This collection follows the Associated Women Students at the University of Nebraska, established in 1911, the group served all female students until the organization's disbandment in 1970. In its early stages, the organization went through a series of name changes, from Girls’ Club to the Women Student Government Association until 1919 and then finally Associated Women Students. With its founding in 1911, the women at the University of Nebraska were represented and governing themselves several years before women had the right to vote in the United States. 

The purpose of the AWS was “to reflect the interests and execute the will of the women students, to assume responsibility of establishing and maintaining high ideals in matters of conduct, and to unite them in proportion of scholarly as well as social purposes.” (What is A.W.S?). 

The AWS at the University of Nebraska is a chapter of the national organization, Intercollegiate Association of Women Students (IAWS) in which it officially became a member of in 1924. As a chapter of the IAWS, Nebraska AWS participated in regional conventions to attend workshops and listen to speakers who discussed anything from a women’s education to the appropriate occasion to wear Bermuda shorts on campus.

Throughout its existence, the AWS was the largest organization on the University of Nebraska campus because it included all women enrolled at the university. The AWS established and maintained the rules and regulations for the female residence halls and sorority houses along with the organization’s faculty advisor, the Dean of Women. With the Dean of Women, the AWS held the AWS Court for those women who broke any of the rules in the residence hall.

To encourage university women to become active in campus organizations, the AWS established the Activities Mart for other campus organizations to have booths set up at the City Campus and East Campus Unions for freshmen women to find a potential organization to join. In 1940, the AWS also published a weekly calendar of events called The Women to encourage female students to become more active on campus.

The AWS was particularly active in the 1950s and 1960s and created one of the most popular and successful campus events, The Coed Follies. The Coed Follies was a theatrical variety show of sorts with women students participating in skits with their sorority or residence hall. At the end of the night the best skit would be selected by a group of judges, the judges would also select the Ideal Nebraska Coed and Outstanding Collegiate Man at the festivities. The revenue from the Coed Follies supported the AWS financially, as there were no annual fees or dues from its members and the Coed Follies raised several throusand dollars each year.