UC Merced Faculty Offers Expert Commentary on Election Issues

The Nov. 4 General Election is just days away, and it seems everyone has an eye on the races.

“Elections aren’t just about politics,” says Teenie Matlock, an assistant professor of cognitive science at the university. “Elections have a lot to do with how people think and feel about the candidates and the world around them at the present time.”

In addition to Matlock’s perspective on how words and images in campaigns affect the minds of the masses, UC Merced has a handful of other elections experts available to the media. They are:

Tom Hansford (political science);
Shawn Kantor (economics);
Nathan Monroe (political science);
Stephen Nicholson (political science)

MEDIA CONTACT:
Tonya Luiz

From UC Merced to Dr. Phil: ChildHelp Earns National Exposure

This Friday's Dr. Phil show (7 p.m./KSEE 24) will feature the Childhelp National Child Abuse Hotline, the founders of which recently won UC Merced's Spendlove Prize in Social Justice, Diplomacy and Tolerance.

Susan Schmidt, the hotline's director, addresses questions on the show's topic “When Parenting Becomes Abuse," and offers discipline guidelines.

For more information on the show, visit the Dr. Phil Show Web site.

Media contact:
Brenda Ortiz

UC Merced Launches Performance Series With Gala Fundraiser

“Arts UC Merced Presents …,” the university’s first performance arts series, launches next week with its inaugural event, “Embrace the Arts.”

The fundraising gala will take place from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 23, at the University House, 2569 Remington Court, in Merced.

The gala will include a performance by the Student String Ensemble at UC Merced, in addition to a hors d’oeuvres reception. Peter Sellars, award-winning contemporary opera director, will lead the event and discuss the importance of the arts in fleshing out the educational experiences of college students.

Gala attendees will also be named founding sponsors of the performance series. Tickets to the event are $50; patrons may also choose to sponsor student tickets at $25 each.

For information: arts.ucmerced.edu or (209) 228-4566.

UC Merced Awards Prize in Social Justice, Diplomacy and Tolerance

Childhelp founders Sara O'Meara and Yvonne Fedderson were awarded UC Merced's Alice and Clifford Spendlove Prize for their lifelong commitment to helping children in need.

The award was established by Sherrie Spendlove in honor of her parents to recognize a scholar, author, artist, or citizen whose work exemplifies the delivery of social justice, diplomacy and tolerance in local and global society.

O'Meara and Fedderson will serve as role models for students, staff and faculty and the community surrounding UC Merced.

Previous award winners:

• Charles J. Ogletree Jr., Harvard University law professor
  
• John Y. Tateishi, an activist for civil rights

Read more.

Media Contact:
Brenda Ortiz
Office of Communications

Tip! Supes Candidates Debate Tonight at UC Merced

Candidates in the County Board of Supervisors race will participate in a debate on campus. Present at the debate will be District 2 candidates Jim Sanders and Hub Walsh. UC Merced is within the physical boundaries of District 2. Pizza will be served.
Time/place: 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 14, Bobcat Lair (Kolligian Library, Room 169)
Contact: Office of Government Relations, 209-228-4688

UC Merced Unveils New Athletics Logo

Commission Continues to Guide Creation of Intercollegiate Sports Program Proposal

UC Merced, is sporting a new look. Well, at least its athletics teams are. Campus officials today unveiled a brand-new athletics logo that marks a definite move toward competition-minded branding.

“In light of our initiative to create a divisional intercollegiate athletics program, we wanted a sportier image,” said David Dunham, director of recreation and athletics for UC Merced. “Our new Golden Bobcat is definitely leaner and meaner than his predecessor.”

UC Merced also invites the public to hear more about the process of creating a strategic athletics plan at tonight’s town hall meeting, which begins at 4:30 p.m. in the California Room.

Read more.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Tonya Luiz
Office of Communications

UC Merced is the place to be this coming week, with public events occurring on campus just about every day of the week. Stay tuned for details as they emerge, but here’s a brief rundown of each day’s events:

Monday – Economy Forum
UC Merced economist Katie Winder will lead a public forum on the causes behind the current financial crisis. Winder, with colleagues Shawn Kantor and Todd Neumann, will deliver an hour-long multimedia presentation of the credit crisis and how it occurred. Kantor and Neumann have both done research on the Great Depression; Kantor worked with Freddie Mac in the 1990s. There will be a 30-minute Q&A period after the presentation.
Time/place: 7 p.m., Classroom & Office Building, Room 105
Contact: Katie Winder, 209-228-6980, kwinder@ucmerced.edu

Tuesday – Athletics Presentation
On the heels of unveiling its brand-new athletics logo, the UC Merced Recreation and Athletics Department will host a town hall meeting. Consultants Cedric Dempsey and Ted Leland will discuss their role in helping the campus develop a strategic athletics plan.
Time/place: 4:30 p.m., Gallo Recreation and Wellness Center
Contact: David Dunham, ddunham@ucmerced.edu

Tuesday – Supes Debate
Candidates in the County Board of Supervisors race will participate in a debate on campus. Present at the debate will be District 2 candidates Jim Sanders and Hub Walsh. UC Merced is within the physical boundaries of District 2. Pizza will be served.
Time/place: 7 p.m., Bobcat Lair (Kolligian Library, Room 169)
Contact: Office of Government Relations, 209-228-4688

