Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton accepted a $225,000 speaking fee Monday night from a university where she said young Americans should be able to afford college without incurring massive debt.

The check will be cashed by Clinton's family foundation – not by the politician herself – but angry students at the University of Nevada Las Vegas complained earlier this year that the money should have been devoted to scholarships instead.

UNLV tuition has nearly tripled since 2004 and is slated to go up 4 per cent for each of the next four years.

Student loan debt 'can feel like an anchor tied to their feet dragging them down,' Clinton said of students on Monday.

SCROLL DOWN FOR VIDEO AND CLINTON'S SPEAKING CONTRACT

Hillary Rodham Clinton was presented with a shoe during the UNLV Foundation annual dinner on Monday as a joking gesture from Las Vegas Sun CEO Brian Greenspun. A woman threw a shoe at Clinton during a separate Las Vegas appearance in April - and is she going to run for president?

'I think our young people deserve a fair shot,' she told about 900 people gathered at the swanky Bellagio resort for the annual UNLV Foundation dinner.

The 1-1/2-hour commitment netted Mrs. Clinton a cool $2,500 per minute.

UNLV student Jordan Mason told MailOnline in June that a nearly quarter-million-dollar payday for Clinton should have been out of the question.

'$225,000? That's obscene!' Mason said. 'And the money is all fungible, right? Even if some CEO is writing the check, that's money that the person probably would have given to the university in some other way.'

'I like Hillary,' the student added, 'but if she's not willing to support us without all that money changing hands, maybe they should book someone else who won't add to the reasons we're paying more for school.'

Elias Benjelloun, UNLV’s undergraduate student body president, told the Las Vegas Sun this summer that the school's trustees were trying to improve its offerings 'on the backs of students.'

Clinton's speaking contract originally required UNLV to close the event to the press. But last week she relented.

Recordings were strictly forbidden, however.

The $200 per plate dinner included some attendees paying as much as $20,000 for special sponsorships that included a private photo session with the guest of honor.

The UNLV Foundation earned 49 million in its last fiscal year and ended up with $228 million in assets, according to its publicly available tax return.

Clinton also addressed the American public's possible reluctance to get involved in conflicts around the world, referring to the threats posed by the Ebola virus and the ISIS terror army.

'They want to bring the fight to Europe and the fight to the United States,' she said of the terrorist group.

Clinton caught grief from UNLV students when the terms of her pricey contract were leaked since tuition at the school has tripled in the last decade

And Ebola is not going to stay confined, the former first lady said.

'We can't say we're not going to be involved because these things are other people's problems,' she said.

The remarks were part of questions from longtime friend and Las Vegas Sun Publisher Brian Greenspun after Clinton's prepared speech.

In her talk, she touched on her thoughts on Russian President Vladimir Putin, saying, 'I see a very cold-blooded, calculated former KGB agent who is determined to not only enrich himself and his closest colleagues but also to try to revive Russia's influence around its border.'

She mentioned the most important person she's ever met – Nelson Mandela for his 'level of self-awareness and political skill.'

Clinton added that her most difficult decision as secretary of State was 'whether or not to go after [Osama] bin Laden based on the evidence we had.'

That decision was ultimately made by President Barack Obama and his military leaders at the Pentagon.

Before the questions, Greenspun presented her with a gift: a pair of Nike athletic shoes, a reference to one of her last appearances in Las Vegas in April when a woman in the crowd threw a shoe at Clinton.

'How do we make amends?' he asked. By giving her two shoes instead of just the one.

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Greenspun pointed out the pair came from the 'running' shoes section, a coy reference to speculation surrounding a possible presidential run by Clinton.

She didn't give anything away about her future plans after Greenspun pressed a second time about any unfinished business she might have and how she would finish it, a reference to a chapter in her book, 'Hard Choices.'

'I'm really going to have to ponder that seriously,' she said.

Before Monday's event, Clinton made a stop in Denver to campaign for Colorado Sen. Mark Udall and later appeared at a Nevada Democratic Party fundraiser in Las Vegas with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid. The Las Vegas Sun reported that VIP tickets to the fundraiser at the Aria resort cost $10,000 each.

The UNLV Foundation dinner also honored billionaire Republican fundraiser and Sands Corp. CEO Sheldon Adelson.

Despite the political chasm separating them, Clinton commended Adelson for his donations to the university.