Regent Patrick Boylan attends a Board of Regents meeting at the College of Southern Nevada in North Las Vegas Friday, March 10, 2023.
Nevada Faculty Alliance is demanding that Regent Patrick Boylan resign, saying comments he made Friday about the transgender community during a quarterly Nevada System of Higher Education Board of Regents meeting violated the board’s anti-discrimination resolution.
In a statement, the alliance — which advocates on behalf of faculty and professional staff at all eight of the state’s public higher education institutions — said Boylan “directly attacked thousands of members of the NSHE community.”
Boylan described transgender athletes as “a man masquerading as a woman.” He boldly proclaimed that his comments were protected by the First Amendment and offered no apology when questioned during public comment by a student, instead barking: “That is the way I see it; that is the way I say it,” according to a video archive of the meeting.
He also said, “If he has not had his you-know-what cut off or anything, he’s still a man.”
The anti-discrimination resolution was adopted Sept. 9, 2022, saying “the Board recognizes its resounding responsibility to the NSHE community, the State of Nevada, and its higher education families throughout the nation to denounce any words or actions with discriminatory intent or effect, and such efforts are exemplified by the leadership and representations of its Regents.”
The board late Monday issued a statement reaffirming its commitment “to fostering an environment of inclusivity and respect for all individuals within the Nevada System of Higher Education.”
The statement further said the board would continue working to ensure campuses in the Nevada System of Higher Education were safe and welcoming spaces.
“Every individual deserves to be treated with dignity and respect when participating in an NSHE public meeting or attending an NSHE campus, regardless of their gender identity, sexual orientation, race, ethnicity, religion, or any other individual characteristic,” the board wrote in a letter to campus communities signed by Chairwoman Amy Carvalho and Vice Chairman Jeffrey Downs.
The statement echoed comments by regents during Friday’s meeting, many of whom were brought to tears in their dismay of Boylan’s rhetoric.
“Excuse me for being upset,” Regent Heather Brown said through tears. “I am tired of people treating people poorly because they feel they can. As Regents, we have to hold ourselves more accountable and I will do this for the board, even if I stand alone. And I know I don’t.”
Boylan, who represents District 5 — a swath of central Las Vegas — won a spot on the nonpartisan board in 2020 by 78 votes, according to the Nevada secretary of state. His six-year term expires in 2027. He previously attempted to win a seat in the U.S. House of Representatives, but only received 8% of the vote in the 2016 Democratic primary won by incumbent Congresswoman Dina Titus.
Calls Tuesday to Boylan were not returned.
Kevin Osorio Hernández, the student body president at Nevada State University, told the board during public comment that “It’s tough to hear that language from a regent. They, after all, represent us.”
The faculty alliance in its call for Boylan to resign said he had a history of racist and discriminatory remarks.
The Senate of the Associated Students at UNR in 2022 condemned comments Boylan made “regarding the achievement and representation of students on the basis of their identity, specifically advocating for white students,” the student group wrote.
“Why don’t we serve all students of all ethnicities because — and I don’t mean this harshly to anybody — I’m watching all of the reports and of higher education, it seems like everybody is mentioned but those with that group of students who are, and I’ll term them colorless, because we have Black students, we have colored students, and I think the white students are invisible, no color, so I’ll call them colorless,” Boylan said in a board meeting, according to a resolution the student group wrote denouncing the rant.
UNLV, which has the largest enrollment among NSHE schools, annually ranks as having one of the nation’s most racially and ethnically diverse college campuses, according to U.S. News & World Report. More than 65% of UNLV’s undergraduates identify as part of a racial or ethnic minority. About 32% of students identify as Latino.
“In places where there’s more diversity, I believe there’s better learning,” UNLV President Keith Whitfield said in 2021. “As one of the nation’s most diverse universities and one that continues to rise as a top public research university, we work hard every day to improve the social mobility of our graduates and to provide opportunities and support for all of our students, staff and faculty.”
Carvalho and Downs, in their joint statement, stressed that “by working together we can promote a culture of inclusivity and respect within the Nevada System of Higher Education.”
“It is important for our NSHE community to know that we remain steadfast in our commitment to creating campus environments where all individuals feel valued and supported,” they wrote. “In reference to certain statements that were made during the Board of Regents’ most recent quarterly meeting, we offer our strong support to any individuals who felt excluded, offended, or disrespected by any comments made during the meeting.”
