UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies

The UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies (formally the Ralph & Goldy Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies) is a research center housed at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs. It was founded in 1989 with an endowment from UCLA alumni Ralph and Goldy Lewis and is charged with the interdisciplinary study of policy issues affecting the Los Angeles region. Over more than three decades the center has become a recognized source of applied research on the social, economic, and spatial challenges of Greater Los Angeles, with a consistent emphasis on how policy affects vulnerable and underserved populations. The center's current mission centers on two overlapping challenges: housing affordability and transportation equity. Its researchers examine how these areas intersect and shape the well-being of Los Angeles residents, particularly low-income residents and communities that face multiple, intersecting barriers to economic opportunity. The center describes Los Angeles as a region of immense economic power and opportunity that is also marked by some of the country's highest levels of income inequality, driven by skyrocketing housing costs, residential segregation, stagnant wages, and gaps in access to high-quality transportation and education. Work at the Lewis Center is conducted by an interdisciplinary team of faculty, research staff, and students at the Luskin School, guided by an advisory board of public- and private-sector leaders. The center leverages research grants from government and philanthropic partners to support its research portfolio, and it produces reports, briefs, journal articles, and other publications intended to inform policymakers, officials, students, and the broader public. Recent work includes reports on creating pathways to housing voucher utilization through short-term cash on-ramps, addressing the travel needs of women and families on public transportation, and studies of Los Angeles's Mobility Wallet program showing that flexible transportation subsidies improve low-income residents' travel frequency, independence, and overall wellbeing. Since its founding, seven directors have led the center, each shaping its research agenda — from labor and economic development to immigration, transportation access, and land use — with a through-line of interest in policy impacts on vulnerable populations. The center's history includes early publication programs through Sage Publications, the founding of the peer-reviewed Critical Planning Journal (now run by UCLA urban planning graduate students), major grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Haynes Foundation, and a Ford Foundation-funded comparative study on immigration in American cities. Today the Lewis Center remains an active UCLA research unit focused on generating knowledge and action around housing affordability and transportation equity in the Los Angeles region.

The Lewis Center was founded in 1989 with a generous endowment from UCLA alumni Ralph and Goldy Lewis. It is housed in the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs and was charged with the interdisciplinary study of policy issues affecting the Los Angeles region. In more than 35 years of operation, seven directors have each left their mark on the research topics the center focuses on, from labor to immigration to transportation access and land use, with a specific interest in the policy impact on vulnerable populations as a through-line. The center's first director was Allen Scott (1990–1995), now a distinguished professor emeritus of public policy and geography. Under his leadership, the center began to publish books and articles through Sage Publications and initiated the peer-reviewed Critical Planning Journal, now run by UCLA urban planning graduate students. The center's research in this period centered on economic development and labor, supported by two major grants from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and the Haynes Foundation. Roger Waldinger served as director from 1996 to 1998. His research garnered the center a $400,000 grant from the Ford Foundation to conduct a comparative three-year study on the impact of immigration in American cities. That project, called "Immigration and the American City," cemented urban immigration as an area of focus for the Lewis Center. Waldinger is now a distinguished professor of sociology and director of the UCLA Center for the Study of International Migration. Paul Ong served as director from 1998 to 2006. He is a research professor at the Luskin School and a director of the center. Under subsequent directors, the center's agenda continued to evolve across transportation access, land use, and the policy impact on vulnerable populations. Across its history, the center has produced high-quality research, programs, and publications designed to inform policymakers, officials, students, and the broader public. Its scholars leverage research grants from government and philanthropic partners to support a diverse and impactful research portfolio. The center's current mission is to advance research on two critical and overlapping challenges: housing affordability and transportation equity, focusing on how these areas intersect and shape the well-being of Los Angeles residents, especially those from marginalized and underserved communities. Recent research includes reports on creating a pathway to voucher utilization through cash on-ramps, addressing the travel needs of women and families on public transportation, and studies of the Los Angeles Mobility Wallet program, which showed that flexible transportation subsidies improve low-income residents' travel frequency, independence, and overall wellbeing.

• 1998

  Paul Ong becomes director (serving 1998–2006).

• 1996

  Roger Waldinger becomes director (serving 1996–1998); his research garners a $400,000 Ford Foundation grant for the three-year "Immigration and the American City" study.

• 1990

  Allen Scott becomes the center's inaugural director (serving 1990–1995); the center begins publishing books and articles through Sage Publications and initiates the peer-reviewed Critical Planning Journal.

• 1989

  The Lewis Center is founded with an endowment from UCLA alumni Ralph and Goldy Lewis, housed in the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs.

• The center's current mission focuses on housing affordability and transportation equity, with recent research on voucher utilization, women's and families' transit needs, and the Los Angeles Mobility Wallet program.

An endowed, interdisciplinary university research center producing applied policy and planning research for Greater Los Angeles, with a focus on housing affordability and transportation equity for marginalized and underserved communities.

• Report: Creating a Pathway to Voucher Utilization: The Potential for Cash On-Ramps

  Short-term funds to help voucher tenants cover the upfront costs of securing housing, including security deposits, utilities, transportation, and other expenses associated with the housing search.

• Report: Addressing Travel Needs of Women and Families on Public Transportation

  Useful tools for public transit agencies and stakeholders interested in improving their systems to meet the needs of women and families.

• Journal Article: Transportation and Quality-of-Life Effects of Los Angeles's Mobility Wallet Program

  The L.A. Mobility Wallet pilot shows that flexible transportation subsidies improve low-income residents' travel frequency, independence, and overall wellbeing.

• Brief: Mobility Wallets Expand Opportunity and Quality of Life for Low-Income Travelers

  High transportation costs burden low-income households, and while public transit discounts help, a lack of affordable options or cars limits employment, well-being, and opportunities.

1. 1Lewis Home - UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studieslewis.ucla.edu
2. 2History - UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studieslewis.ucla.edu
3. 3About the Lewis Center - UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studieslewis.ucla.edu
4. 4UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies - Wikidatawikidata.org