Dr. Thom Reilly is currently Professor, School of Public Affairs at Arizona State University (ASU). He is the former Chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) where he served as chief executive officer and oversaw, under the authority of an elected board of regents, a complex system that includes R-1 research universities, four-year undergraduate institutions, a research institute and community colleges. During his tenure, he has accumulated an impressive record on multiple measurable dimensions of success centered on increased accessibility, student success and expanded workforce training and education.
Prior to his appointment, he served as director of the Morrison Institute for Public Policy at Arizona State University where he also was a professor in the School of Public Affairs. He currently is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration and professor emeritus at San Diego State University.
He previously served as County Manager for Clark County (the Las Vegas Valley), where he provided both regional and municipal-type services. As CEO, he was responsible for the fiscal management of the County’s $5.8 billion budget and administrative oversight of close to 12,000 employees. During his tenure he was known for innovative governance practices including instituting increased transparency in the budgeting process, creating a host of citizen involvement/engagement activities; establishing a pay-for performance compensation system for employees; and championing regional governance efforts.
Reilly has extensive experience in the private sector, serving as managing principal of The Reilly Group, a management consulting firm and as Executive Director for the Caesars Foundation. He has also held senior administrative positions with the State of Nevada overseeing the statewide child welfare system.
Reilly has authored numerous published works on public pay and benefits, governance, and child welfare. He and his work have appeared on NPR's "Here and Now," PBS NewsHour, CNN Money, ABC World News, “This Week with George Stephanopoulos”, Fox Business News, and in the Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, Law 360, Governing, Businessweek and The Associated Press. He is co-editor of the Ethics, Corruption and Governance Series for Rowman & Littlefield Lexington Books, and serves of the Editorial Board for the academic journal Public Personnel Management.
He received his master's and doctorate of public administration from the University of Southern California. He earned his master of social work at ASU and a bachelor in social work from the University of Memphis.
To many citizens, their local government is the most tangible form of government, and it is also the layer of government with which they have most contact in their everyday life. The power of local administration is that it represents ordinary citizens. People eat, drink, work, play and socialize with others in towns and cities. To be fully effective, local government management and service delivery capacity need to be strong, and resources need to be adequate. Civil society and businesses are essential actors in ensuring local governments have this capacity to meet the needs of its citizens.
There are a host of challenges that confront local government in the 21st century: delivering quality services; lack of finance and local fiscal autonomy; engaging citizens and communities in meaningful and authentic ways; forming effective partnerships which incentivize local actors to find solutions to the many complex and intractable issues facing communities; generating inclusive and sustainable development; implementing strategies for disaster risk reduction; managing transparent communications; and, rapidly evolving technologies and socio-economic demographics.
The Governance of Local Communities: Global Perspectives and Challenges is about the role that ideas, institutions, and actors play in structuring how people govern local communities and, more specifically, the types of adaptations necessary in local government roles and responsibilities, structures, and processes to effectively respond to a changing local government environment.
Global changes require that we rethink local governance. A wide net of international experts on local governance was assembled for this volume to stimulate frank conversations around the many contemporary challenges facing local government.
In the late 2000s, the small Southern California town of Bell erupted in a scandal that revealed a truly astonishing level of municipal corruption— described by Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley as “corruption on steroids.” This book details how Bell was rendered vulnerable to such massive malfeasance by a disengaged public, lack of established ethical norms, absence of effective checks and balances, and minimal coverage by an overextended area news media. It is a grim and nearly unbelievable story. By considering factors arising from both theory and practice, Reilly makes clear why the sad saga of Bell, California, represents both a case study and a warning.
"How could this have happened?" The question still lingers among officials and residents of the small southern California town of Bell. Corruption is hardly an isolated challenge to the governance of America’s cities. But following decades of benign obscurity, Bell witnessed the emergence of a truly astonishing level of public wrongdoing – a level succinctly described by Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley as “corruption on steroids.”
Even discounting the enormous sums involved – the top administrator paid himself nearly $800,000 a year in a town with a $35,000 average income – this was no ordinary failure of governance. The picture that emerges from years of federal, state and local investigations, trials, depositions and media accounts is of an elaborate culture of corruption and deceit created and sustained by top city administrators, councilmembers, police officers, numerous municipal employees and consultants.
The Failure of Governance in Bell California: Big-Time Corruption in a Small Town details how Bell was rendered vulnerable to such massive malfeasance by a poorly educated and disengaged public, lack of established ethical norms, absence of effective checks and balances, and minimal coverage by an overextended area news media. It is a grim and nearly unbelievable story.
Yet even these factors fail to fully explain how such large-scale corruption could have arisen. More specifically, how did it occur within a structure – the council-manager form of government – that had been deliberately designed to promote good governance? Why were so many officials and employees prepared to participate in or overlook the ongoing corruption? To what degree can theories of governance, such as contagion theory or the “rover bandit” theme, explain the success of such blatant wrongdoing?
The Failure of Governance, by Arizona State University Professor Thom Reilly – himself former manager of Clark County, Nevada – pursues answers to these and related questions through an analysis of municipal operations that will afford the reader deeper insight into the inner workings of city governments – corrupt and otherwise. By considering factors arising from both theory and practice, Reilly makes clear, in other words, why the sad saga of Bell, California represents both a case study and a warning.
"Using this book, practitioners will be challenged and prompted to consider several critical questions, including: How can public trust be regained? and How can public engagement be spurred and sustained?"
"This book replete with scandalous details, as well as insightful interpretations and suggestions for reform..."
