Outreach

Fred and Mitzie Ruiz, longtime UC Merced donors and two of the university’s most active and earliest supporters, have made a significant gift to name the campus’ administration building and enrollment center.

In honor of their philanthropic leadership, the facility will be named the Fred and Mitzie Ruiz Administration Center. As a hub of campus business and activities, the Ruiz Administration Center will help establish a lasting legacy that embodies its namesakes’ dedication to both UC Merced and the San Joaquin Valley.

This week, UC Merced welcomed the community to campus as it hosted a debate between candidates for the State Assembly District 27 seat Esmeralda Soria (D) and Mark Pazin (R). The newly established seat represents Merced, Madera and Fresno counties. Soria is currently a Fresno City Council member, and Pazin is a former Merced County sheriff.

The debate was moderated by Mark Keppler with The Maddy Institute. Chancellor Juan Sánchez Muñoz opened Monday’s ceremony with welcoming remarks.

The debate can be watched in its entirety below.

A five-year grant totaling more than $1.4 million awarded by the U.S.

This past weekend was a time of festivities for the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE) chapter at UC Merced as members celebrated their 10th anniversary as part of the Bobcat community.

UC Merced’s battle against climate change is traveling south of the border as campus leaders joined UC Alianza MX to help launch a strategic alliance between the UC system and counterparts in Mexico.

A special recognition over a decade in the making was celebrated this month as His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama was awarded the Alice and Clifford Spendlove Prize in Social Justice, Diplomacy and Tolerance. In his message upon accepting the prize, he stressed the importance of peace and working together to survive in this world.

With the flourish of a pen on Tuesday (Sept. 27), students in the Modesto area gained an expedited pathway to become future Bobcats at the University of California, Merced.

UC Merced Chancellor Juan Sánchez Muñoz, Modesto City Schools (MCS) Superintendent Sara Noguchi and other educational partners participated in a signing ceremony to bring the Merced Automatic Admission Program (MAAP) to the school district.

His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama has been awarded the Alice and Clifford Spendlove Prize in Social Justice, Diplomacy and Tolerance. A pre-recorded showing of the presentation on Monday, Sept. 26, will celebrate the 15th prize recipient.

The Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is a man of peace, the spiritual leader of the Tibetan people and one of the most recognizable faces of Buddhism. For decades, he has worked toward a free Tibet.

College Track recently held a retreat at UC Merced that brought almost 200 staff members from all over the country to the site to "reflect, renew and rise together."

To continue to execute and build a strong foundation for students of color to attend a four-year college, UC Merced held its first Black California Community Colleges CEO’s Retreat. The three-day event welcomed to the campus several Black community college leaders from around the state.