Edward Roybal

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As a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for more than a quarter of a century, Edward Roybal has dedicated himself to sustaining federal support for quality higher education. He is hailed as a national leader in support of health and educational services, employment, housing, consumer rights and a better life for the elderly. He has been a staunch ally of UCLA, his legislative work touching every facet of UCLA’s student and faculty life, its institutional growth and ideals. Roybal is also a leader and loyal member of the Hispanic community. He founded the congressional Hispanic Caucus, serving terms as its president and treasurer, and he is the current president of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials.

Born in Albuquerque, N.M., Roybal grew up in the Boyle Heights area of Los Angeles. He graduated from Roosevelt High School during the Great Depression. He served on the Los Angeles City Council for 13 years before being elected to Congress in 1962. He has served continuously since that time, never failing to win reelected in his East Los Angeles 25th District.

Through the years, Roybal has established an extraordinary record of legislative achievements in higher education and university-based research support. In biomedical research, Roybal’s efforts have been critical to the establishment at UCLA of a host of biomedical research centers that focus on cancer, mental retardation, immunology, geriatrics, AIDS and more. He has been a strong leader in gaining support for research grants initiated by principal investigators through the National Institutes of Health, the alcohol, Drug Abuse and Mental Health Administration and the Veterans Administration. He has worked in close cooperation with UCLA’s medical and nursing leadership to develop policies that ensure federal support for quality research programs and facilities. Roybal has also been a champion of strong federal support for student financial assistance and professional development opportunities, which are critical to UCLA undergraduate and graduate education programs. He has supported programs for the financially disadvantaged and has fostered educational research, teacher training and library funding at UCLA.

Roybal is currently a member of the powerful House Appropriations Committee and was appointed in 1975 to the newly created Selected Committee on Aging, where he now serves as chairman of the Subcommittee on Housing and Consumer Interests. As a member of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health, Education and Welfare, Roybal led several successful efforts to restore federal support for education programs and to expand support for community health centers. He authored the Bilingual Education Act and sponsored legislation that extended and improved the Voting Rights Act. Briefly a UCLA student, he has been honored by Yale University as a Visiting Chubb Fellow and holds honorary degrees from Claremont Graduate School and Pacific States University.

Roybal has worked tirelessly for decades to bring about a better life for the people of Los Angeles, the state of California and the country as a whole. Most of all, he is a fervent friend of UCLA. He has been and remains actively involved and deeply committed to ensuring that the ideals of quality student education and opportunity are preserved.