LAS VEGAS -- The Board of Regents today voted to honor the families of two Nevadans who were killed in action during the Iraqi conflict by providing scholarships or waiving fees to their surviving family members for attendance at a UCCSN institution.

On March 23, 2003, during two separate incidents, 1st Lt. Frederick E. Pokorney Jr. of Tonopah and Lance Cpl. Donald J. Cline, Jr. of Sparks were killed in action in Iraq. Both were serving in the United States Marine Corps.

1st Lt. Pokorney is survived by his wife, Carolyn Rochelle, and his two-year old daughter Taylor.

Lance Cpl. Cline is survived by this wife, Tina, and his sons, Dakota, two, and Dillon, seven months.

"These young men made the ultimate sacrifice for our country. Providing this assistance to their family members is the least we could do to thank them and to make sure their families have the opportunity to pursue a college education," said Board Chair Douglas Seastrand.

The Regents have a history of honoring family members of persons killed in the line of duty and are affiliated with the UCCSN. In March of this year, Astronaut William McCool, whose parents are instructors at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, was killed in the Columbia shuttle tragedy; in 1982, four Thunderbird pilots crashed at Indian Springs; in 1992, two Nellis airmen were killed in Lincoln County; and in 1998, Sgt. George Sullivan of the UNR Police Department was slain. In these instances, the spouse and dependent children of the deceased were granted either a waiver or scholarship of all tuition and fees.

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 93,000 students.

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