BY MARTHA MARTINEZ

UC Merced’s selling point is that it offers great student-teacher ratios at the same great quality offered at all University of California campuses.

The campus is small, has a very homey feel to it and is diverse. In fact, it has the most student diversity of all the University of California schools.

It was noticeable as I toured the campus in May and I watched students of different backgrounds go to and from their finals with the somber looks on their faces that only college students approaching the end of the semester can sport.

The campus, only open since 2005, has only two large buildings that house classrooms. But those buildings prove to be enough for the current enrollment of slightly more than 1,200 students.

This environmentally friendly campus has a lot to offer its current and future students. It has a huge library, and everything is currently in walking distance.

There is no need for a bike, roller blades or a skateboard to get around yet. But soon, there will be.

One of the most exciting things has yet to happen at UC Merced: A college community. There are plans to have retail, recreation, entertainment and housing for 31,000 people on the university property.

The college community is intended to be a model community and is still years away from being completed.

Administrators at UC Merced are planning for growth and have thousands of acres to build on. Merced, along with all other Central Valley towns, is growing. The campus seems to be in the middle of nowhere, but homes are quickly being built around the campus.

But for now, students have their own small community. The campus has a gym, dance room and exercise equipment right next to the dorms. A food court with indoor and outdoor seating also sits next to the dorms.

A bus picks up students on campus and takes them to town and the Amtrak station. The cost is included in student fees. If students want to get out of town, they can take advantage of the services offered by the Yosemite park ranger on campus. Students are able to plan state park trips with the help of the ranger.

A short walk up a hill from the dorms takes students to the “academic” part of campus. A canal cuts through the center of campus, separating the dorms and the rest of the buildings. A bridge connects the two sides.

I didn’t quite know what to expect when I showed up. After all, Merced isn’t a city I think of as a “college town.”

Administrators are used to such questioning about the campus because of its Central Valley location.

It is a very modern campus.

UC Merced is looking to be the first green campus in the state. All buildings they have up so far are “green buildings.”

Recycled furniture, panels on the windows and running the air conditioner at night to not overwork it during the day saves money and is environmentally friendly. The buildings are also designed in such a way that when a person walks into a building, they could see the sunlight coming in from the other end of it. The purpose is to reduce use of electricity by keeping some lights off.

Kern County students would benefit from UC Merced. If local students don’t want to leave the Central Valley for a UC quality education, they don’t have to. The Los Angeles area is not the only option anymore.

Merced is far enough from home, but close enough to visit. It’s the perfect distance.
This campus, full of nature and modernity at the same time, is a great service to the underserved Central Valley students.

— Martha Martinez is an associate editor in the Opinion section.