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UNLV Newsmakers 2023: March

A collection of news stories highlighting the experts and student changemakers at UNLV.

UNLV’s status as a top choice for military veteran students was reaffirmed, as the university was again named among the nation’s top 10 “Military Friendly” campuses of its size by Viqtory and G.I. Jobs Magazine. (Becca Schwartz/UNLV)

March was a busy month at UNLV. From big-ticket events like a campus visit by U.S. President Joe Biden and the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine’s annual “Match Day” ceremony to UNLV experts sharing expertise on topics like inflation, a mysterious outer space discovery, and more, the latest edition of Newsmakers is a riveting read. 

Presidential Visit

Flanked by students and faculty from UNLV’s medicine, nursing, and dental schools, U.S. President Joe Biden stopped by the William F. Harrah College of Hospitality during spring break to share his administration’s plan to lower the cost of prescription drugs.   

Basketball Bounty

Fans all over Las Vegas and beyond cheered on the Lady Rebels as they swept the Mountain West Conference, winning a record 31 games as they headed to the NCAA Tournament for the second year in a row.

Las Vegas Sun, Las Vegas Review-Journal, KTNV-TV: ABC 13, KSNV-TV: News 3

UNLV Fine Arts Hall of Fame

Gloria Dea, the first magician to perform on the Las Vegas Strip, was posthumously inducted into the UNLV College of Fine Arts Hall of Fame for her contributions to the performing arts industry. Dea passed away at age 100 days before the ceremony. 

NBC, KSNV-TV: News 3 (twice), KVVU-TV: Fox 5 (twice), Las Vegas Review-Journal

Research

  • Astrophysicist Bing Zhang and an international team of scientists published a new study that for the first time showed a possible relationship between neutron star mergers and fast radio bursts (FRBs) – two of the most mysterious cosmological phenomena studied over the past two decades: The Conversation US, Astronomy Magazine, Science Magazine, Interesting Engineering
  • Interesting Engineering, Science Magazine, and Science Times shared news of chemistry doctoral student Jacqueline Phan and biochemistry professor Ernesto Abel-Santos’ quest to develop a new preventative drug to combat C. diff, a potentially deadly gastrointestinal infection.
  • School of Medicine professor Deborah Kuhls updated KSNV-TV: News 3, KLAS-TV: 8 News Now, Telemundo Las Vegas, Public News Service, and KTNV-TV: ABC 13 on the findings of a UNLV study into traffic injury and death trends on Nevada roads.
  • HealthDay picked up a study into youth with biploar disorder that was led by a UNLV psychology researcher.
  • Science Daily covered student-led research out of College of Sciences that shed new light on ancient microbial dark matter.

Health

  • Sociology professor Fatima Suarez spoke to the New York Times about fathers finding a sense of fulfillment after taking on new household roles during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. 
  • Psychology professor Nicole Short explained to KLAS-TV: 8 News Now when a person should seek professional help for sleep problems. 
  • Brian Labus, an epidemiology professor in the School of Public Health, spoke to Parents.com about why baby formula recalls keep occurring; Giddy about the timeline of Mpox diagnoses; Men’s Health about the impact of “long COVID” on a person’s body; and the Las Vegas Review-Journal about his findings regarding Legionnaires’ disease and the difficulty of diagnosing it. 
  • Samantha Coogan, director of the Didactic Program in Nutrition and Dietetics, spoke to Healthline (twice) about the impacts of the keto and Harvard diets.
  • Dr. Marc J. Kahn, dean of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine, wrote a guest column for the Nevada Independent advocating for increased funding to assist with Nevada’s doctor shortage. Additionally, he spoke to the Nevada Current about insurance companies’ unwillingness to expand access to healthcare. 

Education

  • Two UNLV experts spoke to local and national outlets about teacher strikes. Law professor Ruben Garcia explained to Bloomberg and the Las Vegas Review-Journal (in Spanish) why California teachers are striking but Nevada teachers are not. Additionally, College of Education professor Bradley Marianno chatted with Fox News, Education Week, 19th News, and The 74 about the recent teacher strike occurring in Los Angeles, which is said to be the largest union to strike. 
  • College of Education professor Samuel Song spoke with the Nevada Independent about a bill that K-12 teachers hope will address student violence through discipline. 
  • KVVU-TV: Fox 5 interviewed Kendall Hartley, an educational technology professor with the College of Education, about the importance of students having affordable internet access. 

