Philanthropist and community leader Ed Kashian was awarded the UC Merced Chancellor’s Medal, the university’s highest honor, at the campus’s State of the University event on Wednesday.

Established in 2005, the Chancellor’s Medal recognizes individuals who epitomize exemplary engagement, unwavering commitment, and a transformative and lasting impact on UC Merced. Chancellor Juan Sánchez Muñoz presented the award to Kashian following his annual address to the campus community highlighting the year’s past achievements and forthcoming plans.

“I am delighted to bestow this year’s Chancellor’s Medal to a deeply respected community leader who has been utterly instrumental to the growth of our university since its very earliest days,” Muñoz said. “Please join me in thanking Mr. Kashian for his leadership, his generosity, his stewardship, and his unwavering commitment.”

Kashian, who served as a founding member on the UC Merced Foundation Board of Trustees, is the CEO of Fresno-based Lance-Kashian & Co., one of the region’s largest real-estate development and property management firms.

He and his wife, Jeanne, have supported numerous high-profile initiatives throughout the university, including naming the Ed and Jeanne Kashian Main Floor within the Leo and Dottie Kolligian Library, providing funding for faculty stem-cell research, and most recently granting a $5 million gift for the campus’s new Medical Education Building. Slated to open in the fall of 2026, the state-of-the-art facility will feature the Ed and Jeanne Kashian Atrium as one of its most prominent community spaces.

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University’s Value to the Valley

Speaking to the audience gathered for the ceremony and the State of the University address, Kashian’s remarks focused on the value of UC Merced to the Central Valley and his gratitude for being able to support the campus’s work.

“I simply want to say I am very proud of the service you have all given to the people of the Valley,” Kashian said. “Your work has already significantly impacted the lives of everyone here, and I want to take this opportunity to commend all of you in this wonderful school.

“(The Medical Education Building) will truly increase access to healthcare for many people, and this school will make a generational change for all of us,” he added. “I am only pleased that UC Merced offered me the opportunity to help build the (Medical Education Building) … and for that, I am truly grateful.”