Cal State L.A. emeritus professor, L.A. Police Commission vice president, and one of ‘The Top 100 Lawyers in California’ honored with Pat Brown Institute awards
Event hosted by ABC-7’s Marc Brown and addressed
by L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, others
Los Angeles, Calif.—Celebrated by nearly 400 political, education, business and labor leaders as well as colleagues, friends and family, Los Angeles leaders Jaime Regalado, John Mack, and George Kieffer were recently honored during the Edmund G. “Pat” Brown Institute of Public Affairs’ (PBI) 31st Annual Awards Dinner in downtown Los Angeles.
The PBI Awards Dinner, which took place May 31 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel, honors those who dedicate their lives to public service in California. This year’s dinner was hosted by ABC-7 Newscaster Marc Brown, and was addressed by such dignitaries as L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa.
Jaime Regalado
Dr. Regalado, professor emeritus in political science at Cal State L.A. (CSULA) and former executive director of the Pat Brown Institute of Public Affairs (PBI), received the Pat Brown Lifetime Legacy Award.
“For 20 years, Jaime has been the heart and soul of the Pat Brown Institute. His work on reducing gang violence and on encouraging hope for our youth will be long remembered. For his friends, his associates, and his staff, it’s a great pleasure to honor him,” said PBI’s Executive Director Dr. Raphael Sonenshein. PBI is located on campus at California State University, Los Angeles.
Prior to his current position as professor emeritus at CSULA, Regalado served as executive director of PBI from 1991 to 2011. PBI is a non-partisan institute and public policy center at CSULA dedicated to sustaining the vision and legacy of former California Governor Edmund G. “Pat” Brown by convening public policy forums, engaging multi-sector stakeholders and diverse communities, and conducting timely policy research and community driven initiatives.
Regalado also taught courses at CSULA from 1978 to 1991, as well as at California Polytechnic University, Pomona and Occidental College in the early-to-mid 1980s.
During his tenure as a teacher, scholar and director, Regalado’s urban agenda focused on race relations, inter-community and multi-sector collaborations and coalitions, youth violence mitigation and electoral politics.
John W. Mack
Mack, vice president of the Los Angele Police Commission and former president of the L.A. Urban League, received the Community Service Award.
“John Mack has made community service his life’s work. From the civil rights movement, to his distinguished leadership of the Los Angeles Urban League, to his role as a major force in reforming the Los Angeles Police Department, John Mack has made a difference to the community,” said Sonenshein.
Mack was appointed to the Board of Police Commissioners by Mayor Villaraigosa in August 2005. He also held the position of president of the Police Commission for two consecutive years.
Mack served as president of the Los Angeles Urban League from 1969 to 2005. Prior to that position, he served on the Urban League’s national staff for six months during the Whitney Young era in Washington, D.C. Under his leadership, the Urban League has become one of the most successful non-profit community organizations in Los Angeles with an annual budget of $25 million, serving more than 100,000 individuals each year. The Urban League operates a number of innovative, result-oriented job training, job placement, education, academic tutorial, youth achievement and business development programs that serve African Americans and other people of color.
Mack was also a leader in the 1960 student civil rights movement in Atlanta, and co-founder and vice chairperson of the Committee on the Appeal for Human Rights. He was conferred an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from the California State University Board of Trustees during last year’s CSULA commencement ceremony.
George David Kieffer
Kieffer, a partner of Los Angeles-based law firm Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, and twice named among “The Top 100 Lawyers in California” by the Los Angeles and San Francisco Daily Journals, received the Public Service Award.
“George has been the model civic leader in Los Angeles, able to draw others to major public tasks, and then to get things done,” said Sonenshein. “The new city charter is one testimony to those skills. We honor him, for what he has done to restore the tradition of civic leadership in our community.”
Kieffer is a member of the Executive Committee at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, and chair of its Government Regulatory Policy Division. His extensive business, government contracts, regulatory, municipal and administrative law practice experience is an indispensable asset to the firm as he oversees its major litigation, business transactions and government-related matters in a number of industries.
Kieffer also serves on the Board of Regents of the University of California, is chair of the Los Angeles Civic Alliance, and sits on the Board of Directors of Promerica Bank, the first Latino-owned bank to be chartered in Los Angeles in over 35 years. He is also former two-time chair of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, and successfully chaired the City of Los Angeles Appointed Commission charged with rewriting the Los Angeles City Charter. The new City Charter—the first full revision in 75 years—was adopted in 1999.
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