"Thom Reilly provides an in-depth analysis of the sordid details and broad schemes of this massive corruption."
"Virtually every page prompts substantive discussion topics for the reader. This is a must-read not only for students of government, administration and public policy, but for every concerned citizen."
"Public administration practitioners, teachers, and researchers
are truly the beneficiaries of this work. This book provides a
roadmap with mile markers that are a public sector ethical lens
through which to view the requisite conditions that enable
massive public corruption. Using this book, practitioners will
be challenged and prompted to consider several critical
questions, including: How can public trust be regained? and How
can public engagement be spurred and sustained?"
Read full
review
Corruption is widespread in American local government, producing
more than 1,000 indictments annually. Reilly (Arizona State
Univ.) chronicles such a case in Bell, CA (population 35,000), a
low-income community in which seven public officials were
eventually sentenced to prison. In 2010, two reporters with the
Los Angeles Times uncovered excessively high salaries and a
cluster of crimes in city hall. Trials soon followed, and by
2012, new officials were seated and order restored to Bell. The
most prominent offender was Robert Rizzo, city administrator for
17 years, who built alliances with other council members and
administrators to cover their misdeeds. Several factors
contributed to this misconduct: unethical leadership by
officials, lack of media coverage of city affairs, a breakdown
in the checks and balances normally built into local governance,
a culture of corruption that residents tolerated or were unaware
of, and lack of attention by county and state authorities. This
is a well-documented analysis of conditions that could exist in
many governments and provides a warning to all citizens.
Summing Up: Recommended. Upper-division
undergraduates through professionals.
“Reilly’s excellent account of corruption in local government is written with the expertise of a scholar who is uent in theory and the acumen of a practitioner who has witnessed such behavior up close and personal. This book replete with scandalous details, as well as insightful interpretations and suggestions for reform, will have broad appeal with the general public, for local administrators and in the classroom.”
“Far beyond wildly unimaginable ction, this reality-based book is an importantly great read on public affairs. It tells the story of a decade of Big Time Corruption in Bell, California – years of self-serving exercise of power shared among of cials in deliberately agrant violation of legal standards and other fundamentals of public service. Beyond that, Bell is also a sad case of sustained failure of professional, civic, legal, academic, and other institutions upon which society depends for responsible public affairs. As a former professional manager of Clark County (Las Vegas), Nevada, and now a leading public-policy academician, Thom Reilly provides an in-depth analysis of the sordid details and broad schemes of this massive corruption. His deeply informed analysis of The Failure of Governance in Bell, California, warrants study by civic leaders, political of cials, professional local-government managers, and students who hope to enter these public-service roles. It provides swift and hopefully lasting learning about abhorrent practices of all-too-easy corruption, thereby elevating understanding of necessities of elevated aspirations and practices of responsible government and other public affairs.”
“Thom Reilly depicts the almost unbelievable levels of greed and corruption that brought an entire municipal government to its knees. His incisive narrative not only carefully details the many enabling conditions that allowed this brazen looting of a small, vulnerable community to occur, but also skillfully incorporates an analysis of cultural norms and governmental structures that historically have been designed to deter corruption. Virtually every page prompts substantive discussion topics for the reader. This is a must-read not only for students of government, administration and public policy, but for every concerned citizen. The account of the systematic and unchallenged dismantling of checks and balances and external safeguards against graft serves as a cautionary tale to anyone who thinks it couldn’t happen in their community.”
The ongoing global financial crisis, coupled with the continued dramatic increases in life expectancy, have escalated the concerns countries have regarding the sustainability of their pension systems and how these retirement schemes will be financed. From 1998 to 2008, close to 30 countries embarked on privatizing reforms to their pension programs. Some of these countries introduced new pension reforms directed at private individual accounts while reducing the size of the state social security system. The focus of other reforms during this period varied but was primarily aimed at strengthening basic protection for economically at-risk older individuals, increasing benefit coverage and/or improving the overall fiscal sustainability of these systems. However, the move towards greater coverage and sustainability was interrupted by the worldwide financial meltdown. This has led to a reassessment of pension systems and reform approaches. This volume was assembled to review the status of pension reforms globally and to gain a glimpse of the trends emerging as countries adjust to the new age of macroeconomic worldwide uncertainty. The chapters in this volume provide concise, clear and dispassionate discussions on these trends and reforms as well as frank appraisals of the consequences of alternative policies. Experts from Europe, the United States and the emerging economies of Brazil, China and India approach pension reform and reassessment from different perspectives; however, each provide forthright analyses and assessment of the consequences of the “new normal”.
Designed as a comprehensive overview of public sector compensation, the book addresses strategies for change, with the author warning that failure of the profession to address this issue will ultimately lead to citizens taking matters in their own hands. The author's issues-oriented approach addresses his core message-that the escalation of public sector compensation is impacting the ability of government to meet its core responsibility and the failure of government to address this has serious consequences. Not just a critique, the book presents context, analysis, and suggestions for reform.
In his book, Reilly states that the current system is unsustainable and reform must include more transparency, education and engagement of the public as well as:
In addition to suggested reform, Reilly offers two unique and valuable features in his the book including a detailed model of public-versus-private sector compensation, constructed to gauge the cost of lifetime compensation, and his model of the "Iron Triangle" to illustrate how elected politicians, management and labor representatives engage in nontransparent discussions involving public pay and benefits.
""This provocative analysis documents mutation away from ideals of governmental service devoted to public interests into a political culture of public employment in principal pursuit of self interests. It shows in detail how personal entitlements of many public officials and employees have been greatly expanded in high disregard of future sustainability."
