Recent Posts

• Founders Hall coming soon: New building on Arlington campus to open in January

  News1 May 3, 2010 at 1:10 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Sean Joyce, The Stylus Correspondent A giant, shiny building has appeared in the middle of George Mason’s Arlington campus. And you may be wondering, will you ever actually step foot in this state-of-the-art facility? If you are taking classes in the spring of 2011 or after, the answer is yes. The seven-story building, known as Founders Hall, will open for classes in January 2011 and will be the new home of the School of Pubic Policy. The building will also contain space for the Graduate School of Education; the College of Arts and Sciences; the School of Information Technology and Engineering; the School of Management; the College of Nursing and Health Sciences; the Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution; the College of Visual and Performing Arts; Instructional Facilities; and the Interdisciplinary Center for Economic Science. In addition to 256,000 square feet of office and classroom space, Founders Hall will also provide a much-needed 160,000-square-foot parking garage. The building will also include a new library, bookstore and auditorium. There will be a large open plaza in front of the building for students to enjoy during non-blizzard conditions. The current schedule calls for trees to be planted in the plaza by […]

   

• Muslimat Al-Nissa: MSA collects supplies for Muslim women’s shelter

  News1 May 3, 2010 at 1:09 pm 4 comments

  By Shafi Khan, Broadside Correspondent The Muslimat Al-Nisaa, a shelter for abused and battered Muslim women is currently located in Baltimore, Md. The shelter for safety reasons does not give out its address, vetted guests are asked to meet at an address a few blocks away and then follow a car to the house that blends into its unassuming street. Once inside, the large house is warm and full of life, children running and playing, as their mothers try to cope from the trauma of broken homes they left behind. In the tight knit American Muslim Community, where there is always family, these women are the ones that really have nowhere else to turn, and it if it wasn’t for this shelter, the cold streets would be their home. After being moved by the scene, students in the GMU Muslim Students’ Association started to brainstorm on how they could increase their involvement in community service projects and also reach out to the George Mason University community. Out of this brainstorming, the GMU Muslim Students’ Association launched the newly formed outreach committee. “The outreach committee is a branch of the GMU Muslim Students’ Association which focuses on involving individuals in philanthropic, […]

   

• Goats!

  News1 May 3, 2010 at 1:06 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Pras Gustanto, Staff Writer Goats have been given negative associations in most of Western culture. The Greeks envisioned their half-man half-goat nature god Pan as a lecherous deity. Christianity also considered goats to be a symbol of evil, with people in the Middle Ages believing that goats whispered dirty sentiments into the ears of saints. For modern-day Ugandan women, however, goats are a source of life that provides sustenance for families. The utilities the goats provide enable women to form their own small businesses and allow them to save enough money to send their children to school. This past Wednesday, George Mason University’s Women and Gender Studies Center invited a family of farmers to bring their goats to North Plaza to raise money and awareness for the socio-economic plights of low-income Ugandan women. It is all part of an awareness-raising joint effort with the Women’s Center for Job Creation (WCFJC), a non-governmental organization based in Minnesota and Uganda. David Keller and Melanie Thatcher, a farming family from Nokesville, Va., provided the goats. Students and passersby participated by donating money into the effort’s money collection jar. It takes $50 to sponsor a goat to Ugandan women. “What happens is that […]

   

• Golfers fight against cancer: Tournament raises funds for leukemia and lymphoma research

  News1 May 3, 2010 at 1:04 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Beverly Scholnick, Broadside Correspondent The Students Against Leukemia and Lymphoma (SALL) organization will host its annual golf tournament at Fairfax National Golf Club in Centreville on Monday, May 17, beginning at 7 a.m. Over 70 people are expected to attend. SALL is a nonstock corporation founded by George Mason University foreign languages major James Nance. Nance hopes to spread SALL to other universities in the D.C. metro area. The drive behind his dedication to charity is simple. “If I didn’t, no one else would,” Nance says. “I didn’t want to go through college not having done anything to give back to the community or better, the world around me.” All the proceeds from the tournament will be donated to the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society (LLS) to support cancer research. In addition to conducting research, the LLS also teaches newly diagnosed patients how to work effectively with their doctors, provides prescription drug assistance, connects patients with financial resources and provides many other vital services. But the tournament is not only about good will. “Aside from the fact that 100 percent of the profits will be donated to charity and finding a cure for cancer,” says Nance, “the following are included: […]

   

• Take the stress off exams: Spring Finals Madness helps students relax

  Lifestyle May 3, 2010 at 1:02 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Jason Hasnat, Broadside Correspondent In the midst of final presentations and exams, George Mason University will be holding its Spring Finals Madness event from 10 p.m. to midnight on Tuesday in Dewberry Hall. There will be plenty of free food, games, giveaways and live performances for students to enjoy before they settle in for the long haul of studying for their exams. Exams this year begin on Saturday, May 8 and end on Wednesday, May 12 due to the almost week-long class cancellations from “Snowpocalypse.” “It’s a good way to release stress,” said sophomore communication major Diana Pham. “It’s perfect timing for finals week.” The event, hosted by Student Centers in conjunction with Mason Dining and Alphi Phi Alpha’s Iota Alpha chapter, was created to give students an opportunity to have fun and blow off some steam before finals really kick off next week. One of the major draws of the event is the free swag, which many students are looking forward to getting. According to Mecca Marsh, associate director of Training and Programs for Student Centers, there will also be scantrons and blue books available for students to take. Spring Finals Madness is a continuation of Fall Finals […]

   

