NSHE regent known for anti-trans comments faces five primary challengers

Four challengers—including a former state legislator, a mutual aid organizer and two educators—are hoping to unseat a controversial regent known for making past comments that have been condemned by state university faculty members for being anti-trans.

The Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) oversees two research universities, four community colleges, a research institute, and a state college. NSHE provides educational opportunities to more than 100,000 students, according to their website, and manages a biennium budget of over $2 billion dollars.

For the past two decades, the board has been composed of 13 regents, who were elected as nonpartisans for 6-year terms. But in 2023, state lawmakers passed a bill that reduces the number to nine regents and shortens the term length to four years. Winners of this year’s regents races will have terms that expire on Jan. 2, 2029. 

Candidates can secure their regents seat by winning at least 50% of votes during the June primary. If no candidate reaches 50%, the top two finishers will advance to the November general election. 

Patrick Boylan

Incumbent Regent Patrick Boylan has represented District 5 since 2021. The Southern Nevada district covers areas of North Las Vegas and Winchester. 

Boylan says the three key priorities during his current term, and what he hopes to continue with if reelected, is strengthening Nevada’s higher education institutions in research and sciences, stop student fees from being raised, and address safety of all students. He specifically noted female athletes playing against “men,” referring to transgender athletes.

In 2024, the Nevada Faculty Alliance (NFA) called for him to resign for a “history of racist and discriminatory remarks” as well as anti-transgender comments. He refused to resign.

Looking back at the incident, Boylan isn’t regretful but proud: “I had the balls to speak about it,” he said. 

For Boylan, politicians now use transgender athletes for their campaigns, noting that he was the first to talk about it before “the Governor or Lieutenant Governor, who are now using this as a ‘let’s get out the vote and show we always cared.’” 

What people do behind closed doors, he said, is none of his business. “My business is to keep people safe—that’s why I did this.”

Diversity, Inclusion and Equity (DEI) programs have been targeted by the Trump administration, which has led to federal funding cuts and grant freezes toward education. In response, UNLV began efforts to restructure diversity initiatives.

Boylan is firmly against diversity, equity and inclusion programs, referring to them as “Didn’t Earn It.” 

When asked about a crucial grant that funded campus-based childcare for students at UNLV that was cut by the U.S. Education Department as part of Trump’s efforts to dismantle DEI initiatives, Boylan said “I feel really bad about that, but I don’t think there is any free lunch for anybody,” adding people “depend too much on free things” and that it’s “socialistic.”

The Nevada Board of Regents approved a measure in January to increase tuition over the next three years by 12% for universities and upper-division courses at community colleges, starting in fall 2026. Boylan was one of five regents who voted against the measure. 

“I think students have a tough enough time,” he said about his vote, adding that he believes the NSHE administration spends too much money on themselves. “There’s too many chiefs at the top. They have to go.”

When it comes to collective bargaining for NSHE workers, Boylan voiced his support, saying he believes in collective bargaining as there’s more power in numbers. 

Here’s a look at his four challengers:

Kathleen Cavalaro

For Cavalaro, higher education shouldn’t run like a closed room where decisions that affect many are made behind closed doors. “It should be accountable to students, faculty and workers—the people who actually make the system function,” she said.

Affordability and access, faculty and worker support, and transparency and accountability are three priorities for her if elected to the board.

Cavalaro’s professional past includes being a small business owner, working in the service and events industry, and being co-steward of a mutual aid working group in Las Vegas, which greatly influences her outlook on her candidacy.

She was arrested at an anti-ICE protest last year and is currently suing Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department for excessive use of force, wrongful arrest, fabrication of evidence and violating First Amendment protections, as reported by the Las Vegas Sun.

“I understand what it looks like when people doing the actual work are left out of the decisions that affect them,” she said.

Cavalaro previously ran for office in 2022 as a Democrat in New Hampshire, losing a state house race to an incumbent Republican by 3%. 

“I don’t support balancing budgets on the backs of students,” Cavalaro responded when asked about the increases. Before the board raises tuition, she said, regents should fully examine where funds are going and prioritize instruction, student support and faculty. 

Diversity, Inclusion and Equity (DEI) programs have been targeted by the Trump administration, which has led to federal funding cuts and grant freezes toward education. In response, UNLV began efforts to restructure diversity initiatives.

DEI initiatives for Cavalaro aren’t an option, but the “baseline for a public system that serves a state as diverse as Nevada.”

“If we’re serious about outcomes,” she added, “then equity has to be built into the system, not treated like something we adjust when it becomes inconvenient.”

Cavalaro also said she supported the NFA’s call for Boyland to resign, saying that “that’s the people who make the system run telling you something is wrong. Ignoring that isn’t strength, it’s a failure to lead.”

Tyler DeLorenzo

Maintaining affordable tuition, increasing campus safety and strengthening DEI programs are the three priorities for DeLorenzo, a Clark County planner who also attends classes at UNLV part-time. He is also a member of the Graduate and Professional Student Association, working within a division that keeps students aware of legislative decisions made at the university, local, state and federal levels.

Though it is his first time running for an elected position, DeLorenzo feels that his perspective is needed within NSHE. A “lack of understanding” of what it is like to pursue an academic degree “in the face of such tumultuous times” led DeLorenzo to throw his hat in the ring for District 5.