"Key policy makers and individuals would be remiss not to include a detailed review of the public sector in the Nation’s debate about compensation and the financial crisis. Thom Reilly’s thoughtful analysis of the shift in culture and compensation in the public sector reveals nuances that only a long-standing, executive-level civil servant could provide. This informed perspective, coupled with insightful and balanced analysis, provides a uniquely comprehensive look at one of the most critical issues of our day. Rethinking Public –Sector Compensation: What Ever Happened to the Public Interest’ should be required reading for policy-makers, students and individuals who desire clear information from which to guide opinions, legislative and regulatory changes."
"In 2007, the stock market started a slow decline and reached a floor early in 2009 before it began to reverse itself. This negative cycle had catastrophic effects on housing markets, employment, and every other economic engine that churned capitalism around the world. As a result, public sector compensation in the United States became an increasingly important topic as state and local governments sorted through budget austerity. In short, this book examines how public sector employees (primarily state and local) are compensated, rewarded, and managed." Read Full Review.
"This provocative analysis documents mutation away from ideals of governmental service devoted to public interests into a political culture of public employment in principal pursuit of self interests. It shows in detail how personal entitlements of many public officials and employees have been greatly expanded in high disregard of future sustainability."
"Key policy makers and individuals would be remiss not to include a detailed review of the public sector in the Nation’s debate about compensation and the financial crisis. Thom Reilly’s thoughtful analysis of the shift in culture and compensation in the public sector reveals nuances that only a long-standing, executive-level civil servant could provide. This informed perspective, coupled with insightful and balanced analysis, provides a uniquely comprehensive look at one of the most critical issues of our day. Rethinking Public –Sector Compensation: What Ever Happened to the Public Interest’ should be required reading for policy-makers, students and individuals who desire clear information from which to guide opinions, legislative and regulatory changes."
"Public employee compensation is a hot topic. Taxpayers know intuitively that something’s not quite right. Yet it’s so complex, it can’t be spelled out in simple terms. Thom Reilly has managed to explain it, drawing on his varied career experience. He’s used his knowledge of the public and private sectors, and his nonprofit background, to turn out an objective discussion of the public employees, their unions, and the relationships elected officials have with both. Taxpayers, who pick up the tab for all of it, will appreciate this concise look at the politics and archaic policies that govern public employee compensation. The book is a must-read for elected officials, students of government, and anyone who pays taxes."
"Reilly offers a thoughtful breakdown of the intensely debated and complex issue of public sector compensation. He offers insightful analysis on policies that could help relieve the stranglehold that these types of financial obligations have placed on the ability of governments across the country to effectively serve the public interest. Reilly is uniquely qualified to offer a thorough perspective on public employee pension funds and compensation practices, the effect that funding these obligations are having on government, and policy changes that could work towards alleviating this burden. He offers practical and common sense solutions that are rightly centered on the public interest. This book is highly recommended to those concerned about the ability of government to deliver core public services."
Reilly, T. Arizona State University, Phoenix, AZ, USA Sick Leave Policies in the Public Sector (2020)
Reilly, T. Are social enterprises viable models for funding nonprofits? Human Service Organizations: Management, Leadership & Governance. (2017)
Reilly, T. (2013). Comparing Public-Versus-Private Sector Pay and Benefits: Examining Lifetime Compensation. Public Personnel Management., 42(4), 521-544.
Reilly, T. (2012). Public Pensions and Retiree Health Care in Nevada: An Analysis. The Nevada Review Journal, (4) 2, 3-28.
Reilly, T., Woodruff, S., Smith, L., Clapp, J., and Cade, J. (2010). Unsafe Sex Among HIV- Positive Individuals: Cross-Sectional and Prospective Predictors. Journal of Community Health , 35 (2): 115-122.
Reilly, T. & Platz, L. (2004). Post adoption service needs of families with special needs children: Use, helpfulness, and unmet needs. Journal of Social Service Research , 30 (4), 51-67.
Reilly, T. (2017). Corruption in public administration: an ethnographic approach. International Review of Public Administration
Reilly, T. (2013). Rethinking The Role of the Profession on Public Sector Compensation. Public Administration Review,(73) 1, 8-9.
Reilly, T., and Reed, M. (2011). Budget Shortfalls, Employee Compensation and Collective Bargaining in Local Governments. State and Local Government Review. 43 (3), 215- 223.
Reilly, T., Schoener, S. & Bolin, A. (2007). Public Sector Compensation in Local Governments: An Analysis. Review of Public Personnel Administration, 27 (1), 39 -58.
Reilly, T., Smith, L., Woodruff, S.I., Clapp, J.D., and Cade, J. (2010) Predictors of Death and Survival Duration among a Sample of Persons Living with HIV/AIDS. Social Work in Health Care, 49 (9), 783- 798.
Laura N. Coordes & Thom Reilly Predictors of Municipal Bankruptcies and State Intervention Programs: An Exploratory Study. (2017) Kentucky Law Journal, 105(3), 493-562
Reilly, T. & Thom, M. (2015). Local government sick-leave practices: An exploratory study. Review of Public Personnel Administration.
Thom, Michael & Reilly, Thom (2015). Compensation Benchmarking Practices in U.S. Local Governments: Results of a National Survey. Public Personnel Management, 44(3), 340-355.
Reilly, T. (2013). Reforming Public Pay and Benefits. State and Local Government Review, 45 (1), 57-64.
