After the recent confusion regarding U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s (ICE) restrictions on international student enrollment for fall, Judith vanBever-Green, Executive Director of the Office of International Programs and Services, has clarified the July 24 message from ICE. This information applies to students in the F-1 (student) and J-1 (exchange visitor/student) categories; it applies only to fall 2020. Mason expects further guidance toward the end of the year that will detail any regulatory changes or exceptions for the spring 2021 semester. Read her email.
Month: July 2020
All new and continuing Mason graduate students are invited to Gradstravaganza, Mason’s annual graduate student welcome event. Join us for a virtual version of Gradstravaganza, featuring mini-workshops highlighting strategies for success in graduate school, special sessions for Graduate Assistants (GRAs, GTAs, and GPAs), opportunities to meet and connect with fellow Mason graduate students, and more! Brought to you by Graduate Student Life, the Office of the Provost, the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning, and the Graduate and Professional Student Association. More details, including a full schedule of session and how to participate, will be available on the Graduate Student Life page in early August.
University Life’s Summer 2020 Student Emergency Assistance Fund (The Summer Fund), which opened May 26, has seen over 1,150 requests for help so far. The Fund continues to address the needs of students who face unexpected financial challenges during the COVID-19 pandemic. To date, the Summer Fund has disbursed $820,790 and assisted 603 Mason-enrolled students with emergency needs such as rent payments, utilities, food, medical bills and health insurance, and laptops to continue their learning. Emergency funding for summer closes Friday, August 7. Applications for Fall 2020 emergency assistance funding are available beginning Monday, August 17.
University Life is grateful for the continued support of Mason’s Giving Day, Patriots Helping Patriots, and funding from the CARES Act, which provided much-needed assistance to Mason students. More information on Student Emergency Assistance Fund.
Supporting George Mason University students through challenging times has been the cornerstone of the Student Support and Advocacy Center (SSAC) since its inception in 2016.
Using an outreach and individualized assistance model combined with partnerships incorporating Mason programs and those in the wider community, the SSAC team was ready to help students navigate obstacles they encountered when the pandemic hit during the spring semester.
Although the SSAC office closed its physical doors on March 20, all services continued virtually.
Due to the anticipated regulations and with the safety of the university community in mind, the decision was made earlier this summer to offer Virtual Learning Communities (VLCs) in place of LLCs. VLCs will still provide an opportunity for students to engage around a topic of interest with like-minded peers while building a sense of community and gaining valuable academic skills. In a year where more students are engaging virtually, our VLCs will provide important support and resources!
Dear Fellow Patriots:
We are excited to bring students, faculty and staff back to campus and resume our mission of providing a rewarding and inclusive education. We also know that in these less certain times, a safe return to campus starts with a focus on health and a shared commitment to building a culture of well-being.
University teams have spent the summer working diligently to develop a plan for supporting and monitoring health on-campus. Our teams are working with our partners in public health to monitor health on campus, track potential symptoms of COVID-19 through self-reporting, testing and contact tracing, and isolate and treat those in our community who become ill.
We are pleased to share a summary of the plan below. We also encourage you to review our Safe Return to Campus website and plan for more details.
Creating a safe environment requires everyone’s help. Everyone can do their part by staying engaged, being aware of new requirements for safety and looking out for their fellow Patriots. Together, we can create an environment where health and safety go hand in hand with education and learning, and everyone has an opportunity to thrive.
Below is a summary of steps to take in order to come back – and stay back – on campus for the 2020-21 academic year. For the complete Mason Safe Return To Campus Plan, click here.
14 days prior to returning (residential students only)
- Self-quarantine at home for 14 days.
- Complete a COVID test.
- You must have a negative COVID test to be cleared to move into a Mason residence hall.
- If you test positive, seek medical attention as appropriate, and stay away from campus until you are cleared by a medical professional.
- Students will receive a separate email with detailed instructions.
7 days prior to returning to campus (all students)
- Start completing your daily Mason COVID Health Check™, a brief online questionnaire about your health status.
While on campus (all students, faculty, and staff)
- Complete your daily Mason COVID Health Check
- Wear a face covering over your mouth and nose at all times in public places.
- Practice appropriate social distancing.
- Practice appropriate hygiene, including thoroughly washing hands for at least 20 seconds, and if you can’t do that, use hand sanitizer.
- Avoid touching your eyes.
- Stay home if you feel symptoms consistent with COVID.
If you display symptoms of COVID
- Students, as well as uninsured Mason employees and on-campus contractors, will be tested at the Mason On-Campus Testing Site.
- Student Health Services will continue to serve students at regional campuses through video telehealth and will work with those students to get testing convenient to their location.
