MERCED – Sung-Mo “Steve” Kang, Ph.D., was inaugurated as the second chancellor of the University of California, Merced, today (Nov. 6) in a ceremony on the campus’ academic quad at 10 a.m.

Kang was joined on the platform by UC President Robert C. Dynes and Regent Russell S. Gould, as well as other UC and government officials.

The keynote speaker for the ceremony was Arno Penzias, Ph.D., who received the Nobel Prize in physics in 1978.

The audience of more than 600 people included UC Merced faculty, staff, students and invited friends of the campus.

“UC Merced is just stepping into its new phase, which, as an engineer, I would call, ‘UC Merced 2.0,'” Kang told the assembled crowd, emphasizing that the next phase of development would be distinguished by innovation in every aspect of the campus’ endeavors.

As hallmarks of UC Merced 2.0, he mentioned academic excellence, international partnerships, community service programs, new management and medical schools, technology for distance learning and medicine, entrepreneurship, and continued efforts to reach underserved populations and improve the quality of life in the San Joaquin Valley.

Kang’s speech invoked pioneers and leaders like Abraham Lincoln, the early climbers of Half Dome in Yosemite National Park, and the leaders, faculty and students who have contributed to the founding of UC Merced.

“We have come a long way in the short time our campus opened,” Kang said. “Our well-loved campus is thriving and poised for great achievements. As we plant our roots deeply here in the shadows of Yosemite’s Half Dome, it is now time for the other Half Dome of the highest ideals and academic excellence to flourish.”

UC President Robert C. Dynes told the audience that Kang’s “bold vision for this young campus has galvanized the region.

“His personal enthusiasm has endeared him to faculty, students and staff,” Dynes said. “And his passion for innovation will help realize the founders’ vision of transforming the Valley.”

Dynes continued, “Chancellor Steve Kang will lead UC Merced into a new era of ascendancy and distinction. And it will be my privilege and my joy to watch him do it.”

Penzias’ keynote speech focused on the importance of public support for higher education – he recalled his experiences in the New York City public schools and City College of New York. Like Kang and many UC Merced students, Penzias was a first-generation college-goer. He called public education “the foundation of the American Dream.”

Penzias also noted UC Merced’s potential to make a difference in the field of sustainable, clean energy as the campus nurtures knowledge creation and technology.

Kang was approved by the UC Board of Regents as UC Merced’s new chancellor Jan. 17. He began his appointment March 1, leaving behind the deanship of UC Santa Cruz’ Baskin School of Engineering. He had spent seven years at Santa Cruz, following a professorship of 15 years at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Kang continues his research in the design of lower-power, very large-scale integrated (VLSI) circuits; modeling and simulation of semiconductor devices and circuits; nanoelectronics; and bioelectronics.

He completed his Ph.D. at UC Berkeley. His undergraduate work took place at Fairleigh-Dickinson University in New Jersey, where he attended with scholarship support that brought him to the United States from South Korea as the first person in his family to attend college.

This experience prepared Kang to lead the 10^th UC campus in its early years. More than half of UC Merced’s students are first-generation college-goers, and more than 60 percent come from underrepresented ethnic or socioeconomic groups.

Kang is also the first Korean-American to lead a major research university. Significant interest from Korean and Korean-American communities and media has followed his appointment.

Kang’s predecessor, Carol Tomlinson-Keasey, served for seven years as the leader of the new campus before announcing her intention to step down in March 2006. Roderic Park served as interim chancellor until Kang assumed his duties March 1, 2007.

Inauguration-related festivities continue this week with a scholarship fundraiser luncheon today at noon; receptions for students, faculty and staff; and a symposium with Kang and other engineering faculty speaking about “Technology and Society” at 2 p.m. Thursday in the California Room on campus. The symposium is free and open to the public.

For more information

• About Chancellor Steve Kang, see http://chancellor.ucmerced.edu.
• About today’s inauguration ceremony and associated festivities, see http://inauguration.ucmerced.edu.
• About UC Merced, start with the campus home page at www.ucmerced.edu.

UC Merced opened Sept. 5, 2005, as the 10^th campus in the University of California system and the first American research university of the 21^st century. The campus significantly expands access to the UC system for students throughout the state, with a special mission to increase college-going rates among students in the San Joaquin Valley. It also serves as a major base of advanced research and as a stimulus to economic growth and diversification throughout the region. Situated near Yosemite National Park, the university is expected to grow rapidly, topping out at approximately 25,000 students within 30 years.