When Kiara Rose Sims, an Honors College senior double majoring in accounting and finance, collects her degree from UNLV this May, she'll leave knowing she made the campus a better place. She is a leader in building a sense of belonging for traditionally underrepresented students at UNLV.

Her work as a member of the Minority-Serving Institution Student Council is simultaneously beautifying campus through art and making it a more welcoming place. 

What are some of the identities you hold?

I am a first-generation college student of mixed ethnicity from Wyoming.

What does it mean to you that UNLV is a Minority Serving Institution?

I believe that UNLV holding MSI statuses means that it has a duty to serve students with equity at the bare minimum. To me, all Minority-Serving Institutions should have resources and programs integrated into daily operations that are specifically designed to assist underrepresented students. 

Why did you choose to join the MSI Student Council?

I was really excited about the opportunity to directly impact campus. Having our own personal initiatives made it so that I could help fix the issues that I saw with our campus.

What project did you started through the MSISC?

Dumpster Art: I started a mural project around the Upperclassman Complex to beautify the dumpster structures. Pwoz, a local first-generation immigrant, painted the seven-piece installation on electric blocks and concrete blocks around our dumpsters.

I wanted to see more art around the community so that it could feel friendlier and build conversations. 

Why is this project important to historically underrepresented students?

Art allows for the conversation and expression of the types of communities that we see ourselves thriving in. It is our hopes that this installation will continue to inspire conversations among residents. Additionally, it is nice to show the fine art students of UNLV that a first-gen black immigrant can make such beautiful work and make a career of it!

What are you working on now?

This semester I’m working with the Academic Success Center (ASC) and a few other campus offices to put together an Academic Resource Fair to help students find the resources they need.

Throughout my time at UNLV, students consistently tell me that they wish we had a resource for things that already exist. I wanted to try and make it so that people could find the assistance that is already available to them.

Why is this project important to historically underrepresented students?

Historically underrepresented students typically have less access to resources. This isn’t intentional, but many simply do not know that there are resources to be had. If only one student finds the DACA resource, meets an academic advisor, or discovers the gold mine of The Intersection, the project will have been a success.

What have you learned about UNLV through serving on the MSISC?

I’ve learned that there are a few areas of campus dedicated to intentionally supporting all of the student body with equitable outcomes, such as the Intersection. I’ve also learned that there are a lot of areas where UNLV could do better to fully embrace the potential of underrepresented students. Before I was on the council, I was in a bubble and didn’t quite see all of the issues facing other students. The saddest issue to me is that many problems that my peers face have intentional solutions on campus, but the students do not know where to find the solution or resource and they don’t know who to ask for help.

How can faculty, staff, and, students find out more information regarding your project?

The best way to find out about my work would be to walk around the dumpsters by the upperclassman complex! It would be fun to see if you can find all seven. Soon, Pwoz may be partnering with other sections of campus to expand the project.

When you are not working or studying what do you do for fun? 

I really enjoy hiking near Red Rock or Mount Charleston. I work a lot, so I like disconnecting and taking a nature break when I can.

Since doing this work, have you had an "a-ha!" moment you'd like to share?

That it is OK to complain to the administration in appropriate settings! Sometimes complaining about a problem to an advisor, mentor, or professor gives them the go-ahead to inform you about the resource that can provide a solution. Many colleges have emergency scholarships, access to housing and food resources, and sympathetic faculty that want to help.

My personal favorite place to complain is The Intersection because they seem to have the sweetest staff who have almost all campus resources memorized.