In the 1950s and 1960s, Nevada experienced a nursing shortage, largely as a result of the lack of nursing schools in the state and rapid population growth. To address the problem, the Nevada Board of Regents approved the implementation of an associate degree program at the campus of Nevada Southern University (now known as the University of Nevada, Las Vegas) in 1965, and that fall the first students were admitted.
The Renee Lee Papers span from the 1950s to 2012 and document the life of singer and actress Renee Lee through photographs, her original music scores, newspaper clippings, and a mid-career resume. The collection also includes an alphabetized card catalog of the private performances Lee booked from 1998-2012.