Chemist, mathematician, and health physicist Billy Paul Smith donates time to tutor young people in hopes of attracting more youth into the fields of math and science. Born in 1942 and schooled in segregated black schools in Shreveport, Louisiana, and Texarkana, Texas, he graduated from high school at age fifteen and enrolled at Prairie View A&M University, where he trained with the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) and earned his Bachelor’s degree in chemistry and in 1964 his Master’s degrees in chemistry and math. Most young U.S. Army officers in 1964 went to Vietnam, but Billy’s math and science background steered him to the Army Chemical Corps, where he was quickly selected to join a new team. The team was to develop responses to nuclear weapon accidents and worked under the Defense Atomic Support Agency (DASA) in Albuquerque, New Mexico. At the same time, Billy completed the Weapons Ordinance Army course on classified information relating to the U.S. nuclear weapons arsenal. In this interview, Billy talks about his service with DASA and his subsequent twenty-seven years working at the Nevada Test Site in a variety of positions with Reynolds Electrical and Engineering Company, Inc. (REECo), a company that had “percentagewise more blacks in management positions than any other [Las Vegas] company.” He experienced the quiet racism of Las Vegas residential segregation when he tried to purchase a house in a neighborhood he liked and the unexpected kindness of the REECo general manager, Ron Keen, who made sure the Smith family could live where they wanted to live. He talks about Area 51 and explains underground testing activity and offers the scientific and ecological reasons why scientists deemed Yucca Mountain safe to store nuclear waste. After retiring at fifty-two, Billy and a colleague formed an independent instrumentation company, which, from 1995–2005 provided and calibrated radiological measurement and detection instruments for the decommissioning and closure of the Rocky Flats nuclear plant in Golden, Colorado. During that time, Billy rented an apartment in Boulder, but he and Jackie maintained their Las Vegas home, where they still reside. Billy shares memories of places he and his wife used to enjoy on the Westside and tells of their longtime friends in the black community. He also talks about developing his philosophy of philanthropy through Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity and discusses becoming a member of the Knowledge Fund Advisory Council for the Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) and the advisory council for the Nevada System of Higher Education.

Priscilla and Joe Scalley arrived in Las Vegas in 1972 with their two young daughters. Joe had just completed his residency in radiology and came to Las Vegas to practice at Sunrise Hospital, where he eventually became Southern Nevada’s first neuroradiologist. The couple took out two mortgages to buy their house at 2900 Justice Lane, in the Rancho Nevada Estates section of Ward 1. They were the second owners of the house, which had been built in 1967. In 1993, after their daughters had graduated from high school, the Scalleys sold the house and moved to Summerlin. Joe Scalley died in October 1994. After Joe died Priscilla became reacquainted with and married the father of one of her daughters’ childhood friends, Joel Jobst, who was also widowed. Joel was a nuclear physicist retired from the Nevada Test Site. Priscilla and Joel bought a vacation home in Montana, where they spent every summer. They celebrated 13 years of marriage before Joel passed in 2013. As a young mother Priscilla joined the West Charleston Elementary School Parent Teacher Association and eventually became president. She helped found the Friends of the Libraries when the Clark County Library District had only two libraries—Flamingo Library and West Charleston Library—and served as that group’s president. She also was active in Junior League of Las Vegas and was president 1983?84. In her early forties Priscilla became a travel agent, a career that kindled a passion for travel that still burns brightly. She also is interested in genealogy. Although she has traveled the world she yearns to take her daughters, sons in law, and grandchildren to Ireland, the land of her ancestors.

