Campus News

George Mason University’s Board of Visitors has authorized the university to begin official negotiations with the newly formed Mason Innovation Partners as the potential development partner for the transformation of its Arlington Campus in the heart of the Rossyln-Ballston corridor.

An advisory board to promote community policing, a required foundational course on diversity and inclusion, and a university-wide infrastructure to promote and enhance anti-racism, diversity, equity, and inclusion were among the recommendations put forward by members of George Mason University’s Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence Task Force at a virtual town hall Tuesday, Feb. 23.

In the most recent episode of the Access to Excellence podcast, President Gregory Washington joined Wendi Manuel-Scott, a history professor in the School of Integrative Studies, and Shernita Parker, an assistant vice president for Human Resources at Mason, via Zoom to discuss the work being done by the university’s Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence Task Force.

The President’s Innovation Advisory Council (PIAC), comprised of forward-thinking executives, signals Mason’s community-centric vision for its Arlington Campus and the emerging Rosslyn-Ballston innovation corridor.

President Gregory Washington and members of Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence Task Force invite the university community to the first of two virtual town hall meetings, which will be held 2-3:30 p.m. Tuesday, Feb. 23.

“It’s a dream job because I get to create content,” Clark said. “I get to be involved in what young people and their families see, especially at the preschool level. This is some of the first media they are exposed to besides books and stories that their parents and caregivers communicate to them, so we have to get it right.”

We are a month into the Spring Semester. The best evidence shows that when people wear masks, practice physical distancing, wash hands regularly and stay home and isolate when they feel sick, we greatly limit the spread and are safer as a community. We also need to complete the Mason COVID Health Check every day.

As associate director of the LGBTQ+ Resources in the Center for Culture, Equity, and Empowerment (CCEE), formerly ODIME, Kinchen advises student groups, sits on many committees and does a lot of consulting and training with schools, colleges, and departments across the university that want to learn more about working with LGBTQ+ students.

Junior Dominique Dowling has been working to enact social change since high school. She joined the GMU NAACP chapter in her second year at Mason, and now she is the group’s vice president. Through the chapter, she has been involved in numerous panels and committees, which inspired her to do more anti-racism work on campus.“Being part of the NAACP has exposed me to different initiatives and people who have been doing this work for years,” said the integrative studies major. “It made me realize that anti-racism work requires an ongoing dedication because there is always work to be done.”

Mason's annual Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Evening of Reflection event on Thursday included a discussion between President Gregory Washington and a student panel about the opportunities they have to make changes to improve social justice and equity. Spirit of King award winners were also announced.