Editor’s note: Seven days. Never enough hours.

Stacks of paperwork at the office and piles of laundry at home. It’s a never-ending cycle, which makes it difficult to stay on top of the endless news nuggets flowing from the White House, state capital, local government and business community. We get it — and we’re in the news business.

Enter “About Last Week.” This is our way of bringing news-hungry but time-strapped readers up to speed on happenings that may have flown under the radar. Our promise: We’ll keep it brief.

Our hope: You’ll read (or skim) and keep checking back every Monday.

So, without further ado, here are some noteworthy things that happened in Nevada last week.

UNLV’s law school ranked in top third in nation

UNLV’s William S. Boyd School of Law moved up three places in U.S. News & World Report’s annual rankings, reaching the No. 59 spot out of 194 accredited law schools.

Several programs within UNLV’s law school also received high marks. The Lawyering Process Program snagged a first-place ranking among the top legal writing programs, and the law school ranked No. 17 among part-time law programs. Additionally, the Saltman Center for Conflict Resolution ranked 10th among top programs for dispute resolution, continuing a multi-year trend.

“We are honored to earn this recognition, and we are proud of the number 1 ranking of the Lawyering Process Program,” Daniel Hamilton, the dean of UNLV’s law school, said in a statement. “We have built a first-rate public law school, and we couldn’t be prouder of the achievements of our faculty, our students, and our alumni.”

The overall 59th ranking is the highest place the UNLV law school has ever received from the U.S. News & World Report analysis.

— Jackie Valley

Gun safety group endorses down-ballot Democrats

A major gun safety group has endorsed two down-ballot Democrats on the ballot in 2018.

Moms Demand Action, a group linked to the Everytown for Gun Safety nonprofit, announced last week that it named lieutenant governor candidate Kate Marshall and attorney general candidate Aaron Ford as “Gun Sense” candidates.

“As someone who grew up around gun violence, I worked hard with the goal of providing my children and others a better life,” Ford said in a statement. “Unfortunately, we’ve seen too many examples of how it doesn’t matter what town you live in — shootings can take place anywhere.”

— Riley Snyder

Nevada gets another grant to ensure ex-felons don’t return to prison

Nevada received a second round of money to help reduce recidivism among the 6,000 or so inmates who are released from prison each year.

The Nevada Department of Corrections (NDOC) announced Friday that it won just short of $1 million from the U.S. Department of Justice Programs. The money will support the second phase of the Second Chance Act Statewide Adult Recidivism Reduction Program (SRR).

The state won an initial round of funding in 2016 and used it to validate risk assessment tools and develop “continuity of care” programming that ensures inmates have support after leaving prison.

The second round of funding will help develop a comprehensive statewide re-entry plan and case-management system and support programming in prisons that has been proven to reduce recidivism.

“The Statewide Recidivism Reduction (SRR) Grant aims to provide a statewide culture change in corrections – going from being punitive to being collaborative and rehabilitative,” NDOC Director James Dzurenda said in a statement.

Dzurenda said that since the state first received the grant, it’s seen a reduction in recidivism two years in a row. About 30 percent of the state’s prisoners are re-incarcerated within three years of their release.

The agency’s goal is to reduce recidivism in its targeted population by 15 percent over the first two years and 50 percent over five years.

— Michelle Rindels

Turnout still low for Las Vegas special election

The race to replace resigned Las Vegas city councilman Ricki Barlow has driven relatively few voters to the polls ahead of Tuesday’s special election.

Though 11 total candidates registered to fill the seat of Barlow, who resigned mid-term amid an FBI investigation into his use of campaign funds for personal use, only 849 residents of the city ward cast ballots over the early voting period. 423 people voted on Thursday, and another 426 cast ballots on Friday, the only two days of early voting for the open Ward 5 seat.

Election Day is scheduled for Tuesday, March 27, and polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at the Las Vegas city clerk's office at City Hall, Doolittle Community Center, Tobler Elementary School and Culley Elementary School.

— Riley Snyder

Nevada gaming regulators approve Meruelo’s acquisition of SLS Las Vegas

The Nevada Gaming Commission approved transferring ownership this week of the SLS Las Vegas to the Meruelo Group, which also owns the Grand Sierra Resort and Casino in Reno.

The Meruelo Group, helmed by businessman Alex Meruelo, plans to formally acquire the resort from Stockbridge Capital Group by the end of March. The company will take over operations of the resort at that time.

“We have been looking forward to this day with great enthusiasm,” Meruelo said in a statement. “SLS Las Vegas is a fantastic asset with tremendous potential, and we are thrilled to be acquiring the property.”

The company plans to invest what they described in a statement as a “significant amount” into making improvements to the property, including the rooms, pools, casino floor and entertainment venues. The hotel opened in 1952 as the Sahara Hotel and Casino.

The politically powerful Culinary Union urged gaming regulators last month to take a look at Meruelo’s background ahead of their approval of the transfer of ownership.

— Megan Messerly