- All other employees should be tested through their insured health providers.
- The Ángel Cabrera Global Center has been designated as an on-campus quarantine site, when warranted. Residential students who must quarantine, may be quarantined in their room or in the Cabrera Global Center based on public health guidance.
- All other students, faculty and staff must stay away from campus until they are cleared by a medical professional to return.
Random testing to detect asymptomatic carriers
- To help track the virus spreading via carriers who display no symptoms, throughout the academic year Mason will randomly select members of the community to request that they participate in voluntary testing.
- Testing will be done at the Cabrera Global Center.
These are challenging times for everyone and we greatly appreciate everyone’s role in building a safe campus environment. We can do this together if everyone does their part. Let’s be Patriots and have a great year!
Sincerely,
Julie Zobel, PhD
Assistant Vice President, Safety, Emergency, and Enterprise Risk Management
Carol Urban, RN, PhD
Testing Site Coordinator
Associate Dean, Practice & Strategic Initiatives
College of Health and Human Services
Lisa Park, MD, MPH
Executive Director, Student Health Services
Natalya Moody, who plays defense for George Mason University’s women’s lacrosse team, said she is an “avid” voter.
It is a sensibility instilled in her by her mother, Natasha Dartigue, who is a deputy district public defender for Baltimore City.
“She is a firm believer I should be active in every election, whether on the state level or for presidential elections,” said Moody, a senior mechanical engineering major. “It is incredibly important to be active in your community.”
But Moody also understands why student-athletes do not always exercise that right. That is why she said she was excited to hear that Mason Athletics is giving all its student-athletes Election Day (Nov. 3) off—that is, free them of obligations related to their sport.
Dr. Washington announces Presidential Task Force on Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence from George Mason University on Vimeo.
Hello Fellow Patriots,
In the days that followed the murder of George Floyd, I sent you a message that promised action to address racial inequities that persist here at George Mason University.
As I enter my fourth week as president, I want to share with you the actions we will begin to take, as a community of Patriots.
George Mason University enters this national conversation with an admirable track record as a pace-setter of action for racial justice, and for truth-telling about our own past.
We are proud to draw upon the expertise of
- The Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation Campus Center, one of the first of its kind in the nation.
- The Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, one of the nation’s few schools dedicated to social justice and peace, and one of the very best.
- The Enslaved People of George Mason research and memorial project, the ground-breaking undertaking by our own faculty and students to tell the full truth of our university’s namesake so that we may learn and grow from it.
- And of course, we take pride in hosting Virginia’s largest and most diverse university student body, with a majority of our students representing communities of color, and our Black student population in particular recognized as among the nation’s top academic performers.
These are just some of the many examples of excellence and inclusion around racial justice that the Mason community has undertaken. They make us proud.
But we have work to do if we are to ensure that every student, faculty, and staff member is welcomed and respected as a full equal in this community of learning.
And the uncomfortable truth is not everyone at Mason feels equal, or is treated equally.
So, today I am creating the President’s Task Force on Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence, and giving its members some big assignments.
- We need to know where systems, practices, and traditions of racial bias exist at George Mason University so that we may eradicate them.
- We must build intentional systems and standards of anti-racism that will keep racial injustices from regenerating.
- I want George Mason University to emerge from this exercise as a local, regional, and national beacon for the advancement of anti-racism, reconciliation, and healing.
This task force will have a broad focus, with particular areas of emphasis including short-term and long-term improvements to how we approach:
- Curriculum and Pedagogy
- Campus and Community Engagement
- University Policies and Practices
- Research
- Training and Development
The task force will comprise many of Mason’s luminaries in racial justice, who will be joined by national experts in this topic. Members will be announced over the course of the coming weeks, and they will represent the full diversity of George Mason University, including racial, ethnic, gender, sexual identity, and religious identity.
The recommendations that we act upon will be incorporated into the university’s planning and budgeting process to ensure they have the priority and resources to take root and flourish. I am not interested in reports that sit on a shelf, only to collect dust.
Many reforms at Mason will require thoughtful consideration over time by the task force and university leadership. Others are obvious, overdue, and simply require executive leadership.
So, in keeping with my pledge to deliver actions and not just words, I am announcing immediate steps that we are taking to advance systemic and cultural anti-racism at George Mason University.
The many steps that we have identified are available in their entirety on my website, president.gmu.edu. The categories of immediate steps we are taking include:
Policing
In addition to state-mandated anti-racism training for all police personnel, we will convert the existing Community Police Council into a Police Advisory Board that actively monitors the nature of police activity and reports its findings to me.
