Articles by: news

 

• U.S. Navy visits Mason:Hopes new program will recruit students

  News1 April 26, 2010 at 12:37 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Sandra Evans, Broadside Correspondent Wouldn’t it be nice to have a generous chunk of your tuition paid off for you even before working, as well as having the guarantee of a job after graduation? The U.S. Navy will be visiting George Mason University today from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. in North Plaza. The purpose of the event is to promote the Navy’s Baccalaureate Degree Completion Program (BDCP), which helps qualifying college students with their tuition while also guaranteeing a job with the Navy upon graduation. Christina Ramos, an account executive for Accent Marketing, an organization that helps arrange recruitment interviews for the Navy, said that she hopes a lot of students apply for the scholarship and that she’s very excited about the program itself. The scholarship program pays up to $4,700 a semester, which is even more appealing when mentioned along with the guaranteed job with the Navy upon degree completion. If a student starts the program at the beginning of his or her college career, it adds up to $37,600 before even beginning work. There are other benefits to the program as well, such as full medical and dental insurance during enrollment and payment of all moving […]

   

• Sodexo workers claim racism: War of words heats up as battle continues

  News1 April 26, 2010 at 12:33 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Ethan Vaughan, Asst. News Editor Accusations continue to fly between Service Employees International Union (SEIU) supporters and Mason Dining management, with both sides claiming the use of intimidation by the other and one union organizer alleging racism from Sodexo. “Here, a big part of it is racial discrimination,” SEIU organizer Amaya Henry said Friday. “Sodexo has a history of racial discrimination. The mistreatment comes in varying degrees. It depends on if someone is from another country and doesn’t know their rights. At the top of the chain are the student workers. No one would dare abuse them, because they’re educated and they know their rights. Below them are Asian and African-American workers, and last are Hispanics.” The assertion comes a month after Sodexo, the international food services and facilities management company, was ranked first on DiversityInc’s Top 50 Companies for Diversity. The company is currently receiving such criticism as Henry’s on a wider scale as a part of SEIU’s nationwide “Clean Up Sodexo” project. George Mason University’s on-campus Sodexo management, had not received any such criticism, at least publicly, until now. Union supporters, including Henry, claimed Friday that two Hispanic workers, Elizabeth Blas Falcon and Marta Zelaya, were denied […]

   

• Students play crime scene detective: CSI: George Mason

  News1 April 26, 2010 at 12:31 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Matthew Harrison, Broadside Correspodent Crime scene investigation, or CSI, teams are well known to the public through hit television shows. In almost every court case involving murder or violence, a CSI team has to come up with accurate evidence to fully prosecute the suspect. Last week, George Mason University students got to play the role of detective. Individuals enrolled in BIOL 575: Forensic DNA Analysis class Biology 509 put together a mock trial last Thursday at Innovation Hall, where students and faculty participated in a crime scene investigation. “This is an opportunity to apply my knowledge of DNA in the legal community,” said Dr. J. Thomas McClintock, a professor of forensic DNA analysis. McClintock started a consulting firm in 1993 that handled cases pertaining to murder and violence. He has also been working at Mason for over 11 years and has been publicizing this event for five. The mock investigations last week included opening statements from both a defendant and prosecutor. Witness testimonies also took place under very strict guidelines set by the judge, played by McClintock. The Forensic DNA Analysis class at Mason hosted this event to inform students about the importance of science and how it relates […]

   

• Student Assaults Police Officer

  News1 April 26, 2010 at 12:22 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Alyse Knorr, Broadside Correspondent Five Mason students were arrested on charges of being drunk in public last Thursday, one of whom also was charged with resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer. Biology major Phillip Sullivan, 21, was arrested in Parking Lot A on charges of being drunk in public, resisting arrest and assaulting a police officer, according to police records. He posted a $10,000 bond early Friday morning, according to the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center. “Our officers were on patrol and they approached him because he appeared to be intoxicated,” said Assistant Chief of University Police George Ginovsky. “When they went to arrest him for being intoxicated in public, he resisted the arrest and in the process of the arrest he assaulted one of the officers,” said Ginovsky. Ginovsky said the department had extra patrols out campus-wide because of Mason Day, including a special team called the Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) team that consists of officers in plain clothes. Ginovsky said that for special events such as Mason Day, Homecoming and certain concerts at the Patriot Center, the police team is split into several different teams that work together. These include a patrol team that maintains law […]

   

• Class helps poor of Fairfax: Mason aids with service and donations

  News1 April 19, 2010 at 1:27 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Genevieve Timpone, Broadside Correspondent Although Forbes Magazine lists Fairfax among the most affluent of America’s counties, there are still many individuals in the area who are homeless. The Lamb Center strives to be a safe haven for those in need. The Lamb Center is a Christian-based homeless shelter in Fairfax, Va. The organization allows the area’s homeless to get out of the elements, and provides a number of services, including meals, laundry, showers, phone access, a prayer area and mental outreach programs. The shelter also provides work-related help to its guests, such as resume drafting and the use of its address as a place of contact. George Mason University’s COMM 330: Principles of Public Relations class is working with the Lamb Center by collecting donations. According to junior communication major Nicole Carnemella, a student in the class, the class has not had much luck in receiving donations. Many stores they went to were either unwilling or legally unable to provide donations. “Other than a few donations from friends and family, we don’t have that much,” said Carnemella, noting that the group had only collected about two boxes of supplies. The COMM 330 class is not the only place on […]

