Leavitt named Board of Regents chairman

The Board of Regents elected James Dean Leavitt chairman for the coming fiscal year.

He takes over from outgoing chairman Michael Wixom on July 1.

The board also named Jason Geddes vice chairman of the 13-member panel. Geddes has been serving as vice chairman since December 2008 when he was selected to finish the remainder of Howard Rosenberg's term when Rosenberg left the board because of term limits.

Leavitt was first elected in 2004 representing District 13 in Clark County. He currently chairs both the Board Development Committee and the Investment Committee. He is a member of the Budget & Finance Committee, the ad hoc Technology Committee and the Presidential Evaluation Committee (University of Nevada, Reno).

Leavitt is a lawyer who focuses exclusively on criminal defense.

Geddes was appointed by Gov. Kenny Guinn to serve on the Board of Regents in 2006 as the representative for Washoe County, District 11 and was elected in 2008.

He is a member of the Student & Academic Affairs Committee, the Research & Economic Development Committee and the ad hoc Technology Committee, as well as the Presidential Evaluation Committee (DRI).

He was elected to the Assembly in 2002.

Geddes holds a Ph.D. from UNR in environmental sciences and health.