DeLorenzo echoed concerns about tuition increases for students, saying that if elected, he would look at every possible avenue before considering tuition hikes. He added that since both faculty and administrative staff who work at the institutions “made a promise” to support students, it is their “fiduciary responsibility” to support initiatives that would make tuition more affordable. 

“My first choice would be to look at how funds for higher-salaried staff might be reappropriated towards keeping tuition lower,” he added.

Higher education institutions, for DeLorenzo, are safe spaces for individuals looking to learn and better themselves, and DEI programs are “paramount to making every individual feel seen and supported in academic pursuits.” If elected, he added, he would look at ways to strengthen DEI programs across Nevada higher education.

DeLorenzo agreed with the NFA’s call for Boylan to resign, saying that a public official’s responsibility is to emulate the feelings of every constituent in the district they represent. Speech like Boylan’s “does not make students feel safe at the institutions they attend—it makes them feel disregarded.”

DeLorenzo said he supports graduate students who voted to unionize last year yet have not been recognized by NSHE for collective bargaining negotiations.“A graduate student shouldn’t be forced into worrying about keeping their position at the institution when they are most likely living paycheck to paycheck,” he said.

Moises ‘Mo’ Denis

After serving 18 years in both the Nevada Assembly and the Nevada Senate, Moises ‘Mo’ Denis thought he was done with running for office. But he says regents being “sidetracked” and “losing focus on students” led him to think District 5, an area that he has lived in for 50 years, needed better representation. After being unable to find a candidate to back in the race, Denis decided to enter himself.

“You can’t complain about stuff unless you’re willing to do something about it,” he said.

Denis is very familiar with NSHE as he has worked on their budget for 18 years in the Legislature, as well as formerly chairing the state Senate Education Committee, where he was the architect of the Promise scholarship, which helps Nevada high school students attend community college tuition free for up to three years. 

Since costs are going up, Denis explained, the board needs to reevaluate the budget all the time. Denis said he would draw on his legislative budget experience to find ways to save money in order to not raise tuition on students, and find alternate revenue sources.

Diversity programs, according to Denis, are critical for “removing barriers hindering student access, affordability and success.” 

Boylan’s past comments that led to calls for his resignation did influence Denis’ decision to run, saying that “when you’re not focusing on helping students and their success, then you’re missing the point on why you’re even on the board.”

Denis supports NSHE workers and their rights, noting that he has supported collective bargaining efforts during his tenure in the legislature, as well as for library workers during his time as chair of the Clark County Library Board.

Emphasizing student success and eliminating barriers so that students can not only attend school but graduate as well, provides economic stability moving forward as a state and opportunity to have good lives, Denis added.

Ashley Garcia

For over a decade, Ashley Garcia worked in the political sphere through canvassing as a field organizer and deputy political director at Make the Road Nevada, a nonprofit organization advocating for Latine, immigrant and working-class communities of color. 

This is her first time running for elected office.

Coupled with the experience on the ground talking to voters, Garcia is also a substitute teacher, teaching classes in American government, financial literacy and sociology to middle and high schoolers. 

While working as a community based instructor for the 4-H Youth Development program, Garcia saw the effects of funding pitfalls and loss of grants, describing her colleagues being on federal food assistance programs due to low compensation.

“I’ve seen what happens when there are budget pitfalls, but at the same time, I don’t think it all has to fall on the students,” she said, emphasizing that she does not agree with the student tuition increases.

When it comes to DEI, Garcia explained that she doesn’t mind changing program names as long as the mission stays the same. “I prefer the program to get funded rather than policing the language,” she said.  

Garcia “strongly encouraged” Boylan “to look at the demographics of Nevada” in response to Boylan’s past statements.

“I think leadership is what people are seeking and that is a terrible example of leadership, as well as simply ignorant,” she added.

Three key issues Garcia listed for her campaign are student mental health, lowering costs for students and ensuring students have access to jobs when they graduate. Being from a union home, she supports collective bargaining rights for NSHE professional employees.

Stephanie Molina

A higher education worker in workforce and economic development with past background teaching psychology at UNLV, Stephanie Molina decided to run for regent due to the need for a regent that takes the role “more seriously in terms of public governance.” 

Workforce development which provides career pathways to students, stronger accountability within NSHE and transparent decision making are priorities Molina listed if elected to the regents.

Molina also emphasized that students should not be the default solution to NSHE budgeting woes.

“Increases should be justified based on the institution’s actual circumstances and not treated more of a system wide default,” she added.

Every student and worker, Molina said, should learn and work in an environment where they are treated fairly and have access to opportunities when asked about DEI policy restructuring. 

Molina was unaware of Boylan’s past comments, but when provided with them, said that comments such as those “damages confidence in the constituents’ confidence in the board to govern fairly.”

In an emailed statement, she added that though she strongly supports freedom of speech, “effective governance must remain grounded in research, data, and the needs of the communities we serve.” 

When asked about collective bargaining, Molina voiced her support for faculty, staff and graduate students’ right to bargain and highlighted her past role as President of the Graduate Student Government at UNLV. Graduate students “deserve real voices in the policies and working conditions that affect them,” she said, adding that they should not be treated as a budget work around or relied on as a low cost substitute for sustainable staffing.