To start 2026-27, we see so much evidence that Merced College is fulfilling its 21st-century mission to help students succeed.
It comes from impressive growth the college has achieved since 2020. The student population, able to create personalized schedules using face-to-face, hybrid and fully online courses, grew 40% between 2021-22 and 2025-26 to an all-time high of 21,722.
More students equal more achievement. In 2024-25 alone, Merced College students earned a record 3,416 degrees and certificates, a 17% increase over a four-year period.
The energy on campus is palpable and motivating.
“Everyone here has a vision, and the leadership does all it can to make those visions a reality,” said Tylina Burdell, the college’s first-ever Director of Housing. “I love the values here, the intentionality.”
The momentum continues, with several projects either improving, launching or working through the planning stages in 2026-27.
AgTEC Expansion
February 2027 could be a huge month for the ag department.
The 22,000-square-foot AgTEC Innovation Center should open that month, a $21 million facility in which students will learn, and then execute, food processing, sanitation and food-safety operations. Using crops produced on the 240-acre campus farm, they’ll supply and run a campus retail market.
Also in February 2027, the college hopes to receive the final word on an application it submitted to the California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office (CCCCO) to offer a bachelor’s degree in Applied Agricultural Technology Systems. If approved, the first baccalaureate cohort in Merced College history would start in Fall 2028.
“The baccalaureate degree is becoming more common in the CCCCO overall, but it’s not so common yet in the ag segment,” said Cody Jacobsen, Dean of Agriculture and Industrial Technology.
“We have to go to university partners like UC Merced, Cal Poly and Fresno State to show them that our degree would not compete with the great programs they currently offer. Ours won’t because of the hands-on, practical work that will go into it. The operative word here is ‘applied.’”
Promise Housing
Merced College and UC Merced students will begin moving into Promise Housing, a new 488-bed residential facility on the UC Merced campus, in January 2027.
Promise Housing is funded by SB169 and is meant to provide Merced College students with affordable, all-inclusive housing. The initiative hopes to open optional transfer pathways to UC Merced and other colleges in the region.
“We want to eliminate that financial barrier of affording housing that students may face while getting their education,” Burdell said.
Merced College students, living in the same hall as UC Merced students, will have access to the same amenities, like free transportation between campuses, support from residence advisors, dining halls, student programming, and more. They’ll be exposed to university life before they enroll.
The student residence will have 296 beds for UC Merced students and 192 for Merced College students; a 60-40 split. Merced College is one of few CCCs to team with a university to build a shared residence hall.
“The chance to open a building on a different campus and partner with that other campus is almost unheard of,” Burdell said. “It’s exciting to offer this type of program to students. I can’t wait for January.”
Students can apply for a spot starting in October 2026.
Los Banos Campus
You only have to glance at the full parking lot and overflow parking while driving down CA-152 to understand that the Los Banos Campus needs more space to welcome all the students who want to pursue higher education on the Westside.
The Los Banos Campus has been running toward its future since voters approved the $46 million Measure P in November 2024 to support infrastructure and career technical training needs. The first two projects will be adding a welding building and enhancing the quad.
A working group will consider the design of the new building. According to Dean of Instruction Jessica Moran, the group includes both full-time welding instructors and the Student Services manager, who will move that department into the new building.
Professor Fong Xiong built the welding program in Los Banos, and the success of that program is driving this expansion. The school began soil testing for the site several weeks ago, and leaders plan to visit welding facilities at other community college campuses this month. The new building should be ready for students in Fall 2028.
The college is also examining different ways to expand the campus quad. The main goal is to make sure the area can accommodate all people who come to campus for graduation.
“We have dedicated staff members here who started in 2007, when we opened this location,” Moran said. “Our own staff members were promoting the bond measure on their days off because they feel so passionately about our campus. They’re so proud and excited to see our new growth. There’s a sense of ownership.”
South Merced, VR, and Beyond
Finally, the Merced College South Merced Center is opening this fall at Stephen Leonard Park. People living in that area asked for an outlet where they can be part of the Merced College family and get job skills training, and that’s precisely what the new center will offer when it opens in late September.
At the center, residents can find job training and skills development, and take college-credit courses, health and wellness classes, and College for Kids programming. They also can access support services like financial aid assistance, career exploration, technology and more.
And while college faculty and classified professionals expand their reach into South Merced, students on campus are diving deeper into immersive, virtual environments in the Dreamscape Learn Lab. Faculty have their hands on an updated development kit with which they’re producing new learning experiences using the virtual reality technology, and the Los Banos Campus now also utilizes a portable VR unit to bring the same type of teaching and learning to students there.
As Merced College places renewed focus on its core values throughout the year, these projects offer a tangible look at what those values mean in practice. From collaboration and innovation to student support, inclusivity and well-being, the work underway across the district reflects a shared commitment to creating more opportunities for students and the communities we serve.
Burdell said she’s been impressed with the team she’s joined.
“You know you’ll be taken care of and encouraged here, and people will invest in you,” she said. “It powers you up. You have a purpose at Merced College.”