UC Merced Magazine | Commemorative Chronicle

A Gi with Lasting Impact

Barreto was one of the rst recipients of the Bank of America Distinguished Management Scholars Program, a scholarship created the year UC Merced opened its doors. Funded by a $1 million grant, the bank’s largest single gi in the San Joaquin Valley at the time, the program was built to last. Rather than a one-time fund, the gi established an endowment that continues to provide sustainable support. Over two decades, it has awarded more than $500,000 to 325 promising scholars and aspiring business leaders, with a focus on educationally disadvantaged students from the Valley.

“From the beginning, UC Merced’s goal was clear: to build a pipeline of high-achieving, community-minded students who would remain in the region and work to improve its economic well-being,” said Mark Riley, Bank of America’s president for the Fresno/Visalia region. “Bank of America is proud to have been able to help so many students right from day one. We’re also especially proud of how the university structured the $1 million into an endowment so that the program has sustainable funding over the years. is savvy, strategic nancing is a win-win model.”

Building Leaders for the Valley

For UC Merced, the program represents more than nancial aid. It’s a partnership that re ects the university’s mission to expand opportunity for talented students who might otherwise struggle to a ord higher education.

become leaders who stay and invest in the future of this region.” Barreto is living proof of that vision. She still recalls the thrill of her rst scholarship luncheon, but it is the ripple e ect on her career in law, her advocacy for immigrant communities and her service on UC Merced's board that shows what the Bank of America gi has made possible.

“Bank of America’s generosity and commitment to UC Merced students cannot be overstated,” said E. Edward Klotzbier, vice chancellor and chief external relations o cer. “ eir support has helped the university ful ll its mission of providing opportunity to underserved students from right here in the Valley, ensuring that those talented students

Two Decades, Countless Futures

As UC Merced celebrates its 20th anniversary, the Bank of America Distinguished Management Scholars Program is marking its own milestone: 20 years of helping students like Barreto imagine a di erent future. What began with a single oversized check and a proud mother watching from the audience has now became a legacy that will support generations of Bobcats still to come.

UCMERCED MAGAZINE 60