William Simon

William Simon is a faculty member at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), holding the title of Assistant Professor in the Department of Economics and the Law School. He co-founded the Benjamin Graham Value Investing Program, a key initiative in UCLA's Economics department, and is a Partner Emeritus at Simon Quick Advisors, a wealth management firm with $3.7 billion in assets. He previously served as Co-Chairman of William E. Simon & Sons, LLC, which he co-founded in 1988, and was the Republican gubernatorial nominee in California in 2002.

Mr. Simon earned a bachelor’s degree from Williams College, where he now serves as Trustee Emeritus, and a J.D. from Boston College Law School in 1982. His academic work focuses on value investing, financial crises, leadership, and rhetoric, areas that align with his professional background in finance and law.

He has been honored with the Graham & Dodd, Murray, Greenwald Prize for Value Investing and the 2018 UCLA Marty Sklar My Last Lecture Award. These reflect his contributions to finance education and teaching excellence.

As an educator, Mr. Simon has taught interdisciplinary courses bridging economics and law. His career spans academia, law, public service, and finance, with earlier roles including Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York (1985–1988).