Sanford and Sandra Berman

Dr. Sanford and Sandra Berman were proud sponsors of the Dr. Sanford I. Berman Debate Forum and the Dr. Sanford I. Berman Scholarship at UNLV. They believed that participation in all forms of academic debate could help young people become agents of positive change in the world.

Thanks to their dedication, the UNLV Debate Team was resurrected in 2008 after a 10-year absence and went on to garner national recognition. The Berman Debate Forum also hosted a high school debate competition, The Las Vegas Classic Invitational Collegiate Debate Tournament, which quickly grew to be a renowned event of its kind in America.

Sanford was born in Virginia, Minnesota. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota, his master’s degree at Teacher’s College – Columbia, and his doctorate at Northwestern University. He had many real estate holdings in San Diego and was been a nightclub hypnotist for 45 years. He retired to Las Vegas in 1989 and passed away in 2015.

A generous advocate for higher education, Sanford had also made significant donations in support of an endowment for general semantics at UNLV, San Diego State University, and the University of California at La Jolla. Sandra is a native of Los Angeles. She attended junior college in northern California and completed her education while working at MGM Studios and Universal Studios.