2015 UCLA International Institute Graduation Commencement Ceremony with Julia S. Gouw

The Institute's commencement was held on Saturday, June 13, at 6:30 pm.
UCLA International Institute, June 2, 2015 -- The UCLA International Institute congratulated its graduating students.
Commencement speaker
Julia S. Gouw, president and chief operating officer of East West Bank,will be the featured speaker at the commencement. A native of Indonesia, Gouw leads one of the largest independent banks headquartered in California, which serves as a financial bridge between the United States and China. Its parent company, East West Bancorp (for which Gouw is a member of the board), is among the 30 largest publicly traded banks in the nation. For the last five years in row, it has been ranked in the top 15 of the 100 Best Banks in America by Forbes magazine.
Gouw moved to the United States in 1978 and earned a degree in accounting at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champagne. After becoming a certified public accountant and working at KPMG as a senior audit manager, she joined East West Bank in 1989 as its controller. Thereafter, she quickly rose through the ranks to become executive vice president and chief financial officer and, ultimately, president. Under her leadership, the bank has achieved 11 consecutive years of record earnings - a stellar track record widely recognized throughout the banking and investment communities.
A longstanding friend of UCLA, Gouw established an Endowed Chair for Mood Disorders Research at the UCLA Health System, where she also serves on the Board of Overseers. In addition, she is the founding chair of the Executive Women’s Advisory Board for the Iris Cantor-UCLA Women’s Health Center.
In addition to women’s health, Gouw supports women’s advancement as a board member of The Trusteeship, an affiliate organization of the International Women’s Forum. She is currently a member of the Board of Directors of Pacific Mutual Holding Company and PacificLife Corp, and was appointed to serve on the District Export Council by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce.
Ranked five times by American Banker magazine as one of the “25 Most Powerful Women in Banking,” Gouw has also twice received the Los Angeles Business Journal’s “Women Making a Difference” award. Among other honors, she has been named one of “L.A.’s Top Women in Finance” by the Los Angeles Business Journal and Philanthropist of the Year by the National Association of Women Business Owners in Los Angeles.
Location and time
Saturday, June 13, 2015
6:30 pm
Royce Hall