• Mason Ecosphere: Environmental action group collects over 100 pounds of trash

  News1 May 3, 2010 at 1:00 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Jason Von Kundra, EAG Co-Chair On Saturday morning, April 15, members of the Environmental Action Group participated in the inaugural Mason Beautification Day. According to Environmental Action Group member and history major Anthony Murray, “Cleaning our campus is an important thing do; the trash that we collected would otherwise likely end up in the Chesapeake Bay, polluting our water and endangering the wildlife that live there.” According to the Chesapeake Bay Program, more than 16 million people live in the Bay’s watershed. “I think a lot of people take it for granted,” said Murray. “Many people don’t realize how important it really is, but the Bay truly is an integral part of Virginia’s economy and its very identity. Without the Bay, Virginia would be a very different, and [a] much less wonderful state.” According to the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the Bay, the destruction that has been wreaked on the Bay has been staggering. “Since colonial times, the Bay has lost half of its forested shorelines, over half of its wetlands, nearly 90 percent of its underwater grasses and more than 98 percent of its oysters.” Emily Miles, co-chair of the Environmental Action […]

   

• Mason’s 14-year-old: Youngest high school grad in the nation successfully juggles class and extracurriculars

  News1 May 3, 2010 at 12:59 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Emily Sharrer, Editor-in-Chief For most 14-year-old girls, finishing the eighth grade and finding a boyfriend are top priorities. Even notions of a high school prom and getting into college are still distant dreams. But George Mason University freshman Paige Epler, the youngest high school graduate in the nation, is not most 14-year-old girls. In fact, she doesn’t even like the Jonas Brothers. “I like Vivaldi,” said Epler, who has been featured on major news programs to tell her unique story — that of a child genius who attends George Mason University, has broken a world record for successfully completing 200 laps on the monkey bars in less than 40 minutes and created a program on sharks endorsed by the Smithsonian — all before she even has her learner’s permit. Epler, who was homeschooled, graduated high school and attended her first high school prom at just 12, is an ambitious tween, who bides her time taking classes at Mason, practicing her violin and participating in a local Pokemon league. But for Epler, it’s all in a day’s work. “I still have time to play with my friends. I can balance my social life with my academic one. The best part […]

   

• Campus Under Construction: Development projects to continue into fall semester

  News1 May 3, 2010 at 12:54 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Ethan Vaughan, Asst. News Editor George Mason University spent $240 million on construction projects during the 2009-2010 school year, and it will continue to build into the foreseeable future, with a score of ongoing efforts reaching completion this summer. Of the 22 items currently underway, 12 of them major construction projects, eight will make their debut between the fall and spring semesters. Opening their doors this summer will be the Biomedical Research Laboratory at Prince William, the Hylton Performing Arts Center at Prince William and the Aquia building at Fairfax in May; the Hampton Roads housing facility at Fairfax, the de Laski Performing Arts Building addition at Fairfax and the Mason Inn at Fairfax in July; and the Pilot House at Fairfax and the Center for Student Success in the SUB I addition at Fairfax in August. Thomas Calhoun, vice president of Facilities, expressed particular excitement about Hampton Roads and the Pilot House, which he said would “be a great addition to campus life.” “These projects markedly improve the university as a whole and make it an exciting place to be,” Calhoun said. In addition to those projects concluding in the summer, a number will either continue into the […]

   

• Come fly with me: New Aviation Club lets prospective pilots take the controls during ‘Flight Day’ at Warrenton Airport

  Lifestyle May 3, 2010 at 12:48 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Emily Sharrer, Editor-in-Chief It’s been nearly three years since Rick Davis, associate provost for undergraduate education first hatched the idea of a flying club at George Mason University, close to a year since student James Buttery began rallying support and gathering paperwork to make it a reality, and a little over a month since the Mason Aviation Club has been instated at Mason. Already the group has gathered close to 200 Facebook fans and 50 official members, 29 of whom gathered on Saturday for the club’s first-ever Flight Day at Warrenton-Faquier Airport. “This is really a test semester for us, we’re just kind of seeing what works and what doesn’t,” said Conor Dancy, a freshman environmental science major and vice president of the Aviation Club. Last Saturday, the Aviation Club got together at Warrenton Airport to fly airplanes, eat BBQ, and have a meet and greet with local pilots, including famed Flying Circus Aerodrome airshow pilot Charlie Kulp, also known as “the Flying Farmer.” “In the aviation world Charlie Kulp, especially around here, is a pretty big celebrity, so even just the fact that he would come out to something like that, in the eyes of the aviation community, […]

   

• Student hit by car moved to rehabilitation center: Michelle Dawson undergoing speech and brain therapy

  News1 May 3, 2010 at 12:47 pm Comments are Disabled

  By Emily Sharrer, Editor-in-Chief The road to recovery for Michelle Dawson, the student who was hit by a car while in a crosswalk on Patriot Circle on March 29, is going to be a long one say family of the junior marketing major. Dawson, who was recently moved from INOVA Fairfax to a local rehabilitation center, is currently undergoing speech, brain and occupational therapy according to Danielle Dawson, Michelle’s older sister and a senior art and visual technology major. “She’s gonna be in a wheelchair for a long time, there’s just no definite answer right now,” said Danielle Dawson, who has been at Michelle’s side almost everyday since the accident. “She’s a fighter and she’s doing everything the doctors are telling her to do with the various rehab that she’s going through,” said Michelle’s dad, Dave Dawson. “It’s like a waiting game and everyday we get a new little piece of the puzzle. [Michelle and Danielle] were like inseparable. [Danielle’s] basically taken off her semester to help rehabilitate Michelle, which is sweet of her and we all appreciate that. Thank god Danielle’s there with her everyday and night,” he said. The driver of the car that hit Michelle Dawson, Jeffrey […]