This Week With George Stephanopoulos - ABC News
Indy Explains: Question 1, a measure that would strike the Board of Regents from the Constitution
Question 1: The Nevada Higher Education Reform, Accountability and Oversight Amendment...
Read more from The Nevada Independent
NSHE Policing Services, Students Discuss De-escalation Techniques
Conversations about police brutality and systemic racism are continuing after the killing of George
Floyd...
Listen on KUNR.org
Nevada System of Higher Ed. hosts discussion on police and discrimination
On Thursday, the Nevada System of Higher Education(NSHE) hosted a discussion surrounding policing and
discrimination on universities in Nevada...
Read more from MyNews4.com
Nevada Higher-Ed Praises Supreme Court Ruling On DACA
The Nevada System of Higher Education is praising the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling Thursday morning in
favor of preserving the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program...
Read more from KNPR
In-Person Learning Will Return To Nevada's Colleges,
Universities But With Changes
Nevada's colleges and universities will be open this summer
and fall. In the fall, they’re expecting to have in-person
classes. That’s the latest from Thom Reilly, chancellor of the
state’s university system...
Listen to interview on KNPR
Excluded from CARES Act and awaiting court ruling, it’s a
stressful time for DACA students
Colleges and universities across the country are preparing to
distribute nearly $7 billion in emergency grant funding to
students affected by the coronavirus pandemic...
Read more from Nevada Current
Public Colleges Lose State Funding, Effective
Immediately
Some public colleges and universities are starting to see
their budgets cut with surprising speed, as states reckon with
the economic fallout of the pandemic...
Read more from The WSJ
Nevada university staff, college students to be impacted in
NSHE budget reduction proposal
In response to the economic decline caused by the COVID-19
pandemic, the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE) Board
of Regents approved a budget reduction proposal, as requested
by Governor Steve Sisolak...
Read more on 8NewsNow.com
Student Tuition At Nevada Universities Change Due To
Covid-19
About the only people out there working right now are
health-care workers, grocery store employees, truckers, gas
station attendants and fast-food workers...
Read more on KNPR
NV Energy to pay higher education system $500,000 yearly to
remain a customer under proposed contract
NV Energy will pay $1.5 million over the next three years
under a contract that would require the higher education
system to promise not to leave the utility as an electric
customer...
Read more from The Nevada Independent
WEB EXTRA: Nevada System of Higher Education Chancellor
Thom Reilly
Politics Now host Steve Sebelius interviews the Chancellor of
the Nevada System of Higher Education, Thom Reilly...
Watch interview on 8 News Now
Roundtable calls for more support staff, better data to
support DREAMers in higher education
Fernando Benitez wanted to be a mechanical engineer when he
started college in 2017, but after taking courses part-time
for one year, found out that his undocumented status would
prevent him from obtaining a license to work in that field...
Read more from The Nevada Independent
Vegas Lost: Aging out
Thom Reilly is in charge of higher education in Nevada. He’s
been chancellor of the state’s system of higher education
since August of 2017...
Read Full Article
on news3lv.com
Influencers Ep 17 | Thom Reilly
The show that brings you the people that impact our city,
state, and community...
Watch Full
Interview on YouTube
Chancellor Thom Reilly will not seek contract renewal with
Nevada System of Higher Education
Thom Reilly, chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher
Education, will not seek to renew his contract when it expires
in August 2020...
Read more from the Nevada Independent
NSHE touts diverse student enrollment but degree completion
remains a sticking point
The Nevada System of Higher Education prides itself on
having a diverse student body...
Read more from the Nevada Independent
Nevada colleges want to raise their graduation rate; now
they're giving themselves deadlines
The Nevada System of Higher Education is renewing its
focus on what might seem like a few simple goals — making sure
that students who enter its doors one semester come back the
next and that they cross the graduation stage in their caps
and gowns within a reasonable period of time...
Read more from the Nevada Independent
NSHE chancellor brushes off north-south split as “a tired
discussion”
Thom Reilly knows there are many lenses a person can use
to view the higher-education system here in Nevada...
Read more from the Nevada Current
Chancellor Thom Reilly lays out goals for future as regents
evaluate his first year at the helm
It’s been just over a year since Chancellor Thom Reilly took
over at the Nevada System of Higher Education — on the heels
of the fraught departure of former Chancellor Dan Klaich...
Read more on thenevadaindependent.com
Who's To Blame For UNLV Chaos?
The last three or so weeks have been some of the most
controversial in recent times for UNLV and the higher
education system in Nevada...
Listen on KNPR.org
Nevada education officials dismiss Trump policy, citing
importance of diversity
A new Trump administration policy that would allow colleges to
take a race-neutral approach in the admissions process runs
counter to the route taken by Nevada’s higher education
institutions, local education officials say...
Read more from the LVRJ
Leader wants to see more gains for Nevada college
students
At a time when the state’s colleges are inwardly focused on
their own strategic growth, they’re also being asked to look
beyond Nevada’s borders for ways to make gains in student
success...
Read more from the LVRJ
The Murky World of ‘Official Time’ in Government
"Official time," or union business leave (UBL), is widely
practiced at all levels of government...
Read more from Governing.com
Gamechangers: USC, ASU, Independent Voting Partner to
Challenge Two-Party Academia
Arguably, academia is as guilty as the media, the politicians,
and the two major parties themselves, of promoting
partisanship...
Read more from IVN.US
EDITORIAL: The public-sector gravy train
News that about one-fifth of all Clark County workers pulled
in more than $100,000 last year only further highlights the
generous employment terms available to many public
employees...
