As far as UNLV is concerned, one good reason to create a new campus out of desert land in North Las Vegas is the disproportionate ratio of enrollment to acreage.
That's why college officials are proposing creating a campus measuring about five times its current size.
When UNLV compares itself to similar institutions in the West, it has too many students crammed into too small an area, according to administrators.
The proposal to create a new campus for UNLV would increase the school's acreage to more than 2,500 acres.
UNLV is educating 27,335 students on its campus of 427 acres, according to figures supplied by the administration. In contrast, the University of Nevada, Reno, houses 15,971 students on 860 acres.
The University of Utah, with 28,933 students -- roughly UNLV's census -- boasts 1,494 acres. Colorado State University, with its 24,500 students, enjoys just under 100,000 acres.
Other colleges, with much larger student bodies, have proportionately large land holdings.
Texas A&M, for instance, educates 45,000 students, but it owns 11,000 acres. Arizona State University has 60,519 students and 1,490 acres on which to teach them.
Figures do not specify how much of the acreage cited for each school is actively employed for education and how much is undeveloped. In any case, the proposed new acreage for UNLV, once secured, would have to be developed from scratch.
Archived Editions| Advertising | Contact The Staff
