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Remarks and Writings

Visioning Summit

February 12, 2016
Dear colleagues:   Since its founding, UC Merced has been constantly evolving.   Yet for many, the pace of change in recent years feels particularly accelerated. From Strategic Academic Focusing and the planned physical build-out by 2020 (including the new Downtown Center by 2017) to performance management and other process... Read More

LAO report on 2020 Project

February 11, 2016
Dear colleagues,   You may have heard about a report issued yesterday by the state’s Legislative Analyst’s Office that raises some questions about our 2020 Project and other University of California matters.   Among other things, the report calls for a legislative hearing on the project and raises a number of concerns... Read More

Our Commitments to Free Inquiry and Debate

January 19, 2016
Dear members of the campus community,   As your Chancellor and Provost, we are proud of the culture of tolerance and respect that defines UC Merced. We are equally proud to be part of a university culture committed to fostering an academic environment where the search for truth and knowledge can occur without fear of retribution.... Read More

A message from Chancellor Leland

December 14, 2015
Dear colleagues,   As we head into the holiday season and winter break, I want to extend my deepest appreciation for your continued dedication to UC Merced.   This year, we continued to make a difference in students' lives, breakthroughs in our research and connections in our communities. We welcomed newcomers and said good-... Read More

Video message: Historic campus milestone

November 19, 2015
Dear students, faculty and staff: I invite you to watch my video message to campus about today’s historic development in our campus history: the UC Board of Regents’ approval of all essential provisions of the 2020 Project. As described in my email message this morning, we can now move forward in reaching our goal to double... Read More

Regents' action today on 2020 Project

November 18, 2015
Dear students, faculty and staff: I am very pleased to report major progress in our efforts to secure approval from the UC Board of Regents for the 2020 Project, our proposal to double the size of campus facilities by 2020. Today, two key committees of the board provided preliminary approval of all essential provisions of our proposal,... Read More

An update from Chancellor Leland

November 10, 2015
Dear Campus Community/UC Merced families, I am writing to share the latest developments in the investigation that were released today by the FBI and the steps that our community is taking to recover and heal. Our campus responded to the events of last week with compassion, concern and respect for everyone in this wonderfully diverse... Read More

A message from Chancellor Leland

November 7, 2015
Dear campus community:   Yesterday, I sent out the message reminding members of our campus community that resources are available to help students, staff and faculty cope with recent events on campus. Throughout the weekend, counselors continue to be available for all campus community members in need of extra support. We have group and... Read More

Our Campus Community

November 6, 2015
Dear students, faculty and staff, As many of you now know, additional information emerged last night from the Merced County Sheriff’s Office that suggests possible motivations for the tragic events that rattled our campus on Wednesday. This includes information about particular students being targeted by the suspect and details about... Read More

An update from Chancellor Leland, Additional information on support and tonight's vigil

November 6, 2015
Dear campus community:   I know many of you are back on campus today, or will be soon.  I want to make sure you know you are not alone.  Our entire campus community has been shaken by the events of this week. Please know that we have counselors available for all campus community members in need of extra support at this time. We... Read More

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