President, Pepperdine University
Gash, the first Pepperdine alumnus to lead Pepperdine University, was named the school’s eighth president in 2019. He was previously associate dean for strategic planning and external relations at the Pepperdine Caruso School of Law. He has devoted himself to advancing the rule of law in developing countries and, since 2010, has visited Uganda nearly 30 times with Pepperdine students and alumni to support the country’s judiciary, having served as a specialist advisor to the High Court of Uganda since 2012. Gash received the 2013 Warren Christopher Award, which recognizes the State Bar of California’s international lawyer of the year. His 2016 book, “Divine Collision: An African Boy, An American Lawyer, and Their Remarkable Battle for Freedom,” highlights the campaign to change Uganda’s criminal justice system. Gash led the Sudreau Global Justice Program at Pepperdine Law from 2012-2019. He holds a bachelor’s from Abilene Christian University and a J.D. from the Pepperdine School of Law, where he finished first in his class and served as editor in chief of the Pepperdine Law Review. Gash is a member of the Christian Legal Society, and clerked for Edith H. Jones, of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in Houston.
YEARS ON LA500: 6
