Events

“Raise your hands if you want to know a secret,” acclaimed author and cartoonist Jorge Cham instructed a crowd of young children. Hundreds of tiny arms shot up in unison toward the cafeteria ceiling.

“Butterflies drink with a straw,” he said. Bustling with excitement, the students expressed their astonishment with “oohs” and “wows.”

Earlier this month, Ambarish Varadan competed in UC Merced’s Grad Slam finals and seized the title of Campus Champion.

This was the second time the Quantitative and Systems Biology (QSB) Ph.D. candidate from Fremont vied for the top prize. Last year, he placed second among the top 10 contenders.

UC Merced Foundation Board Trustee Robert Bernstein, M.D., and his wife, Diplomat Jane Binger, Ed.D., have made generous donations to support Grad Slam.

A tree planting ceremony was held on campus to commemorate Arbor Day 2024. Various campus groups planted and dedicated 14 trees, each type representing a different tenet of the university. Volunteers planted olive trees to symbolize peace and hope, red maple trees to symbolize vibrancy and endurance and oak trees to symbolize strength and resilience.

The campus and community are invited to participate in this year’s Pride Week at UC Merced, taking place April 8-12. Lambda Alliance (LAMBDA) is spearheading efforts once again in collaboration with other campus units, offices and departments. A variety of events are planned all week long to celebrate LGBTQ+ identity and culture and highlight campus and community resources.

Who will UC Merced’s Grad Slam champion be?

Cheer on the finalists on April 8 and find out.

Graduate students from UC Merced’s three schools will take the stage to compete in the Graduate Division’s 10th Grad Slam finals.

UC Merced invites all Bobcats to give back to the university and campus community by participating in numerous events planned throughout March as part of the third annual Student Philanthropy Month.

The monthlong initiative, hosted by the Office of Alumni Relations and Student Alumni Association (SAA), is dedicated to building a culture of philanthropy and awareness at the university.

What does the greater Merced community need to know about climate change? How might the Central Valley play a significant role in discussions and solutions about carbon dioxide removal? What new projects are on the horizon, and can they bring economic and community benefits to the region?

A new art exhibition curated by Professor ShiPu Wang is reintroducing the diverse art of three California painters to a national audience by bringing representative works from each together for the first time.

“Pictures of Belonging: Miki Hayakawa, Hisako Hibi, and Miné Okubo” will travel to five museums across the country, including a nine-month display at the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

Hundreds of UC Merced supporters made it crystal clear they believe in the university's mission, giving a record-breaking amount to support current Bobcats and other members of the campus community, through scholarships and fellowships, research projects and more.

A total of 692 gifts were made during the campus's annual monthlong fundraising campaign, Give to UC Merced, which amounted to nearly $1.3 million in vital funding for the university.

The year just ending has been one for the college sports record books and many kudos are due to the Bobcat athletes and their coaches.

UC Merced men’s and women’s outdoor track swept the California Pacific (Cal Pac) Conference Championships in their inaugural seasons. Women’s soccer beat 14^th-ranked Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in the Cal Pac Tournament Championship game and got to hoist their first trophy in front of Bobcat Nation on Bobcat Field.