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.
A joyous throng of 776 degree candidates of the University of California, Merced, today marched through the Beginnings Sculpture and onto the campus' South Bowl to receive their prized degrees, marking the culmination of the newest UC’s seventh academic year.
UC Merced celebrated its largest graduating class — 81 percent larger than last year’s graduating class of 428 — with some 7,000 family members and friends present. The total number of UC Merced students with degrees is just above 2,000.
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.
UC Merced sits in an ideal spot for students, faculty and staff who want to engage in an active, outdoor lifestyle.
UC Merced senior Jesse Anaya answered his phone one day to hear an unfamiliar voice ask, “Are you ready to change the world?”
“Yes,” he replied. “Now, who is this?”
After two months on the job, UC Merced’s first full-time medical director has already entrenched himself in campus life and understanding student needs.
Dr. Brandon Boggs, a Merced native, has practiced emergency medicine for the past 10 years, including seven as medical director for an emergency department in Oakdale. Early in his career he worked as a family practitioner in private practice with a cardiologist and pulmonologist, and served as medical director of large nursing and rehabilitation center.
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.
UC Merced was awarded the Allied Professional Award from the Congressional Victims' Rights Caucus this month at the group's annual ceremony in Washington, D.C.
UC Merced’s Formula SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) team built its first racecar and exhibited it at a national competition last June.
