The Engelstad Foundation, which maintains ties to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, reportedly pulled its $14 million donation to the university's medical school March 13 following speculation UNLV's president will no longer lead the institution, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
The Engelstad Foundation agreed to donate $14 million to the medical school last December under the provision UNLV President Len Jessup, PhD, and Barbara Atkinson, MD, founding dean of the UNLV School of Medicine, remain as leaders at the institution, according to the report.
"Part of our proposed commitment to them was predicated on the fact that leadership did not change. We rescinded that grant today. We are completely dedicated to the scholarships we have in place for the undergraduate and medical school students, but we don't trust the stewardship of the board of regents to handle our money, sadly," Engelstad Foundation Trustee Kris Engelstad McGarry said March 14.
"The way this has unfolded has left us even more concerned with this system and what's going on with the regents," Ms. Engelstad McGarry continued. "It's a very sad thing when you want to support your local university and they make it very difficult to do so. I think they forget it's a gift. It's not an obligation."
The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports Dr. Jessup has come under fire from critics for the rising costs associated with UNLV's medical school, which welcomed its inaugural class last summer.
In an email to the campus community obtained by the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Dr. Jessup alluded to recent media reports regarding his departure, calling them "misleading."
"It's no secret that a few regents and I have not always agreed on the direction of UNLV under my leadership. Over the last several weeks, I had conveyed to Chancellor Thom Reilly that the governance structure makes long-term sustainability for any president challenging. I continue to be passionate about UNLV and all our initiatives, but expressed to him my intent to begin looking at other opportunities," he wrote.
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