Academics

Fidel Cervantes found the right fit for his university education 25 miles down the road from home.

A native of Delhi in north Merced County, Cervantes selected UC Merced when he made his college choice two years ago.

http://youtu.be/AVZS22SFLVgGraduate student Alexandra Paxton finds opinionated students, puts them in a room together and tells them to argue about a hot-button issue.

Then she records what happens.

Paxton, who is earning her doctoral degree in cognitive science, studies interpersonal synchrony — the phenomenon of how people in a conversation subconsciously synchronize their movements, such as nodding or gesturing. Specifically, she is seeking to understand what happens to that synchrony when people are at odds.

Grecia Sanchez and Blaine Hartsock know they’re more than lucky. Out of dozens of UC Merced seniors, they were chosen to speak and sing, respectively, at the 2012 Commencement ceremony.

When Alma Fausto first arrived at UC Merced in 2008, she felt pangs of doubt common to many freshmen.

Like many others, 38-year-old Micah Chandler of Merced found himself laid off and without options after the economy nosedived in 2007.

When he couldn't find work, Chandler's wife suggested he consider returning to school. He decided to base a new goal on his lifelong love for history and mythology.

http://youtu.be/_iifXSVv_kY

More than two dozen students are stretching their imagination and building entrepreneurial skills in the first-ever Mobile App Challenge at UC Merced.

Representing each of the university’s three schools, 28 students in seven teams are developing innovative and custom “apps,” or applications, for wireless devices. Most teams are tackling students’ real-life problems, such as tracking bus schedules or getting an early crack at classes during registration.

More than two dozen executives from around the world who are responsible for conservation of some of the most treasured places on earth are coming to California for help in making sure there’s a future for national parks.

The University of California, Merced, has announced a $33,000 donation from Citi to support its Center for Educational Partnership's Parent Empowerment Program — $10,000 will fund the continued support of high schools in Madera and $23,000 will be used to start a new program in Stanislaus County at Grace Davis, Modesto and Turlock high schools.

Professor Ashlie Martini was looking for the chance to make a difference when she took a post at UC Merced.