Read more from the LVRJ
Pension Reform Must Come Before Tax Hike
Before lobbying the legislature to raise Nevadans’ taxes yet
again—its property taxes this time—incoming Clark County chief
executive officer Yolanda King should heed the advice of one
of her predecessors: Dr. Thom Reilly...
Read more from forbes.com
ASU Researchers Explore Media Consumption Among Political
Parties, Impact Of Independents
The recently-completed election and the lengthy campaign
leading up to it indicated that the partisanship we’ve seen
growing in the United States seems to have cemented even
more...
Read more from KJZZ.org
Thom Reilly interviewed on Arizona Horizon
Arizona State University’s Morrison Institute for Public
Policy is releasing a new poll on the presidential race. We’ll
get the results.
Watch on Arizona
PBS
The Bell Tolls: Big-Time Corruption In A Small Town
Bell, Calif., is one of the smallest and poorest cities in Los
Angeles County, but until the beginning of the decade, its top
city administrator had a pay and benefits package worth $1.5
million a year.
Listen
on KNPR
The Impact Of Ballot Measures In Arizona
Outgoing Higher Ed Chancellor Reflects On 3 Years At NSHE
A new year began at Nevada’s four- and two-year campuses this week, with most classes being offered online only because of continuing concerns about the coronavirus pandemic...
Listen on KNPR
ICE walks back rule that would have barred international students from country if colleges went
online-only
Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials backed away from a controversial rule that would have
blocked international students from staying in the U.S. if their colleges went online-only amid the
pandemic, telling a federal judge Tuesday that it would “return to the status quo.”...
Read more on The Nevada Independent
Fluent Knowledge launches Purple Principle Podcast for independent-minded Americans
Fluent Knowledge LLC has launched its newest podcast, The Purple Principle, a non-partisan podcast
created for independent-minded Americans about the perils of partisanship in U.S. politics, society and
daily life...
Read more from seacoastonline.com
NSHE chancellor opposes consideration of CSN
contract
A long-awaited contract for College of Southern Nevada faculty
that includes pay raises has hit a snag after Nevada System of
Higher Education Chancellor Thom Reilly said Friday he could
not support placing it on the June Board of Regents agenda for
a final vote...
Read more from the LVRJ
Citing technical, budget issues, NSHE chancellor recommends
against approving new contract for CSN faculty
A new contract for faculty at the College of Southern Nevada
appears to be on hold after system Chancellor Thom Reilly
wrote in a memo Thursday to CSN President Federico Zaragoza
that he could not “in good faith, and at this time” recommend
that regents approve the submitted collective bargaining
agreement...
Read more from the Nevada Independent
Open Primaries Virtual Discussion w/ Jacqueline Salit &
Thom Reilly
Jacqueline Salit, President of Independent Voting and Thom
Reilly, Chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher Education.
They are co-authors of a chapter in the recently published
Democracy Unchained: How to Rebuild Government for the People.
Watch on YouTube
Nevada System of Higher Education budget reduction proposal
gets approval
In response to the economic decline caused by the COVID-19
pandemic, the Nevada System of Higher Education Board of
Regents approved a budget reduction proposal as requested by
Governor Steve Sisolak.
Read more from KTNV.com
What a lesson: Coronavirus forces Nevada's higher education
system to adjust
Meet UNLV sophomore Janae Richie-Dean. Instead of being at
UNLV, she's back at home in Hawaii. We chatted over
FaceTime...
Read more from news3lv.com
Nevada System of Higher Education monitoring "DACA" Supreme
Court case
The Nevada System of Higher Education said it is closely
monitoring the Supreme Court as it hears arguments in the case
of the Department of Homeland Security v. Regents of the
University of California that could determine the future for
recipients of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals
(DACA) program...
Read more from mynews4.com
How will doubts around DACA impact college
‘Dreamers’?
Some 98,000 immigrant students—who were brought to the U.S. as
young children without legal permission—graduate from high
school each year, according to research released earlier this
year by the Migration Policy Institute...
Read more from universitybusiness.com
DACA students share challenges with NSHE chancellor
Undocumented students and advocates met with Nevada System of
Higher Education administrators Tuesday to discuss the
roadblocks they face in trying to go to college, emphasizing
the lack of K-12 and college-level counselors who understand
immigration issues...
Read more from the LVRJ
Good, Bad Or Ugly: Nevada's Higher Education System And The
Legislature
Nevada's higher education system, sought out more these days
as high school grads realize good casino jobs are not readily
available, got a mixed bag from state lawmakers this year...
Listen on KNPR.org
Nevada governments on the hook for over $600M in paid time
off
Taxpayers potentially owe almost $610 million to local
government employees in Nevada’s two most populous counties
for their unused paid time off, financial reports show...
Read more from the LVRJ
UNLV named one of most diverse campuses in US
For the second year in a row, UNLV has been named one of
the most diverse undergraduate campuses in the nation...
Read more from the LVRJ
Chancellor Thom Reilly on UNLV president departure, medical
school dean's future and future goals
In spite of the ongoing tumult, Nevada System of Higher
Education Chancellor Thom Reilly said he was still surprised
when UNLV President Len Jessup announced his departure from
the state’s largest university earlier this week...
Read more from the Nevada Independent
MGM partnership will pay for employees to go to
college
Nevada’s higher education system will unveil a program Friday
that makes college more accessible and affordable for more of
the state’s residents...
