Board of Regents By-Laws,

The University of Nevada System was established in 1968 as a central body with administrative control over four divisions. Under the System the University of Nevada became the University of Nevada, Reno. Nevada Southern University became the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. The Desert Research Institute of the University of Nevada (established in 1959) became the third division of the System. The fourth division was the Community College Division.

The Board of Regents was established by the Nevada State Constitution in 1864, and the first board was created in 1865. The board is responsible for the governance of the institutions comprising the University of Nevada System, which was organized in 1968. The board changed the System's name to the University and Community College System of Nevada in December 1991. In 2005, the System's name became the Nevada System of Higher Education. Typically, the board holds six regular meetings each year in addition to committee meetings. All regular and committee meetings are open to the pubic. The Las Vegas campus was called the University of Nevada Southern Division from 1957-1965. Its name was changed to Nevada Southern University (NSU) from 1965-1968. In 1969, it became the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV)