At a kickoff event for UC Merced’s first comprehensive fundraising campaign, the university announced that it has doubled the campaign’s fundraising goal from $100 million to $200 million by the year 2030.
During December, the Give to UC Merced 2020 initiative tripled the campus’s goal of raising $50,000. The final tally: $163,000 raised for a variety of campus initiatives and programs.
The fundraising initiative has traditionally been held on a single day, but in 2020 it was expanded to one month with an online focus and social media-driven effort because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Two female faculty members of UC Merced’s School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts (SSHA) have been named the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation chairs, making four prestigious chairs in the campus’ 15-year history.
Professors Nancy Burke and Whitney Pirtle have been recognized as the two newest MacArthur Foundation chairs for their work in public health and sociology, respectively.
Armando Quintero’s passion for water, conservation, nature and responsible stewardship has carried him through his life, from his days as a National Park ranger, artist, teacher and leader of natural history journeys to his executive director position with the Sierra Nevada Research Institute.
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.
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.
Karen Merritt came from a family without much money. Like nearly 90 percent of UC Merced’s students, financial aid made her college dreams a reality. However, she quickly learned the costs of higher education don’t end with tuition, room and board.
“There were occasions when I needed special help in buying books or taking an extra course I didn’t realize was necessary,” she recalls.
UC Merced 
The seventh annual Building Future Champions Dinner and Auct