Read more from the LVRJ
Goal-oriented Nevada higher education system gets new
focus
Five months after Thom Reilly took the helm of the Nevada
System of Higher Education as chancellor, he crossed one major
to-do item off his list...
Read more from the LVRJ
EDITORIAL: Regents name Thom Reilly as new university
system chancellor
The state regents voted unanimously Tuesday (6/27/2017) to
name Thom Reilly as chancellor of the Nevada System of Higher
Education. It’s an excellent choice...
Read more from the LVRJ
Six-Figure Payouts for Sick Leave Spur Outrage, Calls for
Overhaul
When the president of a Massachusetts community retired in
March, in addition to his pension, he received a one-time
$266,060 payment for 1,250 unused sick days earned over his
46-year career...
Read full WSJ article
Most U.S. money intended for Arizona's poorest families
goes to child-safety efforts
While Arizona has one of the nation’s highest child-poverty
rates, federal money intended to help the poorest families is
instead being spent here on foster care, adoptions and
services to children who have been removed from their
families...
Read more from tucson.com
What's behind the rise in child neglect in Arizona?
Child Neglect, Superintendent Douglas
A new report is out by Arizona State University’s Morrison
Institute and the Arizona Department of Child Safety about
child neglect in our state...
Watch video at azpbs.com
Social Media Election Information Report
Arizona State University’s Morrison Institute for Public
Policy will be releasing a new report on social networks and
social media about where voters get their election information
and how that may differ among Republicans, Democrats and
independents...
Read more from
AZPBS.org
Cracking Down on Immigration Doesn’t Boost Wages
Whatever happens on Nov. 8, the immigration debate will
continue to rage, and Arizona will still be the case study for
mass deportations...
Read more from Bloomberg
'Greater Urgency' For Young People To Vote This
Election
Listen on KJZZ
Committee meets to discuss shared services proposal
Watch on News 3
Las Vegas
Arizona First To Limit Needy Family Aid To One Year
Read more
from Here & Now
Huge government pension gap sparks backlash
NEW YORK (CNNMoney) - Pensions and other retirement benefits
have become a multi-trillion-dollar black hole for state and
local government budgets, sparking fierce battles between
elected officials and voters on one side and public sector
unions on the other...
Read more from CNN MONEY
'America's toughest sheriff' facing trouble at the ballot
box and the courthouse
Katherine Dittmer has voted for Maricopa County Sheriff Joe
Arpaio four times since she retired to Arizona, and she
guesses nothing can stop her from bubbling-in her ballot for
the sheriff yet again.
Read
more from latimes
NO MORE GAMBLING FOR YOUR PENSION
Listen on
SoundCloud
Thom Reilly and Betsy Fretwell on
Face to Face with Jon Ralston
Watch on News 3
Las Vegas
University of Nevada Las Vegas Hires First Black President
Dr. Keith Whitfield will become the first Black president of the University of Nevada Las Vegas,
starting on Aug. 24. He currently serves as the provost and senior vice president of academic affairs
and a professor of psychology at Wayne State University...
Read more on
diveseeducation.com
The Forty Million Missing: America’s Independent Voters and Voices
The Purple Principle, Season 1, Episode 3. The Forty Million Missing: America’s Independent Voters and
Voices...
Listen to podcast
Nevada Higher-Ed Praises Supreme Court Ruling On DACA
The Nevada System of Higher Education is praising the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling Thursday morning in
favor of preserving the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program...
Read more from KNPR.org
Special session convenes to cover a nearly $1.2 billion fiscal 2021 budget deficit
The 31st special session of the Nevada Legislature convened just before 10 a.m. Wednesday, charged by
Gov. Steve Sisolak with cutting almost $1.2 billion from the fiscal 2021 budget..
Read more from NevadaAppeal.com
Nevada colleges planning for return to classroom by
fall
Nevada’s colleges and universities plan to resume in-person
classes as early as July, the Nevada System of Higher
Education announced Monday.
Read more from the LVRJ
Nevada colleges brace for Supreme Court’s imminent decision
on future of DACA
At a virtual town hall meeting last week hosted by the Nevada
System of Higher Education, lawyer Michael Shamoon stopped
briefly with a message for viewers he figured were panicking.
Read more from the Nevada Independent
Social Media Election Information Report
Arizona State University’s Morrison Institute for Public
Policy will be releasing a new report on social networks and
social media about where voters get their election information
and how that may differ among Republicans, Democrats and
independents...
Watch Full Interview on azpbs.org
Nevada colleges may add financial coaches for staff,
students
Lessons for students and staff on improving credit, increasing
savings and reducing debt could soon be coming to Southern
Nevada colleges and high schools as the Nevada System of
Higher Education seeks to add financial literacy coaches to
campuses...
Read Full Article on the LVRJ
CSSD Interview with Ronald O. Loveridge
Watch Thom Reilly discuss his book "The Failure Of Governance
in Bell, California. Big-time Corruption in a Small Town"...
Watch Full
Interview on YouTube
Former foster children enrolled in college share their
challenges with NSHE officials
Living in a U-Haul her junior year of high school, Jewal Beats
never even considered college...
Read more from the Nevada Independent
Higher education system to transition from traditional
remediation to corequisite model by 2021
As chancellor for the Nevada System of Higher Education, Thom
Reilly makes no bones about his position on traditional
remediation at Nevada colleges and universities...
Read more from the Nevada Independent
UNLV at forefront of bid to replace traditional remedial
classes
After UNLV sophomore Vince Briones failed his remedial math
class for the third time, he faced a choice: Try once again in
the fall or spend the summer in an intensive math course known
as Math Bridge...
