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New Academic Year Brings New Faces, Opportunities

August 23, 2017
More than 2,200 students — many entering their first year at UC Merced — arrived last weekend in cars, trucks and minivans packed to the gills with living essentials from clothing and toiletries to laptops and microwaves. Move-in weekend is always a bustling time on campus as parents, families and...

Critical Race and Ethnic Studies is Campus’s Newest Major

August 18, 2017
Starting this semester, students in the School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts (SSHA) will have a new major option: Critical Race and Ethnic Studies (CRES). Led by professors Ma Vang and Kit Myers, the new major dovetails with UC Merced’s emphasis on inequality, power and social justice....

Professors Demystify Eclipse for Merced Skygazers

August 17, 2017
As the frenzy surrounding the Aug. 21 solar eclipse begins to peak, physics Professor Wil van Breugel is using the opportunity to give Merced stargazers a crash course in the science and history of these astronomical curiosities. “It’s important for people to fully appreciate the science,” van...

Political Scientists, Students to Examine United Nations’ Inner Workings

August 16, 2017
Considering that the United States spends about $3.3 billion on United Nations-related activity each year, including peacekeeping — and President Donald Trump has proposed a 40 percent cut in that spending — this seems like a good time for U.S. policy makers to have a clear understanding of how the...

Genetic Diversity in High Schools a Predictor of Economic Success

August 8, 2017
Does diversity have a positive effect on economic outcomes? According to a new study co-authored by UC Merced economics Professor Justin Cook, the answer is yes, even when the diversity is imperceptible to the casual observer. Cook and his former postdoctoral advisor, Professor Jason Fletcher of...

Campus Welcomes New Dean of Natural Sciences

August 1, 2017
Elizabeth (Betsy) Dumont joins UC Merced today as the newest dean of the School of Natural Sciences. She’s the third dean in the school’s history and the second woman to serve in this capacity, after Founding Dean Maria Pallavicini. Dumont arrives from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst,...

Campus Welcomes New Dean of Natural Sciences

August 1, 2017
Elizabeth (Betsy) Dumont joins UC Merced today as the newest dean of the School of Natural Sciences. She’s the third dean in the school’s history and the second woman to serve in this capacity, after Founding Dean Maria Pallavicini. Dumont arrives from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst,...

Pioneering Alumna Embraces Career in Immigration Law

July 27, 2017
UC Merced alumna Linda Barreto always wanted to become a lawyer, but an experience in college helped reinforce her career path. While driving, Barreto was pulled over and cited for failing to stop before making a left turn. She decided to fight the citation in court because there was no requirement...

Summer STEM Academy Aims to Prepare Valley Students for College

July 24, 2017
The leap from high school to college is an enormous intellectual hurdle. But UC Merced engineering Professor Yanbao Ma wants to ease the transition by better preparing Central Valley students for the rigors of university-level coursework. That’s why he teamed up with CalTeach to launch the Bobcat...

Study: Distracted Voters More Likely to Vote for White Candidates

July 19, 2017
Distracted or mentally taxed voters across America are less likely to vote for candidates of color, a new paper indicates. Through a series of mock election experiments, UC Merced Professor Jessica Trounstine, graduate student Kau Vue and two colleagues demonstrate that voters often rely on racial...

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