Monday, Dec. 16, 2024 | 2 a.m.
Nevada State University President DeRionne Pollard is interviewed during a renaming celebration event at Nevada State University in Henderson Wednesday, Aug. 30, 2023. The university was formally known as Nevada State College.
Nevada State University is looking to triple its enrollment in the next 20 years, launching an initiative this fall to expand its Henderson campus with the development of about 450 acres into classrooms, student housing and sports complexes.
This fall, the Henderson institution had about 7,500 students. By 2047, the “SMART Growth Initiative” enhancement plan calls for accommodating 20,000 students.
“This is an opportunity for us to look at how we can build a campus that’s responsive to the beautiful community that we have the privilege of serving, as well as helping to drive broader visions around economic and workforce development,” Nevada State President DeRionne Pollard said. “We’re being intentional about how we plan for the future of higher education, not the way it was, but what does the future of higher education look like in Southern Nevada, in the state in general?”
The college has maintained over 7,000 students for the past four years, but after being permitted last year to change its name from Nevada State College to Nevada State University, the officials believe it could gain around 5% more students in the five years following.
That means it will outgrow its current space.
“Our land really is a blank canvas that we can build the future university on,” Pollard said about expanding on the current 60-acre layout.
Pollard said she’d “love to see” more science and technology buildings, performing arts facilities, office spaces, a hospital or similar health care facility, and sports recreation facilities — especially as Las Vegas works to establish itself as the sports capital of the world.
She also would like a space where the university could host commencement ceremonies on campus, and more workforce development opportunities.
The university, located in the McCullough Mountain range, won’t be the only part of southeast Henderson being studied for development.
The Henderson City Council in September approved the University Area Livable Centers Study, “a comprehensive review” of a 1,400-acre area that includes the campus, surrounding residential areas and the 85 acres of vacant land next to the university that is owned by the city.
The study was conducted by the city in partnership with the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada as part of its Livable Centers Study Program, which offers grants to local agencies for reviews that could lead to the development of “Complete Communities.” These communities aim to bring jobs, housing, transportation options and amenities within “reasonable proximity of one another,” the RTC said.
Respondents in the area said they want any future developments to “be a safe and walkable community” with spots for community gatherings, business opportunities, and services like a pharmacy and a transit center, said Lindsay Saner, the project lead from consulting firm Kimley-Horn, who worked on the study. This would all be built on the land across from the university.
Proposed additions to this space include housing, a police station, green spaces, grocery stores, public art and a transit center that would connect with RTC services already set to be incorporated as part of the Reimagine Boulder Highway project.
“I think it’s great that this area is going to continue to grow and improve … centered around education,” said Henderson Councilwoman Carrie Cox, whose daughter graduated from Nevada State University.
“I just am grateful for that opportunity that she had and so many students that are going to be able to call it their home,” she added. “Campus is critical when going to college and feeling like you belong, and I think Nevada State does a great job, and this would go a long way to help keep that culture alive.”
With the plan’s adoption, the city has moved on to updating its comprehensive College Area Plan and any area zoning, convening a task force to help oversee the project, creating a new brand for the area and outlining a process for tracking the implementation of items within the plan.
Pollard additionally formed a board of trustees to help guide the campus’s development and ensure it aligns with the university’s academic mission and Nevada’s workforce development goals.
Pollard said Henderson has been Nevada State’s “No. 1 partner” in its development since before the university doors opened, and they’re “tied at the hip” even throughout this campus expansion.
“We know we have land, we know we have people who are interested in partnering with us, and we also know that there is an environment right now where we have to pay attention to a lot of different factors and make the best decision for our students and our community,” Pollard said. “I think we might end up being a national model about how one thinks about the design of a contemporary state university.”