University Happenings

  • Las Vegas will host the 2024 Super Bowl,  which is expected to attract millions of visitors to the region. Thanks to a partnership with the United Way of Southern Nevada and NFL Foundation, 45 UNLV students pursuing sports industry careers will  receive hands-on learning opportunities through the creation of paid internships. Jay Vickers, chief operating office for UNLV Sports Innovation, and a few of the interns gave KLAS-TV: 8 News Now and KSNV-TV: News 3 viewers a glimpse into the program. 
  • UNLV hosted the fifth annual “Rebels Give” event, a 24-hour fundraising campaign that allows students, staff, community members, and alumni to give back to the university: KSNV-TV: News 3 
  • The Las Vegas Sun penned a profile story on Mallory Constantine — the first recipient of the inaugural Robert E. Lang Memorial Fellowship, a fund created last year through the Brookings Mountain West and The Lincy Institute think tanks to honor the late public policy leader.
  • A report by Viqtory and G.I. Jobs Magazine again ranked UNLV among the top schools in the nation for student veterans, per KSNV-TV: News 3.

  • For the third year in a row, Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine students participated in the annual “Match Day” event, learning where they'll spend the next few years for their residencies: KLAS-TV: 8 News Now, KSNV-TV: News 3, KTNV-TV: ABC 13

Expert Roundup

  • Business Insider featured health physics professor Zaijing Sun’s expertise in an article explaining things everyday citizens don’t know about radioactive fallout from a nuclear bomb, and the story was picked up by Yahoo!.
  • Political scientist Austin Horng-En Wang spoke to Voice of America, Radio Free Asia, Taiwan News, and Japan Times about ongoing tensions between China and Taiwan.
  • Historian Michael Green spoke to multiple outlets including The New York Times about the NCAA’s changing view of Las Vegas and the History Channel about key World War I battles fought in Africa.
  • How can leaders help fundraisers avoid burnout? Public policy and leadership expert Jessica K.A. Word shared insights with The Chronicle of Philanthropy.
  • Criminal justice professor Tamara D. Herold’s expertise was included in a Discover Magazine piece examining collective behavior and why some crowds get out of control.
  • Popular Science interviewed public health professor Chad L. Cross about an increase in tick-related diseases.
  • Today spoke to gender psychology expert Rachael D. Robnett about a social media movement surrounding people choosing to live as a traditional housewife. She also talked to Today for a separate piece about the ways social media is bringing attention to the oftentimes unnoticed work of motherhood. 
  • Communication studies professor Natalie Pennington’s research was highlighted in the Wall Street Journal story about the importance of in-person interactions. 
  • Su Kim Chung, head of special collections public services with UNLV University Libraries, was the featured guest on a City Cast Las Vegas segment about trailblazing women history-makers in Southern Nevada and a Vegas PBS episode about her work to preserve local history.
  • Claytee White, director of the Oral History Research Center, chatted with City Cast Las Vegas about desegregation of the Las Vegas Strip; Vegas PBS and KSNV-TV: News 3 about the important contributions of Ruby Duncan and other women to U.S. history; and The Christian Science Monitor about the “the free marketplace of ideas,” especially in America’s institutions of higher education.
  • Wired interviewed Brookings Mountain West social media disinformation researcher Mary Blankenship about online rumors that continue to swirl six months after the Nord Stream gas pipeline explosion.
  • Pollen Program Supervisor Asma Tahir spoke to KSNV-TV: News 3 about the impact of the valley's wet winter rainfall on allergy season. She also told the Las Vegas Review-Journal and KTNV-TV: ABC 13 what the pollen program is finding  in its air samples.
  • Two International Gaming Institute experts spoke to Scripps National News. Executive director Brett Abarbanel talked about the potential for video games to contribute to gambling problems among younger populations. Responsible gaming fellow Alan Feldman talked about the ways technology can help stop problem gambling. Abarbanel additionally spoke to the Las Vegas Review-Journal (in Spanish) about the potential for newly raised age restrictions in casinos to promote responsible gaming.
  • The Hill quoted political scientist David Damore in a story about a civil war brewing among Nevada Democrats ahead of the 2024 election cycle. He also participated in a KNPR panel discussion about the divide between urban and rural Nevadans.

Topics:

newsmakers

Campus Units:

William F. Harrah College of Hospitality,  Division of Health Sciences,  Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV,  Intercollegiate Athletics,  College of Fine Arts,  College of Sciences,  Department of Physics and Astronomy,  Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry,  Graduate College,  College of Liberal Arts,  Department of Psychology,  School of Life Sciences,  School of Integrated Health Sciences,  Department of Kinesiology and Nutrition Sciences,  Department of Sociology,  School of Public Health,  Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics,  William S. Boyd School of Law,  College of Education,  Department of Educational Psychology, Leadership, and Higher Education,  Department of Counselor Education, School Psychology, and Human Services,  Department of Teaching and Learning,  Office of Economic Development,  Division of Philanthropy and Alumni Engagement,  Brookings Mountain West,  The Lincy Institute,  Military and Veterans Services,  Department of Health Physics and Diagnostic Sciences,  Department of Political Science,  Department of History,  University Libraries,  Oral History Research Center,  Special Collections and Archives,  Department of Criminal Justice,  Greenspun College of Urban Affairs,  School of Public Policy and Leadership,  Department of Communication Studies,  Division of Research,  International Gaming Institute

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