Governor Names Nies to California Student Aid Commission

UC Merced’s Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Charles Nies has been appointed to the California Student Aid Commission by Gov. Jerry Brown. The commission is tasked with making education beyond high school financially accessible to all Californians.

“It’s an honor to be appointed to this important commission to further increase and enhance student access to financial support in California,” Nies said. “Financial aid is a critical factor for many students to successfully accomplish their academic, career and personal goals.”

Nies leads the campus’s K-12 outreach programs, enrollment services, student support services, and co-curricular opportunities and student involvement.

While Nies has worked in higher education for more than 25 years, he attributes his deepened commitment to the campus’s equity and access mission and its focus on student success to his own experiences as a first-generation college student.

Nies serves as the chair of the University of California’s Education Financing Model committee, which has a similar charge to increase college access for California students.

“I’ve already seen the crossover of work I’m doing on the EFM and the commission,” he said. “We are working together to find ways to share information among different education segments to support students and increase access to financial aid.”

Golf Tournament to Raise Funds for UC Merced Athletes

The 21st annual Ma Kelley Memorial Golf Tournament will be held April 13 at the Turlock Golf and Country Club. Proceeds benefit UC Merced student athletes.

Tickets for the 18-hole tournament are $150 for an individual or $600 for a team of four. The fee includes the cart, green fee, range balls and lunch. Registration and breakfast begin at 9 a.m. and tee off is at 10 a.m.

The Building Future Champions Dinner and Auction begins at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 12. Tickets to the dinner are $75 per person and include a reception, auction and a speech by World Series winner Dusty Baker. The 14th winningest manager in MLB history, Baker was skipper for four organizations, including the San Francisco Giants (1993-2002), the Chicago Cubs (2003-2006), the Cincinnati Reds (2008-2013) and the Washington Nationals (2016-2017).

Since 2005, the generosity of attendees and supporters has directed more than $426,000 to UC Merced Athletics.

Both events are open to the public.

For more information on the event or sponsorship opportunities, contact Chris Luna at specialevents@ucmerced.edu or visit http://bit.ly/2pMFyGI.

Stand Up, Speak Out Against Sexual Assault, Sexual Violence

April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and UC Merced is hosting a series of events to provide campus community members opportunities to increase awareness and advocate for sexual assault prevention and intervention programing.

A highlight of this month’s activities is the return of “The Vagina Monologues,” a series of monologues and pieces adapted from interviews with women addressing issues of womanhood, sexuality and strength, and ending violence against women. UC Merced undergraduate and graduate students are the cast and crew.

The production is hosted by the student group VOICES, and is sponsored by the Campus Advocacy Resources and Education (CARE) Office, Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on the Status of Women, the Center for the Humanities and Women’s Programs in the Office of Student Life.

Showings are at 7 p.m. April 13 and 15 and 5 p.m. April 22 in the Lakireddy Auditorium. Tickets cost $5 and proceeds benefit Valley Crisis Center, which provides support for those affected by sexual assault, domestic violence and stalking in Merced County.

For information on SAAM events, email Taylor Fugere via the CARE Office email UCMCARE@ucmerced.edu or call 209-228-4147.

This story was originally published April 1, 2018 at 1:10 PM with the headline "Governor Names Nies to California Student Aid Commission."