Campus to Mark Milestone with 10th Graduating Class

When students walk across the stage at this weekend’s commencement ceremonies at the University of California, Merced, they will join the nearly 4,000 scholars who have earned degrees from the university, while marking yet another campus milestone as the campus’s 10th graduating class.

“This is a momentous occasion for our campus and for the graduates who will celebrate their well-earned accomplishments in front of family, friends, faculty and staff,” Chancellor Dorothy Leland said. “We are extremely proud of the members of this graduating class, and they will always hold a special place in our history.”

A lot has changed in the past decade.

The campus’s first graduating class in 2006 numbered three, and this year’s numbers 1,116 — the largest to date. The campus is expected to confer 1,075 bachelor’s degrees, 15 master’s degrees and 26 doctoral degrees during two ceremonies. This year’s graduates hail from 43 counties in California, two other states and one other country (India). Students donning caps and gowns will range in age from 19 to 65 years old.

The first commencement ceremony in 2006 was held in the Dr. Lakireddy Auditorium, but that space quickly became too small. The following year’s ceremony was moved to the Carol Tomlinson-Keasey Quad, where 53 graduates were honored. Since 2009, commencement ceremonies have been held in the campus’s South Bowl area, which can accommodate the growing number of degree-earners and their guests.

Inspirational Messages for Graduates

Richard A. Tapia, a computational mathematics professor at Rice University in Houston, will speak to more than 300 undergraduate and graduate candidates from the School of Natural Sciences and nearly 200 from the School of Engineering during the May 16 ceremony.

Hatim Hanif, a biological sciences major from Manteca, will address his classmates at Saturday’s ceremony. While at UC Merced, Hanif was vice president and religious service coordinator for the Muslim Student Association.

Hanif served as a medical outreach assistant at Golden Valley Health Centers, where he assisted with a free medical clinic for the homeless, among other projects. He was also an emergency room scribe for Memorial Medical Center in Modesto. Hanif plans to use the knowledge and experience he gained while at UC Merced to attend medical school and become a surgeon. Ultimately, he wants to provide services for medically underserved communities around the world.

During the May 17 ceremony, former deputy director and acting director of the National Science Foundation Cora B. Marrett will address more than 600 undergraduate and graduate candidates from the School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts.

Student John Elias, a management and business economics major from Santa Rosa, will represent the class at Sunday’s ceremony. Elias was instrumental in forming a fraternity in which he held a leadership position and facilitated various community service events in the local community. He also held a leadership role in Chi Alpha, a Christian fellowship organization.

Elias plans to stay in the Central Valley after graduation and start a company in the food industry.

Two graduates will sing the national anthem: Karlyn Rahmgren, a computer science and engineering major from Pinole, at the Saturday ceremony; and Danielle Oceguera, a management major from Oakland, at the Sunday ceremony.

For information on commencement events, visit commencement.ucmerced.edu.

For information on other commencement celebrations and events taking place, visit http://commencement.campuscms.ucmerced.edu/graduation-events.