UC Merced chancellor optimistic about next decade
UC Merced entered its second decade of instruction Wednesday, when classes started for an estimated 6,600 students.
The university released a statement the same day from Chancellor Dorothy Leland, who touched on the campus’s plans for expansion despite hurdles.
Enrollment is not official until the fall census next month, but the university expects to top its enrollment record from last year of 6,268. Also on the horizon are plans for a $1 billion expansion.
Despite unprecedented challenges, we’ve put down strong roots, built the most environmentally sustainable campus in the country and worked diligently to bring the many benefits of a major research university to the San Joaquin Valley and beyond.
UC Merced Chancellor Dorothy Leland
A sluggish state economy, deep cuts in education funding and political upheaval in Sacramento have been difficult on the school.
“There’s a spirit to this campus and the people who brought it to life that really wants to succeed,” Leland said in the statement. “Despite unprecedented challenges, we’ve put down strong roots, built the most environmentally sustainable campus in the country and worked diligently to bring the many benefits of a major research university to the San Joaquin Valley and beyond.”
Leland pointed to the $1.3 billion the university says it has put into regional economic investment to date. She also noted thousands of new jobs brought by the university, research expenditures in excess of $180 million, a doubling in applications to the UC system from Valley students and more than 4,000 new graduates.
“We’re energized every day by the mounting evidence that our mission here in the Valley is making a positive difference,” Leland said.
UC Merced faculty and student researchers have also worked to address the region’s chronic health, environmental, economic and cultural challenges.
In November, the campus received a record number of applications for admission, up 14 percent from the previous year, but was forced to limit admissions because of ongoing space constraints.
The campus has proposed to the UC Board of Regents a major expansion plan that would add nearly 1 million square feet during the next five years. The plan, the university has said, would create 10,800 construction jobs and generate an estimated $1.9 billion in direct or indirect economic investment in the region.
If the plan is approved as proposed, construction could begin as early as the second half of 2016, with the first new facilities completed in 2018. The university is also adding facilities in downtown Merced, primarily to house administrative staff.
UC Merced officials said they hope the next 10 years are much more predictable and stable than the first 10, but they’re not taking anything for granted.
“We’re not about to relax,” Leland said. “It’s not in our DNA.”
This story was originally published August 26, 2015 at 4:07 PM with the headline "UC Merced chancellor optimistic about next decade."