Michelle Morgante

UC Merced students will be able to earn money for college by helping Merced County kids become strong readers thanks to a pilot grant from the AmeriCorps Service Fellowship program.

The grant, announced Monday and administered through California Volunteers, will give $3,000 to each of up to 24 students who provide 900 hours of literacy coaching as part of their 2020-21 academic curriculum.

Antonio Sanchez broke new ground for musical storytelling with his award-winning soundtrack for “Birdman.” He’s earned multiple Grammys for his work with guitar master Pat Metheny. Now, Sanchez, one of the most acclaimed drummers and composers in jazz today, is heading to Merced for a one-night performance.

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.

Emergencies can come in many forms, from a burst pipe that causes a flood, to a major earthquake, to a threat of violence. No matter its character, Laura Rodriguez-Mascorro will make sure the campus is ready.

Rodriguez-Mascorro joined UC Merced in September as the campus’ first emergency manager, bringing with her years of experience with the police department at CSU Stanislaus.

Rodriguez-Mascorro’s skills and knowledge made her the ideal person to fill the new role, said UC Merced Chief of Police Chou Her.

Jose Nava-Mejia hopes to work in renewable energy after he graduates from UC Merced. That means every moment spent on his environmental energy courses is a moment invested in the planet’s future.

Kelsey Duggin hopes to use her microbiology and immunology studies to become a virologist and work with stem cells. Vania Huaranga plans to become a neuropsychologist.

The three are among the scores of UC Merced undergraduates whose studies are backed by the Build the Future Scholarship Fund, which is supported by donations collected during Give Tue UC Merced.

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.

American democracy is an evolving force, one on the edge of peril, and the future of our government depends on how — and whether — individual Americans choose to be part of it, says Maria Echaveste, a distinguished public policy advocate and former senior White House official.

“The Future of American Democracy” is the theme of a conversation set for Tuesday, Nov. 5, at 7 p.m. when UC Merced Chancellor Nathan Brostrom welcomes Echaveste to the campus.

UC Merced has been named one of the best schools for environmental sustainability and quality of campus life, placing 20th on The Princeton Review’s list of top 50 “green colleges.”

As a child, Kevin Dawson traveled from California to visit his grandmother in Harlem, where he recalls playing in Jackie Robinson Park. Dawson, an avid swimmer and surfer, would peer through a fence with his cousins to check out the park’s large swimming pool.

“I remember thinking how fun it’d be to go in the pool. But there was never any water,” he said. “It was a disadvantaged and underfunded community.”