“What happened to our medical school?” That is the only question I asked after Gov. Brian Sandoval’s State of the State speech a couple of weeks ago. I suppose when the governor talks about how we are doing, why we are doing it and what he is going to do next, and the only question is about the UNLV medical school, then it must have been a pretty good speech!

The Las Vegas Valley has a growing population of more than 2 million, yet the only allopathic medical school in the state is 450 miles away in Reno, a city with a population of about 234,000.

Medical education in Nevada is growing and is poised for significant expansion. Collectively, the current and proposed changes will eventually go far in reversing the state’s shortages of medical students, physician residency programs, doctors and nurses.

Len Jessup, a dean at the University of Arizona, has been chosen to be the next president of UNLV.