University Policies
A number of university policies and practices that carry racist vestiges in their practices will be examined and/or curtailed, including:
- Faculty salary equity – We will complete and act upon a faculty salary equity review and work with the schools and colleges toward correcting any issues over a three-year period.
- Inclusive excellence planning – At the college and school level, we will establish Inclusive Excellence Plans that articulate the vision and definition of anti-racism and inclusiveness for that unit. The task force will develop a metric-driven template for units to use.
- Implicit bias training – Mason will establish an Inclusive Excellence Certificate Program that certifies that the schools and colleges have completed Implicit Bias Training and have established Inclusive Excellence Plans.
- Implicit bias recognition in faculty promotion and tenure – We will develop specific recommendations for the renewal, promotion, and tenure processes that address implicit bias, discrimination, and other equity issues (e.g., invisible and uncredited labor) to support faculty of color and women in their professional work.
- Equity Advisors in every academic department – Equity Advisors are senior faculty members, appointed as Faculty Assistant to the Dean in their respective schools. Equity Advisors participate in faculty recruiting by approving search committee short lists and strategies and raising awareness of best practices. Additionally, they organize faculty development programs, with both formal and informal mentoring, and address individual issues raised by women and faculty from underrepresented groups.
- Recognizing and rewarding adversity barriers in promotion and tenure – We will develop specific mechanisms in the promotion and tenure process that recognize the invisible and uncredited emotional labor that people of color expend to learn, teach, discover, and work on campus.
Racial Trauma and Healing
- We will increase the support provided students, faculty, and staff through Mason’s Counseling and Psychological Services for students, and Human Resources for faculty and staff.
Curriculum/Pedagogy
- We will finalize development and implementation of required diversity, inclusion, and well-being coursework.
- We will require an anti-racism statement on all syllabi.
Buildings and Grounds
- We will convene the University Naming Committee to evaluate names of university buildings and memorials to ensure they align with the university’s stated mission to serve as an “academic community committed to creating a more just, free, and prosperous world.”
Community Engagement
- We will grow our K-12 and community college partnerships by 50 percent, and become a true partner in the development of our region.
- We will establish a lecture series on anti-racism and inclusive excellence to establish a collective consciousness among the campus community.
Resource Commitments:
- We will identify associated budget to achieve above immediate actions, beginning with an initial $5 million commitment over three years to strengthen initiatives already underway and to fund critical priorities that need immediate attention.
- We will identify an Executive Director for the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation Campus Center.
Leadership in an anti-racism environment demands that we recognize how our history has shaped our view of the world and how our own actions can reshape it.
My vision is nothing short of establishing George Mason University as a national exemplar of anti-racism and inclusive excellence in action. Given the considerable head start we have on most of our sister institutions in the United States, this is a vision we can realize.
So, Patriots, let’s get to work.
Gregory Washington
President
COVID-19 might appropriately be called the “One World Virus,” underscoring our shared destiny. The global pandemic has triggered the ultimate disruption in higher education as almost every campus in the country manages its repercussions. This moment will likely redefine the significance of student affairs work and the worth of practitioners as strategic, compassionate, and collaborative institutional leaders.
At George Mason University, the president convened daily meetings with the executive team to share national, regional, and local up-to-the-minute public health information to inform daily decision making. Student affairs professionals worked collaboratively on university-wide financial, academic, and operational issues. The director of student health services, the institution’s de facto in-house medical authority, provided public health updates. Absent a medical school, there was an increased reliance on health practitioners who served students along with the expertise of the campus emergency health and safety team. Faculty researchers in the university’s College of Health and Human Services lent their expertise to create a COVID-19 risk assessment available online to all students and faculty.
Regular communication through daily virtual meetings with student-serving units is now essential with Webex and Zoom meetings as the primary means of connection. Continued strategic discussions include the development of a COVID-19 emergency fund, virtual commencement, orientation planning, virtual student employment opportunities, implementation of telehealth, online counseling services, e-recreation, e-engagement activities, and career success for graduating students to name only a few topics.
In addition, vice presidents for student affairs (VPSAs) found ways to support students for whom online instruction created additional hurdles: students with home bases not conducive to online learning; students with little or no access to technology or internet; students experiencing high levels of stress, anxiety, and grief for themselves, loved ones, and family members; and students at risk of losing or who have lost their means to pay for and pursue their college careers.
It has become even more essential—and more challenging—to convey core institutional values in an online environment. While they do not intuitively convert from in person to online, student affairs professionals must find ways to communicate values despite the challenges. Institutional core values assure students that the campus remains the same place they chose, the place they love, and the place that will support them through these uncertain times to ultimate success.