“I decided to just keep going, and I devoted my career to higher ed. I wanted to continue putting back into this system that I felt I got a lot out of. Again, repaying a debt.” What began as a passion for playing school sports would later lead Dr. Len Jessup on a path to lifelong service in the area of higher education. From his California childhood he would soon find himself across different U.S. states performing various higher education duties from professor to university president. In this interview, Jessup talks about his grandparents’ decision to emigrate from Italy to the U.S. and how grateful he feels towards his family as a result. He recalls playing baseball in college. In his eyes, being part of several sports teams helped him develop into the person he is now. He describes doing research during at the University of Arizona and speaks to what it was like moving from one university position to the next. Ultimately, his colleagues would recommend that he move to Las Vegas to

Session 1: Interviewed by Elsa Lopez. Rosemary's parents originated from Sonora, Mexico where her father worked in the strawberry fields and her mother was a kindergarten teacher. Her father, in search for a better life, came to Nevada after he heard of jobs available in the Northern Nevada mines. The two met and settled down in Reno after her mother became enamored with the beauty of Lake Tahoe. Rosemary and her four younger siblings grew up in Reno with their parents until the divorce. Her father soon joined the army during the Korean war and felt that it would be best if Rosemary and her siblings lived with their grandmother back in Mexico. There they stayed for two years, and although she missed her family and did not speak much Spanish, she recalls her time there with fondness. She eventually moved back to Reno and finished high school, graduating in the top 20. She married afterwards and had her son as well. After some convincing from her husband, Rosemary enrolled into the University of Nevada, Reno and graduated with a major in Secondary Education with a specialty in Physics and Math. Rosemary became further involved in community outreach and non-profit programs such as Founding Hispanic Youth Image, Co-founding ALITAS, being a board member for the Title XX Commission, and being a Chair for the Latino Youth Leadership Conference. She has two children and is currently working at UNLV with the program Multicultural Education Services Alliance (MESA) as a Family Engagement Specialist. Subjects: Reno Nevada, UNLV, Multicultural Education, Family Engagement, Activism; Session 2: Interviewed by Elsa Lopez. This is a continuation of a previous interview. We have asked Rosemary Q. Flores to tell us more about her work in the Multicultural Education Services Alliance. We also spoke more about her family and early childhood in Mexico while she was away from her family.

Nora Luna (1971 - ), the daughter of Mexican immigrants, recalls her growing up experience in the Las Vegas Valley. During her childhood, she and her siblings frequently persuaded their father to take them out to eat to the Circus Circus buffet. She enjoyed playing the carnival games at the Circus Circus. She attended Las Vegas High School. In 1994, she graduated from UNLV with a degree in criminal justice. Her education inspired her to work with the community’s youth. She tutored children at the Y.M.C.A. of Southern Nevada. Luna also worked for a program, Anahuac, which sought to deconstruct some of the myths that often prevent Latinos from attending college. In Reno, Nevada she worked with non-profit organizations to implement evidence-based practices for youth development. Luna has worked for Nathan Adelson Hospice as the Director of Diversity and Grant Funding since 2008. She seeks to find culturally competent care for Latinos and ensures that the hospice provides informational r

On March 20, 1978, David Furbush interviewed Joanne Imprescia (born October 10th, 1927 in Keokek, Iowa) about her life as a hairdresser in Las Vegas, Nevada. Imprescia discusses the growth of Las Vegas and the local social climate of the fifties. The interview concludes with Imprescia explaining her experiences as a Las Vegas business owner and the hairdressing industry in Southern Nevada.

On March 21, 1977, Christopher Moran interviewed Alice Doolittle (born 1897 in Boston, Massachusetts) about her experiences while living in Nevada. Also present during the interview is Ruth Belding, Alice’s daughter. Doolittle first talks about her reasons for coming to Las Vegas and her eventual occupation as a dental assistant. She also talks about her family’s history of living on the Stewart Ranch and the ranch’s swimming pool that attracted many during the summers of Las Vegas. Doolittle also describes her move to Boulder City with her husband, the first theaters in Las Vegas, and the Union Pacific Railroad. At the end of the interview, the three discuss Helen Stewart, Harley Harmon, and the Doolittle Center, named after Doolittle’s late husband, Ferris Doolittle.