevada — to the Las Vegas Medical District downtown, to an emerging innovation corridor in the southwest, and to more than 2,000 acres of undeveloped land in North Las Vegas.
Whitfield noted that the university’s current Maryland Parkway campus is a mere 15% of the available acreage at the future North Campus, which opens up a range of possibilities for research, affordable housing for students, and more. The president discussed his plan to develop a community advisory board to envision the future of the North Campus, and he suggested ideas ranging from big research projects on solar and water technology to a village of affordable “tiny” homes for graduate students and their families.
“We’re a community-engaged university … and this offers wonderful opportunities for public-private partnerships to bring in new industry and economic development,” Whitfield said. “I have also been thinking specifically about our graduate students … and the rising cost of affordable homes. It’s something that we know is a problem and needs to be addressed.”
Re-imagining the Future of Learning … and Research
New facilities are important, but Whitfield said that there’s much more to a university than just its physical presence. As we imagine the future of student learning, he said, the university needs to match where students are at in terms of how they access education and also how learning styles have evolved.
Dreamscape Learn will take immersive learning at UNLV to a whole new level. The 4,000 square-foot space – currently being constructed on the second floor of Lied Library – will leverage the power of virtual reality and interactive storytelling to change how students engage with everything from biology and hospitality to engineering, architecture, and the arts. The first biology courses with Dreamscape Learn elements are expected to launch this fall.
“It’s forward thinking,” said Whitfield. “It gives students a chance to focus in a different way, and in a way that’s engaging and exciting. It’s a wonderful opportunity, and I look forward to seeing where we go with this.”
Whitfield also touted recent efforts to make UNLV courses more accessible through online program growth – including a new online MBA and master’s degree in cybersecurity – and more engaging through efforts to “gamify” programs in finance and entrepreneurship through student competitions.
Research is also on the rise, as the president noted growth in both research awards and research spending over the past year. And the key to future growth, he said, relies on collaboration with both the community and within disciplines. He discussed efforts to develop a statewide Clinical Trials Network with the University of Nevada, Reno, and an emerging Academic Health Center model that integrates efforts from the university health sciences and related disciplines.
“The rate in which we are growing our research is impressive,” said Whitfield, referencing that UNLV’s research awards are up to $134 million and expenditures are up to $116 million annually. “We need to continue to invest and grow.”
One area of growth the university is investing in is biomedical and bio-behavioral research.
“We have incredible engineering programs, we’ve got incredible biological sciences, and an incredible medical school. We need to bring those programs together and allow them to interact more with one another,” said Whitfield. “We’re also looking at the biology of behavior, things like genetics and behavior. These are the kinds of things we’ve got to be able to tackle to improve quality of life for our society.”
Investing in Nevada’s Future
A thread that ties many of UNLV’s future infrastructure and program needs together is funding. On Feb. 3, the 83rd session of the Nevada Legislature will convene, and over the next four months UNLV will work closely with the Nevada System of Higher Education, the governor’s office, and state legislators to advocate for crucial investments.
According to Whitfield, the university’s top priority this session is public safety and ensuring that UNLV remains a safe, secure, and welcoming place for students, employees, and visitors. To complement ongoing efforts to add more cameras, emergency phones, and access controls to campus buildings, the president said that UNLV will be seeking additional investment from the Legislature to enhance campus safety through facilities and infrastructure upgrades, security and preparedness technology, and personnel.
“We’ve had to shift our focus to (increased) safety … and we’ve been making changes, never forgetting the people we lost but thinking about what we do going forward,” said Whitfield. “What do we do for the next 10, 25 years, and what does safety look like?”
The president also outlined additional priorities, including support for Graduate Medical Education, continued nursing program growth, mental health personnel and initiatives, and to further build the academic health center model. He acknowledged evolving proposals from multiple entities to build a film production studio in Southern Nevada, and how the film industry’s emergence locally will lead to opportunities for UNLV students, graduates, and faculty.
“We have an incredible film program … and we’re talking about what programs need to be added to support that growth,” Whitfield said. “What if UNLV had the number one film school in the nation? It can happen, and we can do it.”
Support from Nevada’s federal delegation and private industry are helping UNLV to grow. Whitfield hailed the acquisition of a next-level MRI machine — known as a functional MRI — which will elevate brain health and other health sciences research and is made possible through federal support. He also spoke to the importance of the newly announced Sands Institute for Chinese Language and Culture, which will strengthen international connections and was made possible through a $15 million gift from Las Vegas Sands Corp.
“This is a great public-private partnership that gives us the opportunity to expand our brand and to share our knowledge with another country,” said Whitfield.
Winning with the Rebels
Before he closed his hour-long address, Whitfield spoke of the near constant churn in the landscape of college athletics and efforts by the university to position UNLV for success both today and down the road.
He pointed to UNLV’s recent decision to sign an extension to remain in the Mountain West Conference, which will bring added revenue to the athletics department. He also touched on ways the evolution of name, image, and likeness programs have opened up new opportunities for student-athletes, and how — in the midst of constant change — UNLV is more focused than ever on balancing the academic and athletics success of its students.
And the results are showing. UNLV Football capped a historic 11-win season with a bowl win and its first post-season Top 25 ranking. And among the piles of accolades was a recent announcement that the Rebels had three first-team academic All-Americans.
“This is a first for UNLV, and the first time this has happened in our country since Stanford in 2022,” said Whitfield. “We compete with them.”
Whitfield also talked about a new program in UNLV Athletics funded by local business leader, philanthropist, and longtime UNLV supporter Diana Bennett. The Bennett Career Development Program was announced last spring and will enhance the career readiness for UNLV student-athletes, particularly female student-athletes, as they prepare for life after sport.
Momentum also continues in women’s basketball, and the president also highlighted recent national championships by both the Rebel Girls & Company (in dance) and the UNLV Cheer team.
Imagine the Possibilities
As the State of the University came to a close, Whitfield stressed the importance of considering innovative, outside-the-box ideas not just for the UNLV campus of today, but for future generations of Rebels.
And who better to ask for ideas than future Rebels themselves. Following a short video where children of staff, students, and alumni envisioned their futures at UNLV, Whitfield welcomed more than a dozen current Rebels – more specifically the class of 4-year-olds in the UNLV Preschool – to join him on stage as he encouraged everyone in the audience to dream big and continue the proud legacy of UNLV.
“When we think about our future, we have to be doing the things that we’re doing for the right reasons,” Whitfield said. “This is about the next generation of Rebels, this is about our legacy at UNLV which continues to evolve.”
