Four new University of California, Merced buildings will expand the growing campus' physical space by nearly 25 percent.

The 270,000 square foot construction project – the largest expansion since the campus' 2005 opening – will add a new, 500 student housing complex, an expanded recreation center, a student services building, and a second science and engineering building. The additional instructional space will help the campus avoid scheduling classes on nights and weekends.

The $170 million project is funded from non-state sources, save for the science and engineering building. All buildings will look to continue UC Merced's commitment to sustainability, aiming for the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Platinum certification.

UC Merced professor to be featured in PBS documentary

Mark Aldenderfer, dean of UC Merced's School of Social Sciences, Humanities and Arts, will be featured in an upcoming National Geographic documentary – “Cave People of the Himalaya.”

The film, set to debut Wednesday on PBS, will feature Aldenderfer and Mt. Everest climber Pete Athans exploring cave tombs in Nepal, revealing a previously unknown death ritual. Aldenderfer's research focuses on ancient Nepalese civilizations.

The film focuses on the work to understand how lowland people biologically adapted to live in highlands. Researchers will return to Nepal this summer in search of 3,000 year-old mummies.