TO MEMBERS OF THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON UC MERCED:

ITEM FOR DISCUSSION

For Meeting of July 16, 1998

STATUS REPORT ON PLANNING FOR UC MERCED

A status report on planning and programs for UC Merced will be made to the Special Committee approximately quarterly. This report summarizes significant developments that have occurred since The Regents visited Merced and the campus site on April 14-15. It will be augmented by an oral presentation by Carol Tomlinson-Keasey, Vice Provost for Academic Initiatives and Senior Associate to the President for UC Merced.

Academic Planning

1. Establishing a Distinctive Research Identity

UC Merced staff are capitalizing on existing UC networks and resources as a basis for establishing a strong research character that will serve as a magnet in attracting faculty to UC Merced. Multicampus Research Units (MRUs) and related research centers represent a key resource to accomplish this goal. The faculty members in these MRUs engage in interdisciplinary research; many of them focus on research issues that impinge on the San Joaquin Valley.

Sierra Nevada Resource Management. The first research initiative focuses on the Sierra Nevada and on natural resource science, management, and policy issues that arise from the interdependence of the Sierra and the San Joaquin Valley. Initial meetings to consider this issue included faculty and staff from the Institute for Transportation Studies, the Centers for Wildlands and Water Resources, the White Mountain Research Station, the Natural Reserve System, the Institute for Geophysics and Planetary Physics, and the National Center for Ecological Analysis and Synthesis.

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. A second potential UC resource is the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL). Conversations with LLNL staff have been initiated with a view toward establishing an association between LLNL and UC Merced in support of advanced science education and research. Areas under exploration include chemical and material sciences and technologies, energy, manufacturing and transportation technologies, mechanical and electronic engineering, environmental programs, remote sensing, physics and space technology, and biology and biotechnology.

Research Series. A third initiative to establish UC Merced's presence as a research resource will be a pilot outreach program to include speaker series, workshops, symposia, and other interactions designed to bring the results of research to Valley groups. Two MRUs will offer the first pilots. UC MEXUS will arrange faculty presentations on topics such as 'Agriculture and Change in Rural California," "The San Joaquin Valley's Mexican Sister Communities," and "Social Characteristics of the New Agricultural Economy." A UC Humanities Research Institute pilot will include faculty presentations targeted to K-12 teachers and administrators on "Cultures of the Americas" and to museum staff and visitors on 'Microcosms: Objects of Knowledge in Museums."

2. Assessing Needs of Prospective Students

UC Merced will serve students from the San Joaquin Valley, both commuters and residential students, as well as students from other parts of California. Especially at the graduate level, students will also come from around the country and the world. A Student Planning Advisory Committee, with representatives from existing campuses, has begun meeting to create an analytical basis for assessing prospective UC Merced students and their needs for housing, employment, recreation, and other services. Their deliberations are concentrated on issues that will affect the opening of the campus, but they are also presenting ideas that address longer term planning issues.

An important element of the Committee's work will be a series of focus group discussions this fall and winter with groups of students from the San Joaquin Valley, the Bay Area, northern California, and Los Angeles County. San Joaquin Valley parents will also be invited to participate in focus groups. In addition, the Committee is planning a teleconference series with experts on how students make choices about colleges and what current research tells us about effective student learning.

Academic Programs

The Office of UC Merced - Academic Programs has two major functions: (1) to consolidate into one location in Fresno many existing UC academic, research, and outreach programs and (2) to develop new academic programs throughout the region which lay the groundwork for UC Merced. The office is housed at the UC Center in Fresno.

1. Extension Courses and Certificate Programs

With the establishment of the new UC Center in Fresno, four campuses now offer extension courses and certificate programs in the San Joaquin Valley. These courses have been relatively well attended and, in some cases, have exceeded the enrollment level at their home campus.

2. Degree Programs

The Office of Academic Programs has worked closely with the other nine campuses in developing new distance degree programs in Fresno. Many new degree programs are in the discussion stages. Those that hold the most promise in the immediate future include a masters degree in computer science by UC Santa Barbara; a joint baccalaureate degree in environmental studies between UC Riverside and CSU Fresno; a joint doctorate in criminal justice between UC Davis and CSU Fresno; and a joint masters or doctoral degree in public health between UC campuses and CSU Fresno. Most of the instruction for these distance degree programs will be provided at the UC Center in Fresno.

3. Research Programs

In addition to collaborating on the research series described above, the Office of Academic Programs is supporting a pilot study this summer by the UC-CSU Research Consortium on Children of the Central Valley that profiles a variety of indicators of well-being for children of the region. The study will provide important information to the public and likely inspire a larger study funded by a private foundation.

4. K-12 Collaborative Programs

One important goal of the office is to help increase the number of students in the Valley who attend college. This goal is being addressed through several new initiatives in Fresno, Merced, and Bakersfield. For example, this fall new school partnerships are being established at Hoover High School (Fresno) and Parlier High School and their respective middle and elementary feeder schools. In addition, the Lawrence Hall of Science is establishing a new Great Explorations in Math and Science Program (GEMS) in Bakersfield. The program, which provides advanced science training to K-12 teachers, will complement an already successful GEMS Program at the UC Center in Fresno. Finally, the Office of Academic Programs is partnering with the Fresno Unified School District's Science Teacher Training Program to expand its unique training programs to teachers in Merced County and throughout the Valley.

5. Developing the UC Merced Educational Network

By 1999, physical facilities will be in place to provide extension and degree programs in Fresno (UC Center), Merced (Tri-College Cafe & at Merced College), and Modesto (Stanislaus Agricultural Center). State-of-the-art classroom space and videoconference equipment will be included. In Fresno and Merced, computer laboratories will enable UC to provide web-based instruction and advanced technology training. Additional centers in Bakersfield, Stockton, and Visalia are planned.

Physical Planning

Representatives of the six organizations involved in preparing a development concept for the 11,000-acre University Community have been meeting biweekly in Merced since late April. The organizations involved in this process are the University, the County of Merced, the Virginia Smith Trust, the Cyril Smith Trust, the City of Merced, and the Merced Irrigation District.

The first phase of the work program for this group includes developing a common vision for development and undertaking technical site studies to establish physical opportunities and constraints, These initial technical studies include wetlands and uplands biology, slopes and viewshed analysis, and hydrology and drainage studies. Various panels of experienced planners and developers are being assembled to brief the planning group on issues related to habitat conservation, urban planning and design, regional economic development, and large- scale land development. A major public event to solicit community input and ideas about development of the University Community will be held in Merced on September 12.

By late October, it is anticipated that two to three alternative concepts for development of the area will be formulated. These concepts will be evaluated based on criteria related to financial feasibility, infrastructure requirements, environmental issues, and alignment with objectives outlined in the vision for the new community. By early 1999, it is anticipated that the County will undertake a formal process to revise its General Plan to reflect the concept which is selected. At the same time, the University will initiate work on a Long Range Development Plan for UC Merced which also will be based on the principles previously developed as part of the concept for a new University Community.

Funding

1 . State Budget Support

An oral report on the status of state funding, for UC Merced in 1998-99 will be provided at today's meeting of this Special Committee. The State Budget for 1998-99 under consideration by the Legislature at the time of this writing includes a total $9.9 million in permanent operating budget support for UC Merced, which is an increase of $5 million over the level of funding provided in 1997-98. These funds will be used to support the various academic and physical planning activities underway, as well as significant efforts to develop UC degree programs in the San Joaquin Valley prior to the time that the Merced campus is targeted to open in 2005. This funding also supports collaborative efforts with K-12 districts to improved student eligibility for UC, expansion of K-12 teacher training.

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