Board Approves Fee Waivers for Guard Members

RENO, Nevada—The Nevada Board of Regents today unanimously approved a fee waiver for members of the Nevada National Guard.

Starting this fall, any member of the active Nevada National Guard, including a recruit, will be permitted to register for credit without a registration fee at any institution of the University and Community College System of Nevada.

“Many of our Nevada National Guard troops have been called to action in Afghanistan and Iraq in recent months and have put their lives at risk to serve our country,” said Board Chair Stavros S. Anthony. “As a result, most have seen their wages cut in half and experienced other family hardships. The least we can do is help our citizen soldiers continue their dreams of completing their college education when they return home.”

The fee waiver will be available starting fall semester 2003 and will sunset on July 1, 2005.

During the 2003 Special Session, the Nevada Legislature approved Assembly Bill 9, which authorized the Board of Regents to waive registration and other fees for certain members of the Nevada National Guard. Today’s action modified the Board of Regents Handbook to implement this fee waiver policy.

The waiver is applicable only during fall and spring terms. Independent and correspondence courses are not eligible for waiver under this policy. In addition, registration fees associated with William S. Boyd School of Law, the University of Nevada School of Medicine and the UNLV School of Dental Medicine are not eligible for the waiver.

The cost to the UCCSN to cover the fee waivers is estimated to be $150,000 per year over the next two years.

In order to maintain eligibility for the fee waiver, the Guard member or recruit must achieve at least a minimum 2.0 semester grade point average.

The Nevada Board of Regents is the elected, 13-member governing body for the University and Community College System of Nevada. Comprising two doctoral granting universities, a state college, four comprehensive community colleges and one environmental research institute, the UCCSN 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.

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