Modesto stroke expert to speak to UC Merced graduates in full-circle moment
A UC Merced graduate who went on to a career in medicine is one of the commencement ceremony speakers for the Valley university’s class of 2026.
Dr. Zi Wang, Class of 2011, will speak Saturday to graduates of the School of Social Sciences, Humanities and the Arts.
Wang has a Modesto connection. He’s a board-certified vascular neurologist and medical director of the Primary Stroke Center at Sutter Memorial Medical Center. Wang is a leader in clinical innovation, quality improvement and lifesaving care for patients brought to the hospital after suffering a stroke.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology at UC Merced, with a minor in public health, and went on to medical school at Temple University. He was chosen to Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society for his academic excellence and leadership.
Wang’s medical training included an internal medicine internship and neurology residency at Yale School of Medicine and a vascular neurology fellowship at UCSF. But he returned to the Northern San Joaquin Valley to practice medicine.
UC Merced long has been considered an asset for physician recruitment and development in the Central Valley. Wang is an enthusiastic supporter of the San Joaquin Valley Prime BS/MD medical education pathway and works with Sutter Health to expand learning opportunities for students.
He is among three alumni returning to campus as keynote speakers for commencement ceremonies.
“It’s an opportunity to honor the place that believed in me before the world did,” Wang said in a news release. “Coming back to UC Merced means carrying forward that same belief and investing it in the next generation who will define what’s possible.”
