Board of Regents Chair Jason Geddes announced Friday morning that Lisa Levine, the former political director for Rep. Dina Titus and government affairs director for gaming company IGT, had been appointed by the governor to fill the vacant seat left by Sam Lieberman, who died suddenly earlier this year. 

Geddes’ announcement was confirmed in a tweet from Sisolak Friday afternoon, who said he was confident that Levine “will continue [Lieberman’s] work as a champion for higher education.”

Levine will represent District 5 — which includes parts of Las Vegas and North Las Vegas — for the remainder of 2020, as the seat is one of four on the Board of Regents up for an election this year.

In a statement, Levine said she was “humbled and grateful” for the appointment, and that “as a first-generation college graduate and alumna of UNLV, I know firsthand the impact education has for students to achieve their dreams and for our community to succeed.”

The state’s 13 regents are elected to six year terms and oversee the state’s higher education system and the eight institutions that fall under its umbrella. 

Levine’s appointment comes at a time of uncertainty for the regents, as they look to navigate not only a number of high profile position vacancies and the looming possibility of losing their constitutional status, but also the coming task of steering the system through the worst financial crisis to hit the state since 2008.