Jim Gash

James A. Gash (JD ’93) is the eighth president and chief executive officer of Pepperdine University. Prior to his presidency, Gash was the associate dean for strategic planning and external relations at the Pepperdine School of Law, where he also served as a professor of law and as director of the Sudreau Global Justice Program. Recognized globally for his transformative work in international justice reform, Gash has devoted himself to advancing the rule of law in developing countries and, since 2010, has visited Uganda over 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. I

n 2016 he published his first book, Divine Collision: An African Boy, An American Lawyer, and Their Remarkable Battle for Freedom, which chronicles how his life and the Ugandan criminal justice system were dramatically changed as a result of meeting a Ugandan teenage prisoner during Gash's first visit to Uganda. The following year, Revolution Pictures released the award-winning documentary REMAND about the work of the Sudreau Global Justice Program at Pepperdine Law, which Gash led as its director from 2012 to 2019.

Gash is a member of the State Bar of California and the Christian Legal Society. He received his bachelor’s degree in finance, summa cum laude, from Abilene Christian University in 1989 and his juris doctor degree, summa cum laude, from the Pepperdine School of Law in 1993.