Ricky Gill

Ricky Gill is a native of San Joaquin County, born and raised in Lodi, California. The son of immigrant parents, Ricky is a small business owner, a family farmer, and a former member of the California State Board of Education. From his early involvement with the agricultural side of his family business to his later role in ownership and management of a diverse enterprise that employs 60 people in the San Joaquin Valley, Ricky understands that small business is the engine of economic growth and job creation in this country. Ricky's business experience in the local agriculture industry and in beverage exports uniquely positions him to represent the 9th District on matters of trade and regulatory policy. In addition to his involvement with small business, Ricky has served as a policy consultant for Educational Testing Service (ETS) in Princeton, NJ, where he examined methods of boosting higher education degree attainment. He has worked in the front office of the Sacramento Kings, where he assessed talent in preparation for the annual NBA draft, and for the Oakland Athletics, where he closed litigation loopholes for the club. In 2004, Ricky earned an appointment to the California State Board of Education. He has worked for former U.S. Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-TN) and the Committee on Health, Education, Labor & Pensions, and has served as a math and literacy mentor at KIPP Bay Area charter schools. Ricky used his scholarship to enroll in Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, from which he graduated Phi Beta Kappa. Ricky later earned his Juris Doctor from Boalt Hall, the law school at the University of California, Berkeley.