Chancellor

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Former LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to Speak at UC Merced

Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa will give a speech on the future of civic engagement as part of UC Merced interim Chancellor Nathan Brostrom’s speaker series.

Villaraigosa was the first Mexican American in more than 130 years to serve as mayor of Los Angeles. Formerly speaker of the California State Assembly, he advocated for working families, the environment, health care and funding for public schools. Villaraigosa has also been featured in Time magazine as one of the country’s 25 most influential Latinos.

Moneyball Author and Master Storyteller Entertains UC Merced Crowd

Before a packed crowd at the Dr. Lakireddy Auditorium, bestselling author Michael Lewis conversed with interim Chancellor Nathan Brostrom about the future of financial markets, the Oakland A’s, college athletics and the housing bubble, in the Jan. 31 installment of the Chancellor’s Speaker Series.

UC Merced Celebrates Newest Fall Graduates

Nearly 200 students took part in the campus’s Fall Commencement exercise Sunday at the Joseph Edward Gallo Recreation and Wellness Center as friends and family cheered them on.

Jessica Anderson ’10 served as the commencement speaker, continuing the tradition of having alumni speak at fall commencement. Shavone Charles ’12 and David Do ’09 were the speakers at the previous two fall commencement ceremonies.

Anderson encouraged students to discover what they are passionate about and to take their pioneering spirit with them as they enter the workforce.

UC Merced Rings in Holiday Season with Beginnings Lighting, Food Drive

UC Merced’s iconic Beginnings sculpture represents arms reaching out to embrace students as they embark on a higher education journey filled with wonder, excitement and joy.

Those same feelings embody the holiday season, and students, faculty and staff gathered last week for the ceremonial lighting of the sculpture. The annual tradition, now in its third year, helps ring in the holiday season with cookies and hot chocolate and a DJ playing popular holiday tunes.

Students Push ‘Give Tue UC Merced’ to Record Number of Donors

Goal achieved! UC Merced supporters turned out in force on Giving Tuesday with a record number of donors contributing to campus scholarships and fellowships.

More than 1,300 individuals donated during the 24-hour Give Tue UC Merced campaign on Dec. 3, surpassing the event’s goal of 1,000 donors.

UC Merced Aims to Draw 1,000 Donors in a Day with ‘Give Tue UC Merced’ Campaign

Jose Nava-Mejia hopes to work in renewable energy after he graduates from UC Merced. That means every moment spent on his environmental energy courses is a moment invested in the planet’s future.

Kelsey Duggin hopes to use her microbiology and immunology studies to become a virologist and work with stem cells. Vania Huaranga plans to become a neuropsychologist.

The three are among the scores of UC Merced undergraduates whose studies are backed by the Build the Future Scholarship Fund, which is supported by donations collected during Give Tue UC Merced.

Chancellor Brostrom Welcomes Maria Echaveste for Conversation on Democracy

At a time of dramatic political division in our society, the role of universities — as places where people can connect with others and explore ideas — is more important than ever, according to Maria Echaveste, the featured guest for a conversation with interim Chancellor Nathan Brostrom.

Brostrom welcomed the former senior White House official before a capacity crowd of campus and community members at the UC Merced Arts & Computational Sciences Building on Nov. 5.

Brostrom Delivers Annual University Address, Welcomes New Trustees

The UC Merced Foundation Board of Trustees welcomed six new members, and an alumni representative, on Wednesday during their fall meeting on campus.

The Foundation welcomed:

Maria Echaveste, Former Senior White House Official, Set to Visit UC Merced

American democracy is an evolving force, one on the edge of peril, and the future of our government depends on how — and whether — individual Americans choose to be part of it, says Maria Echaveste, a distinguished public policy advocate and former senior White House official.

“The Future of American Democracy” is the theme of a conversation set for Tuesday, Nov. 5, at 7 p.m. when UC Merced Chancellor Nathan Brostrom welcomes Echaveste to the campus.

Legacy Builders - An Oral History about the Class of 2009

The Class of 2009 were pioneers of the Bobcat spirit, overcoming obstacles and defying the odds. Ten years later, we look back at UC Merced’s formative beginnings from the perspectives of those who lived the journey. 

Click the link below to read the story.