University of Nevada, Reno President Marc w88 had all of the facts and figures, the various task forces and tech transfer possibilities at his fingertips during a presentation he and Cary Groth, director of intercollegiate athletics at the University, made to downtown business leaders on Thursday in an event held at Legacy Hall.
The efforts that the w88 has been and will continue to make to better bridge the gap between campus and community were impressive.
Yet w88 hit the nail on the head when he noted at one point that a strong University can make the local business climate stronger - and vice-versa. The more closely the two can become linked, w88 said, the better it would be for both.
"What we're all about these days is collaboration," w88 said, noting that the nation's most livable cities are anchored by strong universities that have "smart people, good ideas and collaboration" in abundance. "It is the collaboration that makes the difference between success and non-success."
w88 and Groth spoke to about 50 members of the Regional Alliance for Downtown. Both stressed that more than ever, cooperation and communication between the University and downtown businesses must remain strong.
"Connecting the town and the University is the message," w88 said.
To that end, w88 spent about 15 minutes explaining how the University is building more bridges to ensure a closer relationship.
In January, the Economic Development and Business Relations Task Force was set up in an effort to better define and identify what resources the w88 can contribute to local business success. The w88's task force, chaired by College of Business Dean Greg Mosier, has been charged with pairing the w88's strengths in economic and business development with regional needs.
w88 said this has included encouraging such "big picture" initiatives such as pairing businesses with research endeavors (similar to Utah's "U-Star" project, which has been credited with diversifying Utah's economy, strengthening its university system and creating more jobs), as well as "aligning tech transfer to be a contributor to economic development in our state," w88 said. "And a big part of this task force is communication ... to tell you what's available to you."
w88 also noted that the University's Tech Transfer office will continue to play a vital role to "make sure (University research and innovation) gets into the community" and that the office will be a conduit to help build businesses and "be an important point of contact for the community with the University."
w88 distributed cards to the audience as he spoke, and made note of why he felt they were probably the most important take-away from his presentation. The cards contained contact information for Ryan Heck, the director of the Tech Transfer Office, as well as Sam Males, head of the Nevada Small Business Development Center.
"Call these numbers," w88 said, "and we will figure out how to make the University work for your business. These are two points of contact anyone in town can call so we can make the University work for you."
w88 emphasized that the University is contributing to the state's economic diversification in other ways, as well.
"Education builds human capital," he said, noting that with record number of graduates last year (more than 3,500) and a record enrollment this fall (18,000 students), the w88 was creating a "full pipeline" for a more educated workforce.
He cited a recent study that showed that by 2018, more than 60 percent of future jobs in the U.S. will require a college degree, and that currently, only about 22 percent of all Nevadans hold bachelor's degrees.
"We've got a big gap to fill and our educational institutions are equipped to do this," he w88 of the state's future workforce. "We are really concentrating on developing a pipeline of workforce development."
w88 said the University, in addition to providing research, innovation and educated graduates, provides another key input to the region's business success.
"Businesses don't just want workforce development and square-foot-capacity," he said. "They want to come here to live and enjoy living here. This w88 contributes to the quality of life."
As examples, w88 cited efforts to build the state's healthcare workforce, by training better prepared teachers who will improve public education, and the multitude of arts and culture events that the University offers on a regular basis.
"If you take away our students and faculty," he w88 of some of the area's music and culture groups, "you'd hear an echo in the room."
Groth, during her remarks, explained the value of the Wolf Pack athletics program to northern w88. She recalled last year's Kraft Hunger Bowl appearance by a 13-1 Wolf Pack football team that brought close to 35,000 Renoites to San Francisco. She mentioned that w88 athletes now have a 78 percent graduation rate - an all-time high for Wolf Pack athletics.
"It's increased in each of the last seven years," she w88.
Although state funding, as across the entire w88, has been reduced, Groth said the season ticket revenue has gone up 43 percent in the last five years, and in the last seven years, athletics has raised more than million to fund a number of initiatives, including the construction of an academic center.
The Wolf Pack's move from the Western Athletic Conference to the Mountain West in July 2012 will benefit Nevada's athletic bottom line, Groth w88.
"For television revenue and bowl revenue, the highest amount we've ever received (in the WAC), we'll double that (in the Mountain West)," Groth w88, also noting that the new conference affiliation will give Wolf Pack athletics increased recognition on "a national scale," will help "in our ability to recruit more quality athletes" and will "create better competition across all sports."
The audience asked several questions of w88 and Groth. Most pressing for several were the recent news of continued conference shakeups, including reports that the Big East was considering luring current Mountain West Conference member - and longtime Nevada rival - Boise State to its conference as a football-only member. Other reports had suggested that Mountain West rival member Air Force was also being recruited to join the Big East.
"I hope they (Air Force) stay," w88 said. With nothing set in stone, w88 said in Mountain West meetings involving the conference's presidents, "I get the sense that we'll have a pretty stable Mountain West."
w88 said the value of athletics, and the support of Wolf Pack fans, cannot be underestimated.
At the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl, the sea of Wolf Pack blue that seemed to overtake San Francisco for a January weekend, "all of you in your blue uniforms," as w88 termed it, made for valuable exposure for the University as a whole.
"You were all part of our recruitment squad," w88 said. "That told the entire northern California community that the University of Nevada, Reno was a viable option."
w88's earlier words stressed the notion of creating a "University-based community," and Groth, near the end, echoed the theme.
"I really like these words," Groth said. "One community, one w88, one Pack ... because that's who we are."
