In Brief

State Delivers $3 Million for Ag Technology Center at UC Merced

August 29, 2025

Photo depicts hay and a tractor at UC Merced's Experimental Smart Farm.

UC Merced’s smart farm is getting a smart barn. The university will receive $3 million from the state of California, part of $80 million in funding to support 11 projects across California announced Friday by Gov. Gavin Newsom and the California Jobs First Council. The money will go to...

A woman in pink scarf and dark jacket stands in front of a table covered with posters and car prototypes.

Qattawi Named Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineer

The Society of Manufacturing Engineers (SME) named Professor Ala Qattawi one of this year’s Outstanding Young Manufacturing Engineers. “I am honored to receive this award,”...

Bobcats Can Catch Some Bass

A pair of UC Merced students showed off their bass-fishing skills by winning a Fishing League Worldwide event last weekend, earning themselves a spot in next year’s finals. Herbie LeBlanc of...

Man and woman kneel in grassy field with others in the background.

Calling All Citizen Scientists!

Local community members are invited to serve as citizen scientists at UC Merced’s next CALeDNA BioBlitz, scheduled for Sunday, May 20, from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Merced Vernal Pools and...

Engineering Students Get an Inside Look at Wastewater Treatment

Three field trips this semester gave Professor Marc Beutel’s students an up-close understanding of biological wastewater processes used in treatment plants across the country. Most recently...

New Endowment Enhances Alumni Association’s Initiatives

Last month, the UC Merced Alumni Association (UCMAA) established the UC Merced Alumni Association Journey Endowment with $25,000 it collected through fundraising efforts to support initiatives...

DCC Building Wins Blueprint Award for “Smart Growth”

UC Merced built its Downtown Campus Center (DCC) for two big reasons: to bring together the off-campus administrative staff and departments that were previously scattered across multiple locations...

Children Save the World’s Books in Upcoming Opera Performance

UC Merced Arts Presents welcomes everyone to the annual Children's Opera. This year's production is entitled “The Last Book on Earth.” Three young friends, Luna, Izzy and Finn...

Prestigious University Press Signs Professor as Book Series Editor

Interdisciplinary Humanities Professor Arturo Arias was recently selected to edit a series of indigenous-studies books for the State University of New York (SUNY) Press. That makes him the first...

Beattie and Graduate Student Awarded Research Grant to Study Teacher Retention

Professor Irenee Beattie and graduate student Melissa Quesada have been awarded a $40,000 research grant from the California Teacher Education and Research Improvement Network (CTERIN) to study the...