Calendar of Events

The Honorable Gray Davis former Governor of California School of Public Affairs Distinguished Policy Fellow and Bill Simon former candidate for Governor of California School of Public Affairs Senior Fellow Back in 2001, they ran a hotly contested race — against each other — for governor of California. Now, Gray Davis and Bill Simon reflect back on that campaign and on the state of California in a unique session. Moderated by Jim Newton, editor-at-large of the Los Angeles Times and senior fellow of the School of Public Affairs, Davis and Simon will draw upon their experience as candidates, adversaries and committed Californians to examine the state of the state today. Gray Davis served as California’s 37th Governor from 1999 to 2003. During his time as Governor, he made education a top priority, signing legislation to strengthen California’s K-12 system, increasing accountability in schools, and expanding access to higher education with a record number of scholarships and college loans. While presiding over California during an economic expansion, Davis made record investments in infrastructure and created four Centers of Science and Innovation on UC campuses. He is now an attorney at Loeb & Loeb. Bill Simon serves as Co-Chairman of the William E. Simon Foundation and the Cynthia L. and William E. Simon, Jr. Foundation. Through these foundations, Mr. Simon helps underprivileged youth in urban areas through faith-based efforts. Mr. Simon serves on the Board of Advisors at UCLA Medical Center, and also serves as Trustee on the Boards of St. John’s Health Center Foundation in Los Angeles and The Heritage Foundation in Washington D.C. RSVP to rsvp@publicaffairs.ucla.edu