UNLV President Len Jessup began his annual State of the University Address Thursday afternoon with prophetic words from Maude Frazier, the woman largely credited with establishing what would become UNLV: 

“Our dreams are coming true and, from a small beginning, a great campus will develop here.”

When Frazier shared that statement at the groundbreaking for Archie C. Grant Hall on the dusty desert campus in spring of 1958, UNLV – then known as Nevada Southern – had 498 students. This fall, as the university marks its 60th anniversary, it welcomes more than 30,000.

Remarkable growth has been the norm at UNLV, and in Southern Nevada, for decades. But, as Jessup said, that growth didn’t happen alone. For UNLV to be where it is today took enormous sacrifices and incredible commitment from so many in Southern Nevada. And the confidence that Frazier and others had in UNLV 60 years ago continue to motivate Jessup, and the university, on its mission to become a Top Tier public university in research, education, and community impact.

During an hour-long address to a packed audience in the Judy Bayley Theatre, Jessup traced UNLV’s evolution, juxtaposing the upstart school of the late 1950s with the juggernaut university that exists today. He also offered a glimpse of the UNLV of the future.

Among the takeaways from Jessup’s 2017 State of the University Address:

Tumbleweed Tech to Top Tier

To understand how far UNLV has come in its 60-year history, it’s important to see where it started. Jessup shared a story of the early days – before a physical campus existed – when the president, registrar and all staff shared a cramped office in old Las Vegas High School. He quipped that classes and school operations were canceled anytime the high school staged a play.

Jessup then offered a striking comparison of past and present to put the campus’ rapid evolution into perspective: a boom in the local population from 100,000 at UNLV’s founding to more than 2.2 million today; a graduating class of 29 in 1964 has risen to an average of 5,000-plus annually; and more alumni today – 115,000 – than the total population of Clark County when UNLV began.

“We demonstrated resiliency and spirit then, and now, and throughout our existence we’ve had community, faculty and staff get together to work on important and interesting problems,” said Jessup. “UNLV was, and still is, aimed at service and pulling in our community as a partner, and we’re proud of our rich history of community and service. It’s what we’re about.”

Just as dramatic as the physical transformation has been the growth in programs. UNLV awarded its first graduate degree 50 years ago and its first Ph.D. in 1991, and it now has degree programs and research partnerships in dozens of disciplines making a global impact.

It wouldn’t have been possible, Jessup said, without Maude Frazier, a woman “with a lot of grit who saw the need for a full-time university in Southern Nevada and she fought for it.”

“UNLV started as a public-private partnership,” he said, referring to the promised match of state funds 60 years ago if a community campaign could raise $35,000 for initial buildings. “It was a P3 before anyone even knew what that was. It was quite a community effort.”

Top Tier Progress

Two years ago during his first State of the University, Jessup unveiled a refined strategic plan to join the top tier of the nation’s public research universities. On Thursday, he traced the university’s strong progress in Top Tier goal areas of research, community impact, infrastructure, health, and student achievement, using highlights and anecdotes of accomplishments campus wide.

Within the past year, the much-anticipated School of Medicine opened its doors to an inaugural class of 60 students; UNLV students are competing in and winning national competitions in jazz, accounting, architecture, entertainment engineering, and technology; and public-private research partnerships are expanding, with nearly 40 active partnerships including a collaboration with Lockheed Martin to support NASA’s Orion Program.

“The quote from our partners at Lockheed Martin is that the road to Mars goes through Las Vegas and through UNLV,” said Jessup.

But one of the biggest ovations from the crowd came when Jessup shared the breadth of UNLV’s community engagement. He spoke of the more than 380 current community partnerships. This includes more than 125,000 hours of service in the past year from College of Education students and 13,000 hours by student athletes, with the latter winning the Mountain West Conference Community Service Award.

“The goal is to become the partnership university nationally, and a go-to source locally,” Jessup said.

Record-Breaking Year

UNLV broke new ground in many areas, both literally and figuratively, over the past year. The Harrah College of Hospitality was named the best program of its kind in the world this spring and will open the doors to the new Hospitality Hall later this year.

“It’s a world-class academic building for a world-class hospitality program. And it’s well deserved,” Jessup said.

He also spoke with optimism about the rise of professional sports in Las Vegas, with the NHL’s Golden Knights, the Oakland Raiders and professional soccer all moving to Southern Nevada. As more professional athletes make their home in Southern Nevada, UNLV has a unique opportunity to become a leading center for the health of athletes by drawing expertise from new and existing campus programs.

“Our faculty are creating an interdisciplinary effort around sports medicine for professional athletes and the world-class gymnasts and athletes performing every night on the Strip,” Jessup said. “It’s a great opportunity, and it’s the perfect thing for us to be doing.”

In fundraising, UNLV amassed $93 million in private support this past fiscal year – including 13 gifts of $1 million or more – on its way to a new campus annual record. Growth is also evident in research and economic development, with sponsored program expenditures up 7.5 percent from last year to nearly $53 million. Research awards skyrocketed 27.6 percent to almost $70 million.

Earlier this week, UNLV topped another list when it was named the most diverse campus in the nation by U.S. News & World Report.

“Equity, diversity, and inclusion are in our DNA. It’s who we are,” Jessup said.

UNLV of the Future

It’s no surprise, given its history, that the UNLV of the future will be one of expansion on campus and off. Development will occur in teaching and research space on the Maryland Parkway campus with planned engineering and business buildings. The student experience will also improve for the rising campus population, with immediate development in residential life and plans for an expansion of the Student Union. Within the next 10 to 15 years, the campus is expected to blow past its 30,000-student mark to close to 40,000.

Jessup said that in the near future Maryland Parkway will also transform, with new development through public-private partnerships expected to create a long-awaited university district along this key corridor of campus.

“We are in desperate need of a transportation solution on Maryland Parkway, and we are supportive of the RTC’s efforts for light rail,” said Jessup. “It would be a boon for this campus and allow connections to multiple university campuses both now and into the future.”

The 42 acres UNLV purchased in late 2015 will be used to support graduate and professional education, clinical and community programs, and mixed-use facilities for future growth. Another 2,000 acres recently acquired in North Las Vegas will become a home for “big science.”

“There are incredible opportunities for us on that campus,” Jessup said. “Think of building a simulated city-scape to design, build and test autonomous vehicles to ensure they’re functioning properly before they’re on city streets.”

At the conclusion of the address, Jessup said that UNLV is well positioned for the future with its location in one of the most influential cities in the world. Nationally, he said that Las Vegas is in a unique position as an innovation zone that will continue to see intense growth and, with it, even more influence.

“We are a growing, vibrant, global city driving the world’s economy,” he said. “This is a great place to be. We have a special opportunity at UNLV to make a difference. That’s our responsibility.”

Watch the full 2017 State of the University address.