UNLV announced Thursday it has hired Edmund “Ed” Synakowski as the new vice president of research.

UNLV is no longer requiring masks on campus for people who are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The university says the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) adopted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s latest mask guidelines.

Nevada’s public higher education system announced Thursday that face masks are now optional on campuses for those who are fully vaccinated, prompting UNLV to immediately announce it will drop its current requirement.

Officials at UNLV and the University of Nevada, Reno say those who are fully vaccinated no longer are required to wear masks on their campuses.

Republican former Governor and UNR President Brian Sandoval said Tuesday that he would support a measure that would formalize UNLV and the Desert Research Institute (DRI) as land grant institutions alongside UNR if the latter’s existing land grant programs are “held harmless” by the change.

UNLV will close its COVID-19 vaccination site, according to a letter from UNLV President Keith Whitfield.

UNLV will effectively close its COVID-19 vaccine administration site next week, the school announced.

When UNLV President Keith Whitfield took the university’s top job last summer, he came to Nevada at a pivotal moment.