Regents approve new fee to help fund UNLV student newspaper

LAS VEGAS (AP) — A new student fee has been approved that will fund the student newspaper at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

The Nevada Board of Regents, which oversees the state’s colleges and universities, approved a 20-cent per credit fee after hearing from several students and current staffers of The Scarlet & Gray Free Press about the importance of their newsroom.

The student newspaper was founded nearly 70 years ago and has faced financial insecurity over the last few years after advertising dropped off and funds from the university and other benefactors diminished, according to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.

The Review-Journal and the university’s Student Affairs office have contributed funds to help keep the student newspaper afloat in recent years, with the Review-Journal even printing The Scarlet & Gray at no cost.

However, the Review-Journal told the student journalists earlier this year that it would no longer print the paper for free and would be pulling its investment in the paper, citing the prohibitive cost of newsprint and a desire to see UNLV more meaningfully back the newspaper financially.

The fee passed by the regents is expected to generate about $140,000 to fund the newspaper, which is currently operating on a budget of $60,000 to $80,000.

The fee will take effect in the fall of 2023 and will amount to no more than $3 per student.