Dr. Rebecca Mills, senior advisor to the president at UNLV, has been appointed interim vice president for student life, according to President Carol C. Harter.
Mills will replace Vice President Robert Ackerman, who held the position of vice president for student services for 14 years before stepping down, effective May 19. She will assume her new duties on May 22 and will serve while a national search is conducted for a permanent replacement for the post.
"I look forward to this wonderful opportunity to serve the university," Mills said. "For the past five years, I have been intimately involved in UNLV's planning process, and in that process we established a goal to become a more student focused university. It will be exciting and rewarding to work with others to help the university address that goal.
"The folks in Student Life are dedicated and caring professionals; I am confident that we will work well together to create meaningful opportunities and supportive environments for UNLV's students."
Mills has been a member of the College of Education faculty since 1987. She was named special assistant to the president in 1995 and senior advisor to the president in 1998. She received the Ed.D. in secondary education from the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, in 1987 and joined UNLV's department of curriculum and instruction that year. She was promoted to full professor in 1999.
Mills was named Nevada Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching and the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education in 1994. She received the Alex and Faye Spanos Distinguished Teaching Award for 1993-94.
"I have every confidence that Rebecca will provide excellent leadership as interim vice president for student life," President Harter said.
As interim vice president for student life, Mills will be responsible for a number of UNLV offices, including Academic Advancement, Campus Community Development, Campus Housing, Campus Recreational Services, Career Services, Disability Resource Center, International Student Services, McDermott Physical Education Complex, Multicultural Student Affairs, NCAA Academic Services, Public Safety, Student Development Center, Student Health Center, Student Psychological Services, Women's Center, discipline and judicial systems, student government, university food service, and university bookstore.
Dr. Mills' appointment will be forwarded to the Board of Regents for formal approval at its June 22-23 meeting.
