UC Merced UC Merced’s construction will start next year
on the Virginia Smith Trust lands. The rest of the land entrusted
will be a nature preserve.
By Shauna Mecartea
Daily Bruin Reporter
UC Merced, expected to be in full operation in 2004, will offer
San Joaquin Valley students access to general education courses
this summer for UC credit at UC Merced Centers.
The newest UC campus will offer courses via videoconferencing as
well as through other traditional mediums.
Three centers are currently open in Fresno, Merced and
Bakersfield, and an additional one is slated to open in Modesto
this year.
“These summer session courses contribute to UC
Merced’s special mission to serve the growing population of
the San Joaquin Valley,” said UC Merced assistant director of
academic programs Claudia Martinez in a statement.
The average rate of San Joaquin Valley students attending UC
campuses is less than half the rate of other areas in California,
said Sheryl Wyan, a UC Merced spokeswoman.
“Our goal is to get San Joaquin Valley students exposed to
the UC system,” Wyan said.
The centers serve the educational needs of the Valley residents
while UC Merced is preparing to open.
Graduating high school seniors and juniors are eligible for
enrollment with a transcript and recommendation from their
principal.
Other residents age 18 and over are qualified to register for
the summer classes.
Developmental psychology, general biology, principles of
economics, as well as a sociology class titled “Race
Relations,” taught by UCLA Professor Jerome Rabow, are four
of the 10 courses available this summer.
UC Merced will utilize an array of technologies to further the
educational experience.
“We will leverage technology to provide a unique way to
deliver coursework,” said James Grant, UC Merced director of
communications.
While the majority of the classes will be taught in the
traditional lecture style, biology, economics and nutrition courses
will be taught via two-way live videoconferencing.
This means a professor can lecture at UCLA while simultaneously
instructing students on other campuses.
“An interactive learning experience will be accomplished
at a distance,” Grant said.
Students at both sites will be able to listen and interact with
the professor.
Grant said because UC Merced is the first American research
university built in the 21st century, the campus can implement the
technologies of the age during its construction.
For example, heating and cooling systems that save electricity
and energy will be installed in campus facilities.
Representatives at Merced High School express excitement for the
upcoming university and say that some high school students who
qualify plan to partake in the sessions starting this summer.
The first UC Merced summer session begins June 25 with a
registration deadline of June 22. Summer session two begins August
6 with a registration deadline of August 3.
For more information on admissions and registration visit the
campus Web site at www.ucmerced.edu.