Ex-NSHE regent: Chancellor’s hostility complaint hit ‘close to home’

A erstwhile Nevada regent astatine the halfway of past year’s “child speak” contention said Friday that Chancellor Melody Rose’s hostile enactment situation accusations against 2 committee leaders “hit beauteous adjacent to home.”

Lisa Levine, who served connected the Nevada System of Higher Education Board of Regents from June 2020 until January, said it felt similar déjà vu erstwhile she work a memorandum written by Rose outlining her hostile workplace allegations.

Most of the 21-page memo elaborate accusations against Board of Regents Chairwoman Cathy McAdoo and Vice Chairman Patrick Carter, whom Rose said repeatedly attempted to undermine her authorization and chopped her retired of policy-making decisions. Neither McAdoo nor Carter person responded to requests for remark from the Review-Journal.

But Rose besides referred to systemic issues affecting women employees successful the memo. She said she heard stories arsenic soon arsenic she began her occupation astir NSHE’s “pervasive sexist culture,” and witnessed it adjacent earlier she started, including during a face-off betwixt Levine and a antheral unit subordinate during a heated committee hearing.

Those sections peculiarly resonated with Levine.

‘Disappointing, disturbing … not surprising’

“I recovered it disappointing, disturbing, but not surprising,” she said of the memo, which became nationalist this week. “I anticipation that she’s believed. I anticipation that the allegations are afloat investigated and I anticipation this brings change.”

Levine was appointed by Gov. Steve Sisolak to capable a short-term vacancy connected the committee pursuing the decease of Regent Sam Lieberman successful April 2020. She did not question predetermination to the station past year.

She was thrust into the statement implicit what critics person agelong described arsenic NSHE’s “men’s club” ambiance erstwhile she was upbraided by then-Board of Regents Chief of Staff Dean Gould during a heated statement implicit changes to national Title IX intersexual misconduct regulations astatine a Board of Regents gathering successful August 2020.

Levine, who aboriginal joined 2 different regents successful voting against adopting the changes, said she thought they would marque it harder for victims to get justice.

During treatment of the item, Gould interrupted her aft her clip bounds expired and asked her to mute her line. She continued talking.

Gould past told Levine helium didn’t privation to “man speak,” but would person to if she continued to “child speak.”

The speech rapidly went viral connected societal media, and Gov. Steve Sisolak and Attorney General Aaron Ford condemned Gould’s remarks, with the politician labeling them “patronizing and condescending.”

In a connection aft the meeting, Gould said his absorption was successful effect to a July 2020 meeting, wherever helium was attempting to forestall an unfastened gathering instrumentality usurpation erstwhile Levine accused him of “mansplaining.”

Gould retired from NSHE astatine the extremity of December 2020, but it’s unclear whether his departure was connected to the incidental involving Levine.

What the memo said

In her memo, Rose described Gould’s comments arsenic “condescending and sexist” and noted that aft ordering an investigation, “The committee ne'er publically condemned Mr. Gould’s inappropriate, disrespectful remarks toward a pistillate regent.”

She besides wrote successful the memo that she is paid little arsenic chancellor than 2 of her antheral subordinates, UNLV President Keith Whitfield and University of Nevada, Reno, President Brian Sandoval, “despite having much acquisition than either of them successful higher acquisition executive-level service.”

Rose, who assumed the chancellor’s occupation successful September 2020 to oversee 8 campuses and much than 100,000 students, sent her memorandum outlining her hostile enactment situation accusations, which was dated Monday, to NSHE’s Chief General Counsel Joe Reynolds.

The Nevada lawyer general’s bureau confirmed Thursday it received a transcript of the memo.

It remains unclear whether Rose, who has not spoken publically astir the case, has filed oregon intends to record a ceremonial complaint.

The lawyer general’s bureau said Friday it hasn’t received a ceremonial complaint.

“If our bureau does person a complaint, oregon determine to instrumentality immoderate enactment connected the matter, Attorney General Ford volition recuse himself owed to the notation of his woman arsenic a imaginable witnesser to immoderate of the allegations successful the complaint,” spokesperson John Sadler said via email.

An NSHE spokesperson declined again to remark Friday, saying the strategy can’t sermon unit matters.

Contact Julie Wootton-Greener astatine jgreener@reviewjournal.com oregon 702-387-2921. Follow @julieswootton connected Twitter.