Presenting the stethoscopes was more than a symbolic gesture. Dr. Constantine George told UNLV’s first class of medical school students that the instrument should be used as a reminder to keep patients at the center of what they do over the next four years and beyond.

The long-awaited UNLV School of Medicine kicked off Monday with members of the inaugural class honored with stethoscopes at a ceremony. The 60 students began orientation and will get into their first course Tuesday with emergency response and population studies.

The valley's future doctors start classes Monday, at UNLV's new School of Medicine. 60 new students will begin medical school, and that could mean dozens of new doctors for the valley.

UNLV’s inaugural class of medical students won’t be listening to heartbeats quite yet, but the stethoscopes they receive on their first day of studies Monday will be put to good use over the next four years.

A major health scare will keep the key leader and visionary behind the new UNLV School of Medicine from being on hand for a monumental moment Monday — the first day of class for the first class of students.

Barbara Atkinson, the founding dean of the UNLV School of Medicine, is making “positive gains every day” in the hospital after suffering a “very serious” illness, university officials said Tuesday.

Philanthropist and businessman Jon Huntsman Sr. has donated $1 million to UNLV’s department of history to fund the study of the Intermountain West region, according to the university.

Philanthropist and businessman Jon Huntsman Sr. has donated $1 million to UNLV’s department of history to fund the study of the Intermountain West region, according to the university.

Liz Groesbeck is following her one true love — the brain — to medical school. But she’s open to developing a new relationship. “I don’t have much experience with things that aren’t brains,” said Groesbeck, who graduated in May from the University of Nevada, Reno, with a master’s degree in neuroscience. “But I might fall in love with another organ system.”

The University of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV) recently received a huge financial boost, and it’s going to give a kick start to one of its programs. The fledgling UNLV medical school just received an anonymous $25 million donation.

An anonymous donor is helping put $25 million toward the UNLV medical school. Gov. Brian Sandoval said during a Monday news conference that his rough estimate is that the state has invested over $80 million in the project over the past two sessions, but that a school needs to be built.

The Nevada Legislature on Monday pushed forward with a bill to allocate $25 million in new money to UNLV’s fledgling medical school, contingent upon getting a private donor to match the state funding. The funding was added to Senate Bill 553 by the Assembly Ways and Means Committee. The bill also appropriates $1.75 million for advance planning for a UNLV College of Engineering Academic and Research Building.