Student Development Funds Help UNLV Students Invent the Future

This year the College of Fine Arts initiated a much-needed student development fund to encourage private support that would allow students opportunities beyond the classroom. The fund will allow for students' participation at conferences, international exchange programs, and as competitors in nationally and internationally acclaimed arts festivals.

The student development fund has enabled student ensembles in all areas of the college from music and dance to theatre, film, architecture, and art to perform and exhibit in places like Japan, Italy, Australia, England, Scotland, Scandinavia, Russia, Germany, and China, representing not only UNLV but Las Vegas, Nevada, and the United States.

Just this past summer, the fund allowed fine arts students to participate in two major international tours: the La Croix Valmer Music Festival in France and the Edinburgh Arts Festival in Scotland.

In June, UNLV's 70-person Wind Orchestra, under the direction of professors Tony Labounty and Tom Leslie, attended the highly prestigious La Croix Valmer Music Festival in France as the only non-professional or educational orchestra invited to perform.

In August, for the eighth year, the college presented at the world-renowned Edinburgh Arts Festival. College of Fine Arts students from dance, music, and film performed six times per week next to professionals from around the world. Hundreds of thousands of visitors attended the month-long festival and the UNLV performers received outstanding reviews, including a five-star review in Edinburgh 's local newspaper The Scotsman.

“These achievements have been made possible, in great part, due to the generosity of patrons who enjoy the college's performances and exhibits, and especially those who honor the talent of young artists through direct support to the college and its programs,” said College of Fine Arts Dean Jeffrey Koep

Jamie Salas was one of the lucky students to participate in the Edinburgh festival and says that without the fund, she would not have been able to participate in “anything half as exciting” in her college years.

“It was by far the most amazing experience of my life and such a great opportunity to work with other artists overseas,” Salas said. “We stretched our artistic endeavors to the maximum … I think that each of our artists came back home with a wider respect for people and other artists of all kinds, as well as a lot more dedication to the arts.”