Events

When it functions correctly, inflammation protects the body from infection and injury. But when it becomes chronic, inflammation is linked to health problems such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer, arthritis and bowel diseases, including Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.

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.

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.

Editor's note: Since the launch of the "Boldy Forward" campaign in September, UC Merced has doubled the campaign’s fundraising goal from $100 million to $200 million, thanks in great part to the prolific support of campus donors including the recent donation made by Fred and Mitzie Ruiz. 

The new film by filmmaker Yehuda Sharim, "El Ojo Comienza En La Mano" ("The Eye Begins in the Hand"), features the life work of Central Valley artist and muralist Rubén A. Sánchez.

Sharim, a professor in the Global Arts Studies Program, will be in conversation with Sánchez in the coming months as a way to premiere the work where it originated and needs to be shown first: Merced and other nearby locations.

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."

The biannual School of Engineering showcase event, Innovate to Grow (I2G), continued in-person and virtually this spring. The event highlighted innovative engineering design projects that were developed by undergraduates in partnership with 36 industry and nonprofit clients.

The event began with a poster and prototype session that included 66 teams and 330 students showcasing their projects in the Joseph E. Gallo Recreation & Wellness Center.

For the first time, UC Merced has partnered with local higher education institutions for a two-day symposium dedicated to education research findings from the Central Valley.

A wave of blue and gold covered the recreation fields at UC Merced as more than 2,400 students walked the stage during the first in-person spring commencement in three years.

The three-day ceremony weekend started by welcoming back 1,000 alumni from the classes of 2020 and 2021 — who were previously honored with a virtual ceremony because of COVID-19.

In front of more than 1,400 fellow Bobcats, Cathryn Flores and Maya Morris, the student commencement speakers for the Class of 2022 will share their words of congratulations and encouragement with their fellow graduates.

Flores will speak to the graduates of the School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts (SSHA) at 10 a.m. on Saturday, May 14, at the university’s Recreation Field. The Fremont native is majoring in English and minoring in writing. She said her four years at UC Merced have molded her into the person she is today.