UCI Giving Day 2023

The UCI Retirees Association (UCIRA) advocates for all UCI retirees and provides social and educational activities. The UCIRA also contributes to campus life with staff and student scholarship efforts.

With support from you we:

• Develop lectures, organize local tours, wellness and cooking classes and information sessions as well as continue monthly group walks, hikes and bike rides.
• Contribute annually to the Staff Assembly Scholarship Program helping staff continue their education as well as the Legacy Scholarships for incoming students.
• Maintain UCI’s representation in the UC system-wide Council of UC Retirees Associations (CUCRA), advocating for health insurance and other critical retirement benefits.  

Again this year our goal for Giving Day 2023 is to continue to raise money for our UCIRA Legacy Scholarships. GOOD NEWS – we will now be awarding 4 scholarships instead of 2 each year. Your support has made this possible. Moving forward each fall two new freshman and a two new transfer students will receive scholarships. Since 2019, we have awarded $27,000 in scholarship awards to new freshmen and new transfer students.

These scholarships were developed for students related to a UCI retiree, UCI alumni, or current UCI staff member. Family members must be a mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, sister, brother, aunt, or uncle.

Please take a moment and watch the video from one of the scholarship recipients. It is heartwarming to hear how we’ve helped.

Grace Chen
2022-23 Transfer Student Recipient

Grace Chen is a transfer student from Orange, CA, majoring in Biological Sciences. While at Santiago Canyon College, she greatly enjoyed serving as a Supplemental Instruction leader and helping others through community service. Her mother is a UCI alumna and her sister is a current UCI student. After graduating from UCI, she plans to go on to graduate school, work in the medical field, and use her talents and interests to serve others.

Arsema Getahun
2022-23 Freshman Student Recipient

Arsema Getahun is a first-generation freshman majoring in Cognitive Sciences. Her uncle is a UCI alumnus. While a student at Culver City High School, she volunteered in the Neurology Department at Cedars Sinai Hospital which piqued her interest in pursuing a career in the medical field. Receiving the Legacy Scholarship allows her to devote more time to her educational goals and to make her dream of attending a university come true.

Larissa Teramura
2022-23 Freshman Student Recipient

Larissa Teramura is a freshman from Kailua, Hawaii, majoring in biomedical engineering. Her father, aunt, and uncle are UCI alumni. While in high school, she volunteered and held leadership roles in local tennis organizations and at her former elementary school. She plans to use the scholarship money to help pay for school fees, allowing her to focus more on her studies and athletics on the UCI women’s tennis team.