Campus News

Mason President Gregory Washington thanked the university community at the Board of Visitors (BOV) meeting on Thursday for its efforts to manage the pandemic and shifted focus toward the goals he announced in July to “transform the campus and move it from a good campus to a great one.”

Mason will celebrate Mason’s eighth president, Gregory Washington, with a week of activities and a special investiture ceremony in EagleBank Arena on Thursday, Oct. 21, at 1 p.m.

Soon we will significantly reduce required COVID testing for most who are fully vaccinated, and will offer free tests to any member of the university community who wishes to be tested, regardless of their vaccination status. The Mason community has earned this rollback in testing through its collective diligence in taking the many precautions to keep COVID at bay.

Mason is initiating the largest-scale surveillance testing protocol of any Virginia university, in which our goal is to test up to 13,000 members of the Mason community each week.

As COVID-19 infections increase in our region, especially the prevalence of the Delta variant, effective immediately, our university again will require all individuals on our campus to wear masks indoors, including classrooms and laboratories, regardless of vaccination status.

George Mason University President Gregory Washington last week outlined his goals for the coming academic year, including the establishment of the Mason Virginia Promise to “be the institution for all Virginians” and implementing a five-year plan for Mason to climb more than 40 spots in the U.S. News & World Report rankings.

Mason is joining the growing community of universities that require all students, faculty, and staff to get vaccinated, and to share verification of their vaccination status, in order to work, study, and live on campus.

As we turn our attention to the Fall Semester, we must all continue to do our part and work together to keep Mason safe. This starts with new policies for COVID-19 vaccination, testing and masking.

The sudden reversal of CDC mask recommendations has prompted many questions about what this means for George Mason University. As we review changing protocols, we will continue to require masks when on campus, and will provide an update with definitive guidance when we have it.

As we consider these factors and review the changing protocols, we will continue to require masks when on campus, just as we have done this past year. 

George Mason University on Friday afternoon honored its largest and most diverse graduating class in history with its 54th Spring Commencement.