Listen on the LVRJ
Chancellor Reilly leaves mark on Nevada's higher
education
If Chancellor Thom Reilly has a mission, it would be
making sure the 107,000 students at Nevada's eight higher
education institutions finish...
Read more from the News 3 LV
NSHE Chancellor Thom Reilly interview on Vegas PBS
Watch on
VegasPBS.org
UNLV’s black student population under Nevada
demographics
A few weeks after U.S. News and World Report ranked UNLV
as one of the most diverse college campuses in the country,
another report gave the university average marks for black
student access and...
Read more from the LVRJ
MGM’s higher education program receives Board of Regents
approval
MGM Resorts International has revealed that its new
collaboration with the Nevada System of Higher Education
(NSHE) has received Nevada Board of Regents approval, as it
aims to bring expanded educational benefits to its almost
72,000 employees throughout the US...
Read more from CasinoBeats.com
IndyMatters Episode 48: Chancellor Thom Reilly
Editor Jon Ralston and Managing Editor Elizabeth Thompson talk
with the head of the higher education system about UNLV
President Len Jessup’s departure, the future of medical school
Dean Barbara Atkinson (it appears short there) and the future
of the system. Lots of newsy, provocative stuff...
Listen to full interview
Nevada Politics Today: Thom Reilly interview
Victor Joecks talks to Thom Reilly about Len Jessup leaving
UNLV and other topics about the school...
Watch full interview on LVRJ
Like Nobody's Business: NSHE Chancellor Thom Reilly
Chancellor Thom Reilly has high hopes for Nevada
colleges
Thom Reilly believes there is no more time to waste. The
Nevada System of Higher Education chancellor has been on the
job for only two months, but he has a bevy of goals ready for
the state Board of Regents meetings this week...
Read more from the LVRJ
Child Welfare: Thom Reilly discusses system to protect
children and families
Thom Reilly, director of ASU Morrison Institute for Public
Policy, discusses his leadership and strategies in rallying
community engagement for foster-care children in Nevada...
Watch full interview on Vimeo
Former Clark County Manager Thom Reilly tapped as
chancellor of higher education system
Regents of the Nevada System of Higher Education voted
unanimously on Monday to approve Thomas “Thom” Reilly,
formerly the top administrator of Clark County, as their next
chancellor...
Read more from the Nevada Independent
How politically polarized media is driving our alternative
realities
These days, where Americans get their news is as different as
how they vote. Researchers have found that the proliferation
of news sources on cable TV and the internet has upended the
relationship between news outlets and their audiences...
Watch report on PBS NewsHour
How CEO of public nonprofit walked away with nearly $2.2
million in last two years
In his six years leading ElectriCities, Graham Edwards won
changes to his employment contracts that dramatically
increased his compensation as he neared retirement from one of
the best-paying jobs connected to state or local government...
Read more from newsobserver.com
How Jim Harbaugh could become a $10 million coach
An already exceptional year in Michigan football coach Jim
Harbaugh’s contract and an exceptional year by Michigan’s
football team would produce this extraordinary outcome...
Read more from USA Today
The Republican Party’s Strategy to Ignore Poverty
Arizona, where I was born, in July became the first state to
cut poor families’ access to welfare assistance to a maximum
of 12 months over a lifetime. That’s a fifth of the time
allowed under federal law, and means that 5,000 more people
will lose their benefits by next June.
Read more from NY Times
The Murky World of ‘Official Time’ in Government
"Official time," or union business leave (UBL), is widely practiced at all levels of government...
Read more from Governing.com
COMMENTARY: Collaboration key to attacking Southern
Nevada’s homeless issue
Problems of homelessness in the Las Vegas Valley and across
the nation remain huge and complex...
Read more from the LVRJ
Education partnership aims to improve college and career
readiness
It’s no secret that education in the state of Nevada is a hot
topic. Everyone – from teachers and administrators to parents
and students – agrees that education is foundational to our
state’s future success...
Read more from the Nevada Independent
Our Turn: Arizona's independents can bridge political
divide
Voters today are not so much shaped by news as the news is
shaped for them. In cafeteria-style format, we consume news
from a personalized menu that, in addition to informing us,
satisfies our appetite for reinforcing our individual beliefs.
Read more from azcentral.com
Court rulings show fate of state pensions likely in voters’
hands
Voters may be tasked with ultimately deciding the fate of
state pensions after the Arizona Supreme Court ruled for a
second time that provisions of a 2011 reform law passed by the
Legislature are unconstitutional.
Read more from azcapitoltimes.com
A Better Way to Set Public Pay
Too few local governments are taking advantage of a valuable
tool: benchmarking compensation among their public- and
private-sector peers...
Read more from governing.com
First step to fix pension woes: Proper accounting
Officials from Nevada’s Public Employees Retirement System
recently announced that the system saw a 12.4 percent increase
in value in the fiscal year that ended June 30, beating its 8
percent goal...
Read more from Las Vegas Sun
Nevada Taxpayers Association
My years in both state and local government have made me a
passionate non-partisan. I stand before you today believing
very strongly that the policies and financial issues
surrounding public pay and benefits are bipartisan issues and
the failure to make needed reforms will have a profound impact
on the ability of state and local government to function
effectively...
Read entire keynote
Students schooled in global citizenship
We live in an increasingly global economy characterized not
only by the free movement of goods and services but also the
free movement of ideas and capital...
