Staff & Faculty News

For the First Time, All Avian Evolutionary Relationships Revealed Through Collaboration

April 29, 2025

Professor Emily Jane McTavish and colleagues at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology have mapped the evolution of every known bird species. They created a complete evolutionary tree of bird species by combining data on 9,239 species published in nearly 300 studies between 1990 and 2024 and...

School of Natural Sciences Dean Betsy Dumont

Campus Welcomes New Dean of Natural Sciences

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...

Ehsan Choudhry and Kristen Wanderlich pose seated at a conference table.

Liaisons Partner With Faculty to Offer Support and Solutions

When UC Merced faculty members participated in last year’s Visioning and Change Alignment Summits, many provided feedback that cited a critical need for staff support with a variety of...

'Kopi's Hometown Connections' Highlights Merced 2020 Project

Kopi's Hometown Connections, a popular series of features on KMPH Fox 26 in Fresno, recently visited Merced to highlight the city's many successes, including the rapid growth of its...

Biologists Attend Prestigious Summer Teaching Institutes

UC Merced Professor Marcos Garcia-Ojeda and lecturer Kamal Dulai have received Macmillan Travel Awards to learn how to bring more effective teaching into the STEM classroom. The $500 awards cover...

Researchers Eye Social Media’s Influence on Relationships, Stress

Nearly 70 percent of Americans use some form of social media, according to a Pew Research Center survey. There is little doubt it affects our daily lives — but how? UC Merced Ph.D. graduate Holly Rus...

University Librarian Haipeng Li stands next to book shelves in the UC Merced Library

Library Association Bestows Equality Award to Haipeng Li

UC Merced’s Haipeng Li received the American Library Association’s 2017 Equality Award during the organization’s annual conference held in Chicago in late June. The annual honor...

Human Resources Debuts New Employee Orientation Program

UC Merced’s newest employees experienced a different introduction to the campus when Human Resources launched its new experiential and participatory orientation program in June. As previously...

Prachumsri Named Men’s Volleyball Coach

UC Merced’s Athletics Department has hired women's volleyball coach and alumnus Surabordin “Ai” Prachumsri as the men's volleyball head coach. He will remain coach of the women’s team, as well. After...

Governor Names Harris to Fair Employment and Housing Council

Mark T. Harris, J.D., has been appointed to the California Fair Employment and Housing Council by Gov. Jerry Brown. Harris is a continuing lecturer of management and business economics at UC Merced...

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