Dear Campus Community,
In November, Provost Dumont and Vice Chancellor and Chief Financial Officer Schnier shared our Financial Stabilization Plan, a multi-year effort designed to address a persistent deficit while ensuring UC Merced remains a thriving, student-centered R1 research university. That plan reflects our shared responsibility to align resources with long-term institutional priorities while continuing to strengthen our academic and research mission.
Soon after, UC Merced received an extraordinarily generous and historic $38 million gift from MacKenzie Scott—the largest in campus history. While this gift does not replace the financial stabilization efforts already underway, it allows us to make meaningful one-time investments that help maintain our campus momentum, support our people, and help soften the impact of necessary budget adjustments.
I am allocating more than 25% of the gift—over $10 million—through one-time investments shaped by extensive consultation with faculty, staff, and campus leadership. Key allocations include:
- Academic Schools: $3.6 million total to support teaching and research across the Schools of Engineering; Natural Sciences; and Social Sciences, Humanities, and Arts.
- Research Excellence: $3.55 million for seed grants, equipment, strategic research investments, and the creation of a new research endowment.
- Staff Development: $500,000 over five years to support staff training and professional development.
- Enrollment and Scholarships: $500,000 to support student scholarships and enrollment growth.
- Provost Strategic Investments: $1 million for one-time priorities in support of student success and academic excellence.
- Graduate Student Support: Endowment earnings (approximately $2 million) to support graduate students and relieve pressure on the TAS budget.
- Medical Education Building: $2.5 million to help complete and fully finance the facility that anchors UC Merced’s medical education plans.
- Campus Community Initiatives: $150,000 for small grants that strengthen campus belonging and shared purpose.
These one-time allocations represent an important bridge that helps ease the transition as we continue implementing long-term structural solutions to stabilize our finances and make progress toward agreed-upon goals with the UC Office of the President, including growth in research activity, student success, and instructional productivity.
I remain deeply grateful for the dedication, creativity, and resilience demonstrated by our faculty, staff, and students. This extraordinary philanthropic support reflects strong confidence in UC Merced’s future and in the remarkable work happening across our campus every day.
Together, we will continue building a university that expands opportunity, advances research excellence, and serves as a powerful catalyst for prosperity throughout the San Joaquin Valley and beyond.
Fiat Lux,
Juan Sánchez Muñoz
Chancellor
