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Signature Initiatives

Campus Experience Survey Workgroup (CESW)

Consistent with UC Merced’s Principles of Community, we seek to cultivate a campus climate that affirms the dignity and value of members of the UC Merced community and that is rooted in mutual respect and compassion. One way to examine our progress toward this goal is by consistently and strategically administering campus climate/experience surveys to understand the experience of learning and working at UC Merced. To that end, the Campus Experience Survey Workgroup has been charged with developing and implementing a strategic plan for collecting campus climate/experience survey data from the UC Merced campus community.

Cultural Celebrations

In collaboration with Student Affairs, the Division of Equity, Justice and Inclusive Excellence supports the cultural graduation celebrations that honor the accomplishment of scholars and their community.

Dia de Los Muertos

Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a Mexican holiday in November that welcomes the souls of loved ones for a reunion that includes food, drink and celebration. The Division of Equity, Justice and Inclusive Excellence and the Chancellors' Office sponsors a Dia de los Muertos exhibit in La Galleria featuring community and student artista.

Equity and Justice Awards

OEDI welcomes individuals and groups who have dedicated their time and effort in championing equity and justice initiatives through the inclusive excellence framework and welcomes any UC Merced affiliates to nominate colleagues whose work and research advances foster inclusion throughout campus. Those who are selected will receive $1000.00 to assist with the implementation of one’s research/initiatives.

Institute of Inclusive Excellence

The Inclusive Excellence Institute will be a year-long, cohort-driven professional development experience centered around the tenets of equity, justice, and inclusive excellence. Drawing from the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion’s Strategic Framework, the institute seeks to develop equity-minded practitioners amongst our staff and faculty who can than disseminate the knowledge they gain to their respective units and ensure that we provide an inclusive environment for our entire campus community to thrive. This institute will serve as the groundwork for the next phase of our campus professional development offerings to build upon, by providing each cohort with the foundation to establish and grow their own equity and justice lens.

Toloma 5K Run

In honor of Native American Heritage Month in November, EJIE co-sponsors the annual 5k run. Indigenous tribes of California have strong traditions of distance running for communication and competition purposes. In honor of this tradition, local tribes and greater Merced community are invited to celebrate and run beneath the "Beginnings" sculpture, along the Scholars Bridge, and past the Toloma Grove Native acknowledgement and reflection area.

Valuing Black Lives

The Valuing Black Lives Initiative (VBL) is rooted in the acknowledgment that anti-Blackness is detrimental to our mission as a public research university, which echoes the vision of people first and anti-oppression and liberation for all in the OEDI Strategic Framework. Following the murder of George Floyd, the VBL Task Force was created to address our campus community’s petitions and demands, with representation from all stakeholder groups across its five subcommittees. The Task Force’s recommendations led to a memorandum from Chancellor Muñoz and Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Camfield, that outlined commitments spanning five years with an approximated $2.5 million financial commitment. OEDI is coordinating the advancement of Chancellor’s and Provost’s commitments, while building out what the larger VBL Initiative will entail as we seek out the best ways to support our campus community.