Articles by: Sonya Hudson

 

• Breastival Unites Campus and Community: Third Annual Festival Raises Awareness of Breast Cancer and Promotes Yearly Examinations

  News1 October 20, 2009 at 3:23 pm Comments are Disabled

  May Fakhriyazdi, Broadside Correspondent Did you know that in 2009 alone, 269,800 women in the U.S. were diagnosed with some sort of cancer? Did you also know that 15 percent of those people were more specifically diagnosed with breast cancer? According to the American Cancer Society, about 40,170 of those 15 percent will die from breast cancer this year alone. Students who attended the 2009 Breastival held at George Mason University on Wednesday, Oct. 15 would have known these not-so-fun, but interesting facts. This was the third annual Breastival held on the Fairfax campus. Many different organizations, clubs and individuals, (both affiliated and unaffiliated with Mason), worked to put together this event. It was run by exhibitors such as the “American Cancer Society”, “I’m Still Me”, “Young Survivor Coalition” and many more student organizations such as the Student Nurses’ Association and Zeta Tau Alpha. “This year’s event was different from the years past in many ways. There were more interactive boob-related games, hot give-aways and new vendors, and the Bras Across D.C. campaign,” said Danielle Lapierre, assistant director of the Office of Alcohol, Drug and Health Education, who was on staff for the event. Brestival, which took place in the […]

   

• Mason Devotes Month to Challenging People to Walk in Others’ ShoesShining a Light on Disabilities:

  News1 October 20, 2009 at 3:22 pm Comments are Disabled

  Yasmin Tadjdeh, Asst. News Editor This October, George Mason University will be celebrating Disability Awareness Month. The month will consist of several events to promote the advancement of members of the Mason community with disabilities and shine a light on their struggles. Disability Awareness Month, which includes events such as a student panel on Oct. 19, a conference and the Out of the Darkness Walk among others, has been a work in progress. Shoshonna Roberts, a graduate assistant for Program Board, has been planning Disability Awareness Month since August. Roberts, who has high hopes for turnout at the events, has been pleased with previous events this month. “We had a great speaker, Dr. Tyler Cowen, this Tuesday who lead a discussion on autism and the language we use.” Roberts hopes that Disability Awareness Month will educate the Mason community on people with disabilities. “I hope to educate faculty and students with and without disabilities throughout the month . . . The event that I am most looking forward to is the student panel on Monday, Oct. 19 . . . it is a great opportunity for students and faculty to come and learn about the triumphs and challenges some of […]

   

• Mason Holds First Official Alcohol Awareness Week: Challenging College Students to Think Before Drinking

  News1 October 20, 2009 at 3:21 pm Comments are Disabled

  Amanda Cheek, News Editor Among the many things that George Mason University has strived to educate students of is alcohol abuse. This topic has never had an entire week devoted to it, however, and the first-ever Alcohol Awareness Week will be taking place this week at Mason. The Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life and the Office of Alcohol, Drug and Health Education have collaborated to make this event possible, but taking the lead in planning the actual events of the week fell on the shoulders of Courtney Webber, the vice president of risk management for the Panhellenic Council at Mason. “One of the goals [of being the Risk Management Chair] was to sponsor an event during National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week. Well, since I like to dream big, I thought why not do a program for the entire week?” said Webber, a tourism and events management major and senior at Mason. After organizing a committee of six chairs from each of the Panhellenic sororities and a seventh chair representing the Interfraternity Council, Webber and the committee decided on the events of the week and how they wanted to promote AAW. After working over eight months promoting and organizing the […]

   

• 'The Mason Family': Family Weekend Offers Time for Parents to Visit

  News1 October 6, 2009 at 1:41 pm Comments are Disabled

  Nicole Ocran, Best of Mason Director We may not run around with the likes of Thing or Cousin Itt, but we are quite a family. “The Mason Family” (modeled after The Addams Family) is this year’s Family Weekend theme. Families arrive every year during the weekend of Mason Madness to spend time with their students. Family Weekend runs from Friday, Oct. 16 until Sunday, Oct. 18 this year. “Our goal is to make this weekend a sort of snapshot of what Mason is about, [to] give families a bit of a flavor of Mason and the opportunity to see what students see every day,” said Doug Little, director of the Office of Orientation and Family Programs and Services. What is there to look forward to this year? “The big event around Family Weekend is of course Mason Madness; that’s the event students get the most excited about and come out for,” said Little. Friday’s opening events feature the Mason Family Welcome and Dinner, a pre-Mason Madness celebration, and then finishing off the night with Mason Madness. This year, there is a new opportunity to give back. “Saturday morning, we are offering three different community service activities to highlight our commitment […]

