Representatives from the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians wrap UNLV Marta Meana in a blanket as part of the tribe's gift announcement to the university.

UNLV Newsmakers 2020: February

A collection of news stories from February highlighting the people and research of UNLV.

UNLV President Marta Meana is wrapped in a blanket by San Manuel Band of Mission Indians representatives Audrey Martinez and Lynn Valbuena during a ceremony to announce the tribe's $9 million gift to the university. (Josh Hawkins/UNLV Photo Services)

February was a month of excitement at UNLV. The San Manuel Band of Mission Indians gifted $9 million to UNLV’s William F. Harrah College of Hospitality as well as the William S. Boyd School of Law — a historic agreement to bring a tribal gaming emphasis to the world’s leading hospitality school and bolster the nation's only master's program in gaming law. Additionally, UNLV political science and history professors commented on Nevada’s 2020 Democratic Caucus to prominent national and international news outlets.

On the research front, a study by UNLV public health researchers found that drivers of flashy cars are less likely to yield to pedestrians. Experts across campus also offered their expertise to the intensifying conversation around COVID-19, the coronavirus outbreak that is spreading internationally.  

Below are just a few stories of UNLV’s people and programs that made headlines in Nevada and beyond last month.

Historic Gift to Enhance Tribal Gaming Education

In February, the San Manuel Band of Mission Indians gifted UNLV with $9 million in a historic agreement to support course development and an endowed chair at the William F. Harrah College of Hospitality. The gift will also provide curricular, faculty, and program support at the William S. Boyd School of Law. The agreement is a stepping stone for the blending of tribal gaming into the world’s leading hospitality and gaming program along with adding an emphasis of tribal gaming to the country’s only master’s degree program in gaming law. 

Love is in the Air

Valentine’s Day was one to remember this year, thanks in part to historians and experts at UNLV. From the holiday’s true beginnings, to why humans  kiss, UNLV professors spanning multiple departments offered insight on topics surrounding this Hallmark holiday. 

  • 19th-century pop culture expert Elizabeth Nelson spoke to BYU radio and KSNV-TV: News 3 about the true history of Valentine’s Day

  • Anthropology experts Shelly Volsche and William Jankowiak’s research was featured in a Yahoo Style UK article about why humans kiss.

  • Katherine Hertlein, a professor in the  Couple & Family Therapy program at the UNLV School of Medicine, spoke to The AAMFT Podcast and Mashable about online dating.

2020 Presidential Caucus

The 2020 Nevada democratic caucuses took place on Feb. 23, and professors at UNLV were called upon by major news outlets to give their insight on all things politics. From the importance of pronouncing Nevada correctly, to the results of the Las Vegas debate, UNLV experts were featured prominently in the conversation. 

Expensive Car = Rude Driver?

UNLV Public Health researchers Courtney Coughenour, James Abelar, Jennifer Pharr, Lung-Chang Chein, and Ashok Singh published a research study that deliberated on whether the cost of a car directly correlates with how often that driver yields to pedestrians. Researchers concluded that yielding to pedestrians at crosswalks decreased by 3 percent per $1,000 increase in the car’s value. As startling was the fact that less than a third of all drivers yielded to pedestrians. 
 

Coronavirus: Separating Facts from Myths

As of March 4, COVID-19 has spread to 78 countries, including the U.S., prompting the World Health Organization to raise its risk assessment of the virus to “very high.” With concern over the virus spreading, several UNLV experts have been called upon by a variety of news outlets to provide their expertise on both the virus and its impact on businesses and the economy.

General Expert Roundup

  • Hospitality professor Mehmet Erdem spoke to The Washington Post about hotel-room Bibles.

  • Brandon Eddy, Couple & Family Therapy Program professor, offered his expertise to Fatherly on how dads go through a second puberty. 

  • The New York Times quoted Lincy Institute and Brookings Mountain West director Rob Lang about Nevada’s growth following the Great Recession.

  • Public health professor Brian Labus weighed in on how to prevent the flu in Business Insider.

Topics:

newsmakers

Campus Units:

Department of Anthropology,  Lee Business School,  Department of Communication Studies,  Couple and Family Therapy Program,  Department of Economics,  College of Education,  Educational Psychology, Leadership, and Higher Education,  Department of History,  William F. Harrah College of Hospitality,  William S. Boyd School of Law,  College of Liberal Arts,  School of Life Sciences,  Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV,  Department of Political Science,  School of Public Health,  Greenspun College of Urban Affairs,  Office of Community Engagement,  Office of Executive Vice President and Provost,  Brookings Mountain West,  Center for Business and Economic Research,  Center for Gaming Research,  The Lincy Institute

Related Experts:

Courtney Coughenour ,  David Damore ,  Brandon Eddy ,  Ruben Garcia ,  Rebecca Gill ,  Michael Green ,  Brian Hedlund ,  Katherine M. Hertlein ,  William Jankowiak ,  Brian Labus ,  Dan Lee ,  Bradley Marianno ,  Stephen Miller ,  Kenneth Miller ,  David G. Schwartz ,  Stowe Shoemaker ,  Ashok Singh

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