LAS VEGAS -- Nevada's 11-member Board of Regents today unanimously approved the selection of Dr. Jane Nichols as the sixth Chancellor of the University and Community College System of Nevada.

Nichols is the first woman in the System's 32-year history to hold this position.

Prior to today's appointment, Nichols was asked in July to serve as the UCCSN's interim chancellor after Dr. Tom Anderes left the post to accept a position in Oregon.

Previously, Nichols served from 1997-2000 as the vice chancellor for academic and student affairs. During this time, she served as a representative to the Nevada Commission on Education Technology and was the state director of the Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (EPSCoR).

Before joining the UCCSN in 1997, Dr. Nichols was an associate dean for the College of Education at the University of Nevada, Reno. From 1990 to 1995, she was coordinator for the university's core curriculum/university assessment and was an associate professor in the Department of Social Work from 1984 to 1990.

Dr. Nichols earned an Ed.D. in higher education with a concentration in administration and statistics from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She also holds a master's degree in social work with emphasis in administration and casework from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; and a B.A. (with distinction) in psychology and a concentration in mathematics from Southwestern at Memphis (now Rhodes College).

A nationwide search began in February and was conducted on behalf of the Board by Dr. Shirley Chater, senior consultant with Academic Search Consultation Service. The Regents' committee selected six semi-finalists on July 19. That list was narrowed to three on August 20.

In addition to Derby, the Regents' committee includes Regents Thalia Dondero, Dorothy Gallagher, David Phillips and Doug Seastrand.

Comprising two doctoral-granting universities, four comprehensive community colleges and one environmental research institution, the University and Community College System of Nevada serves the educational and job training needs of the nation's fastest growing state. As Nevada's only system of higher education, the UCCSN provides educational opportunities to more than 90,000 students.