At the end of Spring Quarter of 2025, Mike Rotkin submitted final grades for what would be his last course as a lecturer and leader of our Field Studies Program at Merrill College.
Founded in 1968—Merrill College’s inaugural year—Field Studies enabled some 3,000 students to undertake self-directed, experiential learning projects on topics ranging from drumming in Senegal to the struggles of incarcerated women in Perú. After 25 years of leadership by legendary Merrill staff member Nick Royal, the program ended in 1993 due to campus-wide budget cuts. But 2014 saw a rebirth of the program thanks to the leadership of Merrill Provost Elizabeth Abrams and generous gifts from Merrill alumni.
Mike Rotkin—longtime Community Studies lecturer, five-time Santa Cruz mayor, and tireless advocate for social justice on and off campus—was the perfect choice to lead the Field Studies Program into a new era.
He focused on cultivating global citizens through community-engaged learning at the local level. Mike’s students combined classroom discussions of theoretical readings and case studies with immersive internships at organizations such as Santa Cruz Barrios Unidos, the Homeless Garden Project, Food Not Bombs, and the Santa Cruz Museum of Art and History.
I was fortunate to be able to sit in on one of Mike’s classes in February. As students filed in, he connected with each of them, sharing ideas and suggestions that were never condescending and always kind and encouraging. That Mike continued to inspire students just as much today as in the past testifies to his unrivalled ability to draw from his deep well of expertise in ways that could connect with the passions and preoccupations of any generation. His personal generosity was crucial to making Field Study feasible. As a retired lecturer on “recall,” he accepted only a small salary from the college. He once told me in the parking lot after class that he wanted to keep teaching as long as he could. And he did exactly that.
Field Study and other forms of community-engaged education are more than just a tradition at Merrill College and UC Santa Cruz. Scholarship on student success has confirmed the knowledge that Mike carried into the classroom every day: community-engaged, experiential learning produces tangible, measurable benefits for students, especially for students from groups who have been historically underserved by higher education in our society.
Jody Biehl, in a remembrance of Mike published in Lookout Santa Cruz, recalled visiting Mike in his backyard in early June:
Mike knew his time was coming to a close and he felt at peace. His biggest worry, he told me, was about his final class of UC Santa Cruz undergraduate students. He needed to get their grades done, to leave enough feedback to help them absorb their time in local non-profits.
The final class that Mike was talking about was Merrill 90F: Merrill Field Study Practicum.
As we celebrate Mike’s life and his countless contributions to our students, we commit to continuing his work.
With gratitude,
Aims McGuinness
Provost, Merrill College