   

• Rooftop Observatory Offers Intriguing View: Research 1 Enables Closer Proximity to the Stars

  News1 October 6, 2009 at 1:39 pm Comments are Disabled

  Matt Loffman, Connect2Mason Podcast Director It is a view from campus not many people ever enjoy. The observatory on the rooftop of Research 1 offers a closer look at the night sky. It connects Earth with the stars, planets or even extraterrestrials that may be out there. Under the mostly clear sky on the evening of Sept. 29, about 40 George Mason University faculty, students and community members gathered at the observatory for the chance to see distant planets and stars. One of the volunteers who acted as a guide to the stars said that when the moon is as bright as it was on Tuesday, it can be hard to see stars in the night sky. When this is added to the light pollution surrounding the Fairfax campus, visibility can be limited. Even with the passing clouds and light pollution, participants were able to see the craters on the moon’s surface—a favorite for senior tourism and events management major Alisa Tibbs, who showed up just for fun. Senior computer science major Eric Kangas really enjoyed seeing Jupiter and its four moons up close. Kangas went to the observatory for his introductory astronomy class. Many of the other students present […]

   

• Walk With Courage, Walk With Hope: Annual Fight Against AIDS Walk Attracted Many

  News1 October 6, 2009 at 1:32 pm Comments are Disabled

  Sebastian Flores, Broadside Correspondent Six high-strung, middle-aged women from a church group sang their hearts out. Their voices, although individually very different from one another, all blended in a sweet gospel harmony, singing to the souls of all of the walkers around them. Although they belonged to a particular team, many others joined in their songs and began to clap to their rhythm. Singing, clapping and walking in unison, it was as if they had known each other for years. In reality, these people were complete strangers to one another, but they were brought together by the support in the fight against AIDS. Washington, D.C. held its annual AIDS Walk last Saturday, Oct. 3. Hundreds of people crowded the streets of Freedom Plaza, anxiously awaiting the start of the walk. Before the walk, individuals and sponsors of the AIDS Walk spoke to the crowd about the importance of AIDS awareness and prevention, some even sharing their own personal HIV/AIDS story with the audience. Teams from all over the D.C. Metropolitan area representing their school, organization or company listened to these speeches, and seemed to be even more inspired by their words. As the time inched closer to the start of […]

   

• Mason’s Budget Cut Plan: Administrators Discuss $17.6 Million Cut from 2010 University Budget

  News1 September 22, 2009 at 2:36 pm Comments are Disabled

  Emily Sharrer, Editor-in-Chief About 100 members of the George Mason University Faculty Senate gathered in Harris Theater last Wednesday to hear Senior Vice President Maurice Scherrens and Provost Peter Stearns discuss the ways the university is dealing with the newest $17.6 million budget cut for the 2010 fiscal year. The university’s operating budget currently stands at $887,117,600. Slightly higher class size numbers and a lack of money to be put toward student services are two of the main ways students will be affected by the cut, according to Scherrens. “I think the major impact is that there are going to be slightly more students in classes,” said Scherrens. Stearns also addressed this point during the meeting, claiming that average class size has recently risen from 26 to 28 students due to increased enrollment. Since 2008, $45.3 million has been cut from the university’s budget. Most schools across the state have seen similar budget cuts according to Scherrens. “It’s not much different for other schools,” said Scherrens during the meeting, “everybody’s going to show the same general [rate of decrease].” Stearns and Scherrens outlined the main parts of the university which will take cuts to offset the 15 percent budget cut. Instruction […]

   

• Enrollment Rises: Mason Increases Size of Student Body

  News1 September 22, 2009 at 2:32 pm Comments are Disabled

  Sonya Hudson, Managing Editor This year, 1,500 more students than expected enrolled into George Mason University. According to Dan Walsch, Mason’s press secretary, this means basically nothing will change for students on a day to day basis in the short term. “Students will continue attending classes and living their lives as normal,” said Walsch. “What this could mean down the road is an increase in class sizes.” Walsch also noted that the recent budget cuts will contribute to fewer offered sections of classes and an increase in class size. “The university can physically accommodate these students,” says Walsch, “but what the university is focusing on is maintaining a quality education for all these students.” According to Walsch, the university surpassing its enrollment target means that the university has a good name, as many students are transferring to Mason, many more are deciding to attend as freshmen and the retention rate is higher than last year. Walsch speculated that some of this stems from the bad economy, which is encouraging people to stay in school, take more courses and go back to school to increase credentials for better paying jobs. Students returning to Mason speaks to the quality of education they are […]