Wednesday – Presidential Debate
Rep. Dennis Cardoza and state Sen. Jeff Denham will discuss the current political climate in Sacramento and Washington D.C., in addition to the process of politics. Their talks will be followed by a viewing of the final presidential debate between Sen. John McCain and Sen. Barack Obama. Pizza will be served.
Time/place: California Room; Cardoza to speak at 5 p.m., Denham to speak at 5:30 p.m., presidential debate begins at 6 p.m.
Contact: Office of Government Relations, 209-228-4688

Friday through Sunday – Family Weekend
The UC Merced Office of Student Life will host the friends and families of students for a weekend of informational sessions and fun. Activities will be scheduled to suit all ages, and to show families what their students are up to at college. Tours and workshops will be offered throughout the weekend, in addition to other activities.
Time/place: Various campus locations
Contact: Enrique Guzman, eguzman@ucmerced.edu

Saturday – Preview Day
With the freshman application period for University of California campus just around the corner, UC Merced is opening its doors to prospective students. Preview Day is an open house geared toward high school juniors and seniors. The purpose of the event is to give potential students the chance to check out our campus before deciding whether to apply.
Time/place: Various campus locations
Contact: Office of Admissions, 209-228-4682 or admissions@ucmerced.edu

UC Merced Gets a Little Nobel Glow from Visiting Professor

Visiting Professor Mike Han has a long collaborative history with Nobel laureate physicist Yoichiro Nambu. So long, that Han is credited in the Nobel background materials – something in which he takes great pride.

Han, who is on the faculty at Duke University, is teaching two classes at UC Merced this semester.

Read more.

Contact: Ana Nelson Shaw, UC Merced Communications

Sensors Could Warn of Future Environmental Woes, UC Merced Prof Says

Imagine how our approach to a large-scale environmental problem like global climate change might be different today if a network of sensors had been in place for the last 50 years, providing coordinating data sets that clearly showed what was happening to the climate as we went along.

That’s the kind of solution now being explored for water quality and water ecosystems by an international team of researchers led by UC Merced’s Professor Tom Harmon.

Read more.

Contact: Ana Nelson Shaw, UC Merced Communications

Cutting-Edge Energy Program Entices UC Merced Alums to Stay Local

Pardon the pun, but when it comes to sustainable energy, UC Merced is a hotbed of research activity. That's why alumni Kevin Balkoski (2007) and Uday Bali (2008) decided to pursue their master's degrees here under the tutelage of Professor Roland Winston.

“I wanted to dive deeper into renewable energy, and at other schools I looked at, they kept telling me Winston was the best professor to have in the field,” Bali says.

Balkoski agrees. “It is quite amazing to be standing next to the man who basically invented the entire topic. I get to actually sit next to him while I figure out a problem, not just read about it in a book that references him.”

Read more.

Media Contact:
Tonya Luiz

Anthropology Professor Attracted to UC Merced's Collaborative Culture

Linda-Anne Rebhun joins the anthropology faculty at UC Merced this semester -- just in time to help shape the university's newest major. Formerly an assistant professor at Yale, Rebhun says she was attracted to UC Merced because it has the interdisciplinary culture she loves and gives her the opportunity to grow as an educator.

“A public university is a new experience with a different kind of student body,” Rebhun said in comparing UC Merced to Yale. “UC students are more interested in practical applications of learning.”

Read more.

Media Contact:
Tonya Luiz

Tip! Coming Soon: UC Merced to Unveil New Bobcat Logo

UC Merced’s Golden Bobcat is getting a makeover. The university will unveil a new look for its sports teams Oct. 14 – just in time for Family Weekend.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Tonya Luiz
tluiz@ucmerced.edu

Get a head start on applying to the University of California

The University of California's online application for next fall's undergraduate admission and scholarships is now open. Although the official filing period runs from Saturday, Nov. 1, through Sunday, Nov. 30, students interested in freshman and transfer admission to UC for the fall 2009 term can begin working on their applications today.

By logging on now, students can take a virtual tour of the application, familiarize themselves with the information they will need to provide and begin filling it out at their own pace. Prospective students can save their work and return to the application at a later time.

Given the number of students interested in the most selective UC campuses, and the intense competition for spots, UC urges applicants to choose their campuses carefully and to apply broadly both within the UC system and beyond. Applying to more than one campus will maximize a student's opportunity for admission to a campus of his/her choice.

It is extremely important that students file their applications by the Nov. 30 deadline, as most campuses will not accept additional applications after that date.

For more information:

http://admissions.ucmerced.edu
http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/admissions/undergrad_adm/apply/apply_online.html

UC Merced Enrollment Tops 2,700

UC Merced is thriving with more than 1,000 new students on campus this semester for a total fall enrollment of 2,718 (925 new freshmen, 139 new transfers and 66 new graduate students). That’s a 45 percent increase over last year.

More than 30 percent of the new freshman class hails from the Bay Area, close to 30 percent from the San Joaquin Valley and 19 percent from the Los Angeles area – a sure sign that word of the campus’ unique culture and community is spreading, officials say.

Read more.

MEDIA CONTACT:
Tonya Luiz