The agility of student affairs practitioners to manage multiple student concerns in this moment is extraordinary and all-consuming, which underscores the need to consider the well-being of staff members. Continuing to make human connections, checking in, acknowledging that many staff members are managing grief and anxiety, finding opportunities to express gratitude and appreciation, and providing time for staff to regroup and re-energize are vital to relational work with colleagues and students.
Intelligence, kindness, and understanding are vital to unpacking the complexities involved in the decision-making process, as VPSAs continue to make educational and potential life-changing decisions that will affect students’ futures. The ability to accompany students through this shift in their educational experience will require continued compassion, flexibility, and authentic care and concern. Although practitioners may be stretched in unimaginable ways, student affairs staff must continue to move forward, incrementally, to do the next right thing. Student affairs work will accelerate a continued shift in the business of higher education with student well-being and holistic success at the center of all institutional decisions. Be prepared to lead the way.
This article was original published in Leadership Exchange.
Dear Patriots:
As final preparations for the school year are being made, I look forward to welcoming you back to Mason for the first day of fall semester classes on Monday, August 24.
Fall 2020 will look different at Mason, with decreased density on campus and more online learning. Students will have the opportunity to have a course schedule consisting of a mixture of in-person, hybrid and fully online classes. Students will receive a high-quality education regardless of the delivery mode or course format. Mason will support your learning and development consistent with our mission to provide you with a rich learning experience that is innovative and inclusive.
We will widely communicate if it becomes necessary for Mason to pivot to a fully remote and online format for our courses. Please pay close attention to messaging from the administration, your college and professors throughout the semester. The health and safety of students, faculty and staff remains, and always will be, our priority.
Fall schedules are available to view in PatriotWeb, including changes that may have been required because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Within the next two weeks, students will receive personal emails from the Registrar’s Office with their class schedules. Students also may receive messages from their college/school, or academic program, with added information relevant for the fall semester.
If you have questions or concerns about your class schedule, please contact your academic advisor.
Another change you should be aware of for this fall is that the bookstore will sell textbooks and course materials online only prior to the start of the fall semester and recommends that you order your materials to be delivered at home in advance of the semester. In addition, the bookstore does not plan to sell textbooks/course materials in-store the first two weeks of the semester to comply with social distancing requirements. After you receive your course syllabi, please order the needed materials immediately to ensure they arrive to you on time.
If you will be returning to Mason’s campus, remember that all faculty, staff, and students must complete the university’s online Safe Return to Campus Training. This training is available now for faculty and staff in MasonLEAPS and will be available in Blackboard to students on Monday, July 27. This training is an important step for the health and safety of our community and represents a shared commitment to keeping our campuses as healthy as possible.
I wish you well and look forward to seeing many of you soon. All the best.
Mark R. Ginsberg, Ph.D.
Interim Provost and Executive Vice President
Six Options for Learning in the Fall
Fall 2020 will look different at Mason, with decreased density on campus and more online learning. There will be opportunities for in-person learning for students who want to return to the Mason campus, and many other choices for learning online. In all cases, we are prepared to fully pivot to online learning, if public health factors make that necessary.
Here are the ways you can learn in the fall:
- Learn on Campus: In-Person
- Classes meet on campuses, on the days, time and locations listed on your class schedule.
- Physical distancing per university guidelines; masks are required in the classroom to ensure everyone’s safety.
- Learn on Campus: In-Person and Online (Hybrid)
- 50% of the class meets in person on campus, with all students expected to attend class on the days, time and locations listed on your schedule.
- Physical distancing will be observed based on university guidelines. Masks are required in the classroom.
- 50% of the class work is completed online, on your own time. Keep in mind course instructions and deadlines for completing assignments.
- Learn on Campus: In Person and Live-Streamed (Hybrid)
- In this flex model, you will alternate between in-person learning and live-streaming lectures. Your instructor will provide information on what days to come to campus. Physical distancing will be observed per university guidelines; masks are required in the classroom.
- All students are expected to attend class either in-person or via live streaming on the days and times listed on your schedule.
- Learn in Place: Online, On Your Own Time
- These courses will be 100% online, in an asynchronous format. You do not need to be on your computer or device on a specific day or at an exact time.
- Be sure to pay close attention to the syllabus assignments and specific deadlines.
- Learn in Place: Online, Live-Streamed
- Classes will meet in real time via Zoom or WebEx on the days and times listed in the class schedule. The instructor will facilitate live, online lectures and discussions.
- Learn in Place: Online, Live-Streamed and On Your Own (Hybrid)
- This remote format is 50% live-streamed on the days and times listed on your class schedule.
- The remainder of classwork is completed online, independently, on your own time. Be sure to pay close attention to instructions and deadlines listed in the course syllabus.