"Throughout the eight states of the Mountain West, college officials have reported receiving greater attention and more money from their lawmakers," The Chronicle of Higher Education reports. "State officials, higher-education leaders in the region say, have begun to put more emphasis on bolstering the work-force development role of community colleges and research efforts at universities. Even states that cut back on appropriations for higher education this year trimmed less than they had during past economic downturns. Cash-strapped Nevada was an exception, as the state's governor recently asked for a 14-percent cut in higher-education spending for the 2009 fiscal year."