The Board of Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) renewed the contract for University of Nevada, Reno President Brian Sandoval for another four years during their quarterly meeting on Friday, June 7, 2024.
President Sandoval, who began his tenure in October 2020, has been instrumental in guiding the University through significant challenges and achieving remarkable milestones. He is the first University president who is a Nevada alumnus and is the first president of Hispanic origin to serve in this role. Despite starting his tenure during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, President Sandoval successfully led the University through remote operations and funding challenges, fostering resilience and growth.
In the last four years, the University has continued to achieve institutional records in practically every metric associated with success, including graduation, National Merit and Presidential Scholars, student diversity and faculty productivity. Research expenditures have grown to more than $180 million in 2023, and faculty research productivity ranks the University among the top 65 in the country.
“The ideal university is an embodiment of the best spirit of the age.”
During his inaugural State of the University Address given on Sept. 28, 2021, President Sandoval recalled words from former University President Stubbs in 1894 stating, “The ideal university is an embodiment of the best spirit of the age.” That intention, encapsulating adaptivity, innovation and bold creativity has been a cornerstone of the University’s last four years.
President Sandoval has led the University to significant achievements, including the implementation of a five-year strategic plan, “Wolf Pack Rising,” and receiving the prestigious Carnegie Classification for Community Engagement. Other notable achievements include:
- Collegiate Academy Program: The Collegiate Academy program improves access pathways to higher education through partnerships with the Clark, Washoe, Elko and Churchill Counties School Districts. In 2024, the Collegiate Academy program was awarded the Nevada Taxpayer’s Association’s Cashman Good Governance Award for the exceptional impact this program has on the State of Nevada.
- Sierra Nevada University Acquisition: In a groundbreaking collaborative agreement, Sierra Nevada University, located at Lake Tahoe, donated its campus to the University and will increase the University’s ability to expand academic programming and enrich the living, learning and discovery environments for future University students while also increasing the institution’s sustainability and research impact in the Lake Tahoe basin.
- Digital Wolf Pack Initiative. One of several student-centered initiatives based on partnerships with technology industry leaders, the Digital Wolf Pack Initiative is a pilot program with Apple designed to support students’ experiences on and off campus by integrating technology into students’ academic careers. This includes augmenting digital literacy and making accessibility to digital tools and programs possible for all students an institutional priority.
- Nevada Tech Hub. United States Senators Catherine Cortez Masto and Jacky Rosen announced that the University has been designated as a “Tech and Innovation Hub”, which creates a network of public-private partnerships with entities throughout 16 counties in Nevada. The University’s selection for the program, through the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act, recognizes that Nevada has the assets, resources and capacity to become a global leader in lithium batteries and electric vehicle innovation.
- Renown Health Affiliation Agreement: In summer 2021, the University announced a generational partnership between the University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine and Renown Health to establish the first fully integrated health system in the state.
- Guinn Center Affiliation. In summer 2021, the Kenny Guinn Center for Policy Priorities, a nonpartisan research and policy center, became formally affiliated with the University. With this partnership, the University’s students and faculty work in concert with the Guinn Center on a wide range of public policy issues central to Nevada’s future.
- Office of Hispanic/Latinx Community Relations Director. The Hispanic/Latinx Community Relations Director position was created in 2022 and is dedicated to bridging the gap between the Northern Nevada Hispanic/Latinx community and the University. Part of this outreach is to connect with community “champions” who can advise the University on Hispanic/Latinx engagement that will help serve students as the University approaches Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) status.
- Office of Indigenous Relations. The Office of Indigenous Relations, created in 2022, is the first of its kind in Nevada. The Office of Indigenous Relations aims to build strong community connections, provide funding and resources and create supportive and culturally inclusive environments for Indigenous students, faculty and communities. This office also includes a Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) Coordinator whose goal is to repatriate ancestral remains and cultural artifacts currently housed within the University.
- Mathewson University Gateway.The new ‘gateway’ from campus to Downtown Reno was named after philanthropists Charles and Stacey Mathewson, making it the Mathewson University Gateway. Center Street, from the Truckee River to Ninth Street and the south end of campus, was renamed “University Way” giving a physical indication of the strong relationship between the University and the City of Reno. As part of the Gateway project, the University opened a parking structure that alleviated the significant parking shortage at the south end of campus. The College of Business Building Groundbreaking was held on October 12, 2023, starting construction of the first academic building within the Gateway.
- State Public Health Lab. With the support of Governor Steve Sisolak and the Nevada Legislature, the construction of the new State Public Health Laboratory will begin on campus in late 2024. When it is completed, Nevada’s scientific and public health community will work together in this state-of-the-art facility that will provide every Nevadan with a better quality of life.
- Social Work Building. United States Nevada Representative Mark Amodei and Minnesota Representative Betty McCollum graciously found federal funding from the U.S. Department of the Interior needed to rehabilitate the radium found within the former Facilities building. It has since become the home of Nevada’s largest School of Social Work, providing transformational research, programming, training and engagement that makes our community, and Nevada, a healthier place.
- School of Public Health Building. The School of Public Health found a new home in the recently renovated Edna S. Brigham Building. The School of Public Health is one of only 68 Council on Education for Public Health accredited schools in the world and this building is another step toward helping support its students who go on to make their mark in various fields from higher education to impactful roles in healthcare, epidemiology, environmental science, biostatistics, social justice, emergency preparedness and policy change.
President Sandoval has also spent his first term at the University involved with several groups as a part of their advisory boards including the Association for Public Land Grant Universities Board of Directors, the Davidson Academy Governing Board, the Economic Development Authority of Western Nevada (EDAWN) Board of Trustees, the Tahoe Fund Council of Special Advisors, the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration, Renown Health’s Board of Directors, and Western Governors Foundation’s Board of Directors. The President also serves as chair of the Mountain West Board of Directors Legal & Finance Committee.
Also in the last four years, many organizations across Nevada have presented President Sandoval with recognition for his impactful work. A few include the PBS Extraordinary Philanthropist of the Year, Nevada Latino Bar Association Inspira Award, Washoe Education Foundation Torch Award, Making the World a More Just Place Award from the National Judicial College, and Nevada Business Magazine’s 2023 Most Respected Leaders. He was also unanimously approved by the political science faculty to receive the title of “Professor of Practice” in the Department of Political Science at the University of Nevada, Reno.
“During my tenure as President, my goal has been to raise visibility and awareness of the strategic priorities for the state’s original land-grant institution, increase student accessibility, diversity and success; faculty and staff achievement and excellence; and innovation, partnership and impactful engagement through the University’s research and outreach efforts,” Sandoval said. “It is my vision for the University to be a ‘Land Grant 2.0,’ a University that provides more access, diversity and technology to our students so they can succeed in the ever-changing world of the twenty-first century. I am deeply honored to continue serving the University of Nevada, Reno community and feel privileged to do this during the University’s sesquicentennial. Go Pack!”
For more information on President Sandoval, please visit the Office of the President webpage.
