The University of California, Santa Cruz, also known as UC Santa Cruz or UCSC, is a public, collegiate university; one of ten campuses in the University of California. Located 80 miles (130 km) south of San Francisco at the edge of the coastal community of Santa Cruz, the campus lies on 2,001 acres  of rolling, forested hills overlooking the Pacific Ocean and Monterey Bay.

Founded in 1965, UC Santa Cruz began as a showcase for progressive, cross-disciplinary undergraduate education, innovative teaching methods and contemporary architecture. Since then, it has evolved into a modern research university with a wide variety of both undergraduate and graduate programs, while retaining its reputation for strong undergraduate support and student political activism. The residential college system, which consists of ten small colleges, is intended to combine the student support of a small college with the resources of a major university.

"At UC Santa Cruz, diversity is an integral part of our mission to teach, discover, and serve.

Diversity enriches everyone by ensuring that students, staff, and faculty engage with people who bring different sets of experiences, values, and views to the classroom, the laboratory, the art studio, and the dining hall. UCSC serves as an important testing ground—a place where personal experience trumps stereotypes and where diversity accelerates our pursuit of excellence.

Diversity and inclusion help bring UCSC’s Principles of Community to life by contributing to an open, purposeful, caring, just, disciplined, and celebrative campus climate. Our programs support the identities and aspirations of every student, staff member, and academic employee. Our goal is to build a community where each person enjoys a sense of belonging, where each person can be heard.

As chancellor, I am committed to furthering the cultural and social diversity of our campus community and to cultivating an inclusive campus climate. But diversity at UCSC is not a top-down initiative. Rather, it is interwoven into the fabric of the campus, a responsibility shared by all for the benefit of the entire community.

As a public university, UCSC is obligated to reflect the full range of people and cultures that make up the state of California. But it's not just duty or obligation that fuels our commitment. We are motivated by a desire to make society more equitable and to enhance opportunities for all.

In higher education, we are developing the leaders of tomorrow, people who will be active in all sectors of society and the world. With my full support, UCSC will continue building a diverse community and fostering a climate of inclusion in which all will thrive.

George R. Blumenthal
Chancellor"