Read more from The San Diego Union-Tribune
Thom Reilly on the importance of addressing Nevada’s health
care crisis now, before it’s too late
Despite a sustained period of economic prosperity and
substantial job creation in Nevada for the past decade, our
state faces serious challenges related to our health care
system, including an unacceptably large number of uninsured
and underinsured citizens and a serious workforce shortage of
health care professionals...
Read more from The Las Vegas Sun
“I can’t breathe” – NSHE’s statement on George Floyd’s Death
I, like many of you, have been profoundly disturbed by the recent deaths of George Floyd and Ahmaud
Arbery that have led to days of civil unrest...
Read more from Nevada.edu
NSHE Statement on SCOTUS LGBTQ Ruling
Monday’s U.S. Supreme Court decision clearly underlines that federal law now protects our LGBTQ
students, staff, and faculty’s right to fairness...
Read more from Nevada.edu
COMMENTARY: Revisiting remedial education in Nevada
While not everyone needs a four-year degree, some type
of postsecondary education — certificate or two-year degree —
is needed in our growing and demanding skill-based Nevada job
market...
Read more from The LVRJ
COMMENTARY: Time is now to protect Nevada’s
Dreamers
We are a nation of immigrants. Nowhere is this more evident
than in Nevada. Our state is home to people who have moved
here to make a better life for themselves and their
families...
Read more from LVRJ
My Turn: Lessons from a deeply corrupt city
"Corruption on steroids" is how Los Angeles District Attorney
Steve Cooley described the city of Bell, Calif., a tiny
enclave of 37,000 people in Los Angeles County...
Read more from azcentral.com
Government’s Continuing Budget-Buster: Paid Sick
Leave
While paid sick leave is critical to economic security and
health for employees and their families, its impact is even
more far-reaching -- even contagious...
Read more from governing.com
Why We Need to Re-Think Public Employees’
Compensation
Traditional public pensions widen the public-private pay gap,
and they aren't a good fit for a younger government
workforce...
Read more from governing.com
Nevada's public employee compensation needs reform
now
Nevada's pension system is one of the most generous public
employee retirement plans in the nation...
Read more from LVRJ
The Carter Presidential Library and Museum
presentation
June 21, 2012 - A broken system...
Read entire presentation
Why consolidation is not a panacea
Due to the economic crisis and severe budget shortfalls facing
Clark County and local cities, there has been renewed
conversation at the state and local levels for the
consolidation of governments in Southern Nevada...
Read
more from The Las Vegas Sun
Where I Stand — Guest Columnist Thom Reilly: Building
citizen trust
TOO OFTEN I hear, "What is government going to do to fix this
problem in our community?" The problems vary depending on the
community issue and whom they affect...
Read more from The Las Vegas Sun
NSHE Lauds Supreme Court DACA Decision
NSHE and its students were greeted with uplifting news Thursday morning as the U.S. Supreme Court ruled
in favor of keeping open the federal Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
Read more from Nevada.edu
NSHE improves odds for former Nevada foster children:
Reilly
The odds have never been good for the thousands of Nevada
children who enter the foster care system due to abuse,
neglect or abandonment by families...
Read more from Reno Gazette Journal
Gamechangers? Independent Voter May Rewrite The Political
Playbook.
Like the thick glass shakers of salt and pepper that dominate
kitchen, diner and banquet tables where modern U.S. politics
often are discussed and debated, elections and governance
largely have been viewed through the lens of a seemingly
impenetrable two party power structure: Republicans and
Democrats.
Read Full OP-ED
Voters, Media & Social Networks
Sociologists have long established that our media consumption
and circle of friends can in uence our individual political
opinions and perspectives. To better understand that
relationship, Morrison Institute for Public Policy conducted a
pre-election survey and separate post-election focus groups in
Arizona regarding how the interaction of news and social
networks a ect voters in their gathering and discussion of
political-related information...
Read full OP-ED
Viewpoints: The plan to prevent Arizona child
neglect
Child neglect is less visible than child abuse. But it’s a
similarly dangerous type of child maltreatment in that the
resulting negative outcomes too often last a lifetime...
Read more from azcentral.com
Viewpoints: How to solve Arizona's pension crisis
Pension reform is complicated, particularly with Arizona's
constraints. Here's how we can get around them...
Read more from azcentral.com
TANF cuts: Is Arizona shortsighted in its dwindling support
for poor families?
Arizona’s recently adopted budget for fiscal year 2015-16
includes dramatic reductions in assistance to low-income
families with children.
Read more from The Morrison Institute
Giving shelter: Promising news on homeless front
Let’s talk about homelessness. But wait — this time,
remarkably enough, the news is promising...
Read more from San Diego Tribune
More transparency needed for city’s pension reform
It is of little surprise that the Comprehensive Pension Reform
(CPR) initiative (which replaces guaranteed pensions for most
city workers with a 401(k)-style plan, freezes base pay for
city workers and removes special pay from counting toward
pension calculations) is appearing on the June ballot in San
Diego and garnering a good deal of citizen support...
Read more from U-T San Diego
Thom Reilly: Intermountain states must unite, seek federal
help
A recent report by the Brookings Institution, a Washington
think tank, suggests the southern Intermountain West states —
Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah — should team
up, flex their collective political muscle and together insist
the federal government work more helpfully with them to create
more sustainable, deliberate policies to empower their growing
urban areas...
Read more from The Las Vegas Sun
Should county recorder’s office be eliminated?
One thing that frustrates all of us is that many interactions
with government require standing in a line. Sometimes we go
through one line at a governmental agency, only to find out
that we need to go to yet another line...
Read more from The Las Vegas Sun