   

• Students seesaw against slavery: Work to raise awareness on human trafficking

  News1 April 19, 2010 at 1:21 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Pras Gustanto, Staff Writer A playground activity like seesawing can be more than just a fun way to pass the time — it can also act as a tool to raise awareness. That is what Seesaw Against Slavery did to educate the George Mason University student body about human trafficking. The event, which took place last Monday, gave people the opportunity to ride a seesaw while helping to raise awareness of human trafficking by donating money, which went to aid awareness on the issue. The act of riding on the seesaw symbolizes what childhood could have been like for trafficked infants. “We seesaw because they can’t,” said Margalit de Gosztonyi, a junior biology major. The event brought together Christian organizations such as The Gathering and Campus Crusades for Christ in sponsoring the event to raise funds to help end human trafficking. The U.N. defines human trafficking as “The recruitment, transportation, transfer, harboring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion . . . for the purpose of exploitation.” Sex trafficking in both its personal and commercial variations is a common form of trafficking. “[It] is simply the global form […]

   

• Medical symposium comes to campus: Alpha Epsilon Delta hosts event

  News1 April 19, 2010 at 1:20 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Yuri Svjagintsev, Broadside Correspondent Being an undergraduate student is a very eye-opening and difficult time. Why is it difficult? Possibly because, for many students, it means deciding what they want to pursue for the rest of their lives. Some students are clueless to what their future professions will be. This is why organizations like Alpha Epsilon Delta exist on the George Mason University campus. The objective of this professional organization is to prepare students for a career as a physician and how to be successful in the challenging task of applying and completing medical school. According to Dara Kabban, Alpha Epsilon’s events coordinator and a senior biology major, the organization is also an “honor society that does service.” One of the programs offered is a shadow program, in which students shadow a medical professional. Since Alpha Epsilon Delta is an honor society, it requires participants to uphold a certain GPA. On Tuesday, the fraternity invited participants in VCU’s medical school to come and speak at the Johnson Center. The participants in this organization were all at different stages of their medical careers. They ranged from Asad Qassim, a fourth-year medical student at VCU, to Dr. Bashian, a retired pediatrician. […]

   

• Mason Ecosphere

  News1 April 19, 2010 at 1:18 pm Comments are Disabled

  By EAG Member Nya Jackson As Shavon Jordan, a sophomore psychology major, thumbed through her $222 Information Technology 103 book, she felt sick to her stomach knowing it would be thrown away at the end of the semester. “I’m mad I won’t get any money back, but it’s also wasteful because the book is going to end up in the garbage since I have no use for the book after I’m done with the course.” Jordan is not the only one thinking about George Mason University’s wasteful behavior. The Office of Sustainability (OS) has been considering how to reduce wasteful consumption and increase sustainability on campus. The OS is implementing a multi-level Climate Action Plan that will ideally lead Mason to climate neutrality. Recently, the OS held two town hall sessions to engage the Mason community. According to Lenna Storm, Mason’s sustainability coordinator, “With 15 participants — staff, graduates, undergraduates and faculty — and input from all aspects of university operations, the seminar resulted in a list of over 300 projects aimed at reducing emissions.” While all of these projects were not included in the Climate Action Plan after their costs and benefits were determined, many are ready for immediate […]

   

• Mason celebrates 40th anniversary of Earth Day: University goes green

  News1 April 19, 2010 at 1:15 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Pras Gustanto, Staff Writer Earth Day this year will mark a special occasion for both the world and for George Mason University. It will mark the 40th anniversary of the first Earth Day, a day that is designed to inspire knowledge and recognition about the Earth’s environment. Sunday, April 25 will also be Mason’s first official Earth Day trip to the National Mall. This will be the climax of a series of Earth Week events at Mason that started on April 6 and will end on May 1. As it says on Mason’s Office of Sustainability (OS) website, “Earth Week in 2010 features many opportunities to learn about environmental sustainability as well as Mason’s commitment to leadership in environmental research and action.” This past week had several events covering a variety of environment-related topics. On April 17, for instance, there was Mason Beautification Day, when Mason students were invited to make Mason more beautiful. Among other things, the event involved planting and painting around campus. Upcoming events will feature Earth Day celebrations for just about everyday of this week. On Tuesday, April 20, Dr. Geoffrey Birchard of Mason’s Environmental Science and Policy Department, will speak on the subject of […]

   

• Communication class helps orphans: Students raise funds for peers

  News1 April 19, 2010 at 1:10 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Reuben Jones, Staff Writer Buying textbooks, purchasing school supplies and decorating a school dorm room can all be expensive challenges for cash-strapped college students. But for students without parents, and those who do not have family resources to count on, the challenge can be even harder. This is a problem one class at George Mason University hopes to put a dent in. COMM 389: Public Relations for Associations and Nonprofits has 26 students dedicated to the assignment of raising money and supporting the Orphan Foundation of America (OFA). LaKesha Anderson has taught the class for the past four semesters. She explains that, in the class, students learn to “write persuasively for nonprofits and develop a grant proposal.” Every semester she has split the class into groups to focus their efforts on different nonprofit organizations. This year, however, she decided to have the entire class focus on one organization. This has been a welcomed change. “Everyone is really into it, and the class is very involved,” said Anderson. The Orphan Foundation of America began in 1986 and, since then, has awarded millions of dollars in scholarships and grants to more than 3,500 students. The communication class is organized into four […]