• Focus : Nevada

    Nevada joined the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE), a 15-state commission working to boost access to and success in higher education for students in the West, in 1959. Nevada and WICHE have shared a remarkably productive history. But more importantly the state and its citizens reap essential economic and educational benefits today, saving millions of dollars annually while ensuring the state’s “human capital” is educated and ready to participate in a highly competitive global economy.


    In 2008-09 Nevada students and their families saved $5.5 million in tuition by participating in WICHE’s Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE), one of three student access programs, plus another $160,000 through the Western Regional Graduate Program (WRGP). Nevada also saved money by participating in the Professional Student Exchange Program (PSEP), sending its students to programs in four fields: optometry, pharmacy, physician assistant, and veterinary medicine.

     

    Doing the Math: Nevada's Return on Investment

    In 2008-09 Nevada, its institutions, and its students saved or brought in some $5.6 million through WICHE and spent $120,000 for membership in the commission, yielding a 46-fold return on investment.
     
    In the last 5 years, Nevada students’ savings from WUE alone have topped $21.7 million, with member-ship dues of just $561,000, yielding a 38-fold return.

     


    How does Nevada benefit as a WICHE state?

    WICHE’s programs save Nevada money and enhance the use of its educational resources in several critical ways.

     

    > When funding is reduced, access to higher ed can be preserved because students have affordable out-of-state options via WICHE.

     

    > Nevada’s public colleges and universities are able to increase enrollment in programs with extra capacity – and bring in much needed educational dollars – by enrolling students from other WICHE states.

     

    > Nevada saves money by not having to establish and maintain costly programs in a number of essential or leading-edge areas because its students have access to out-of-state programs.

     

    > Nevada vastly increases the resources it has for training its workforce: the majority of its professional students who train through WICHE’s PSEP return to the state to work and live.

    What student programs does WICHE offer?

    Over 1,000 students from Nevada are attending undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs in other Western states through WICHE’s three student exchange programs this year (Figure 1 breaks down tuition savings). State membership in WICHE is required for students to participate in these programs.
     
    Western Undergraduate Exchange. Over 7,600 Nevada students have enrolled in out-of-state undergraduate programs through WUE in the last decade.
     
    > In 2008-09 944 Nevada students are enrolled through WUE in out-of-state programs, saving over $5.5 million by paying the WUE rate of 150 percent of resident tuition in the enrolling institution.
     
    > Some of the top majors of Nevada’s students are: business, biology, psychology, political science, and kinesiology.
     
    > Nevada students saved an average of $5,849 each this year.
     
    Nevada also benefits from WUE by receiving students from out of state. Its institutions choose how many out-of-state slots to offer and in which areas, allowing them to make the best use of their resources by accepting students in underenrolled programs. There’s a workforce benefit for the state, too, as students often stay in Nevada after graduating. This year Nevada received 2,737 out-of-state students through WUE.
     
    Professional Student Exchange Program. Nevada has sent students to professional programs through PSEP since 1953. It currently supports 44 students in optometry, pharmacy, physician assistant, and veterinary medicine, while receiving 13 students, as well as nearly $195,000 in support fees. Historically, 69 percent of outbound PSEP students have returned to Nevada to pursue their professional careers.
     
    Western Regional Graduate Program. Nevada’s postgraduates participate in graduate programs through WRGP, which offers access to over 200 high-quality, distinctive programs (“distinctive” meaning that they’re offered at only four or fewer institutions in the WICHE region as well as to a range of healthcare programs) at 39 institutions in 14 WICHE states. Nevada sent 16 students to out-of-state institutions in 2008-09, while receiving seven.
     
    Internet Course Exchange (ICE). Nevada participates in WICHE’s newest exchange, ICE. The University of Nevada Reno (UNR) is a member of this alliance, whose 30 institutions and systems work towards sharing distance-delivered courses among two- and four-year institutions in the region. Other Nevada institutions also may join.

    WICHE's Added Value

    Nevada gains added value from WICHE's programs in policy, workforce development, technology, mental health, and other areas.

     

    Nevada participates in WICHE’s College Access Challenge Grant (CACG) Consortium and Network: CACG is a federally funded formula grant program designed to increase the number of low-income students who enroll and succeed in college. The network provides a forum for developing, implementing, and maintaining state CACG efforts, with states sharing best practices and lessons learned and receiving current evidence-based research. WICHE-related services to the consortium states include grant development and management, program implementation and evaluation, and ongoing expert consultation and guidance.
     
    Nevada has been an active participant in projects to support better-informed decision making at the state level. WICHE initiatives have been sponsored by the Ford Foundation, Lumina Foundation for Education, the U.S. Department of Education, and others. In addition, teams of policymakers and educational leaders from Nevada participate each year in regional policy forums and meetings hosted by WICHE. One such recent meeting was the Western Summit on Workforce Certification and Higher Education for policymakers in the West, held in response to the national demand for more highly skilled workers in a host of fields, from healthcare to high tech.
     
     WICHE’s Lumina-funded project “Getting What You Pay For: Understanding Higher Education Appropriations, Tuition, and Financial Aid” focuses on promoting informed decision making and the alignment of higher education appropriations, tuition, and financial aid policy by state legislators. The project also works to inform news media, especially state house and higher education reporters, and others about these issues in an effort to increase student access and success.
     
    Nevada participates in another project funded by Lumina Foundation, called “Non-traditional No More: Policy Solutions for Adult Learners.” WICHE held meetings to launch efforts for helping “ready adults”: those who are close to earning a college degree but have not yet returned to postsecondary education.

     

    Our goal with both meetings and projects is to assist educational leaders and policymakers by advocating for good public policy in the West. A third way we accomplish this is via our publication series, including Policy Insights and Workforce Briefs, which explore a wide range of significant policy issues. We also publish in-depth works such as Knocking at the College Door: Projections of High School Graduates by State and Race/Ethnicity and the Regional Fact Book for Higher Education in the West, which includes data and analyses on fiscal, demographic, economic, and social indicators, as well as a state report providing Alaska data on access, affordability, finance, faculty, technology, and workforce issues. These resources can be downloaded at no cost from the WlCHE website.

     

    Nevada participates in other WICHE programs as well. Seven Nevada organizations and institutions are members of WCET (formerly the Western Cooperative for Educational Telecommunications), an international leader in helping states and institutions use new technologies to improve education. WICHE’s Mental Health Program – a nucleus for researching mental health policy and a provider of technical assistance in such areas as service innovation, system reform, workforce development, program evaluation, and other areas – is another well-used resource.
     
    Another initiative, the Master Property Program, helps institutions in the West reduce their insurance premiums and improve their coverage. Additionally, UNR and the University of Nevada Las Vegas are members of the Western Academic Leadership Forum (WALF) – formerly known as the Northwest Academic Forum – whose members address regional higher education issues and engage in cooperative resource sharing.