Faculty/Staff Announcements
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Campus Updates
Annual Health and Fitness Expo
Visit the 26th Annual Health and Fitness Expo on Thursday, March 23, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on the Fairfax Campus in the Johnson Center, Dewberry Hall. This popular event is free and open to the Mason community.
Participate in interactive health education activities, hands-on demonstrations, and fitness instruction and challenges. Register today to win door prizes and giveaways.
The expo will also include a Red Cross blood drive. Register via redcrossblood.org and enter: GMUBLOODDRIVE.
Board of Visitors Public Comment Session Scheduled for April 4
The Board of Visitors will conduct a meeting with an associated public comment session on Tuesday, April 4. This meeting will include a presentation by Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration Deb Dickenson on Mason’s FY 2024 financial plan, including proposals for tuition and mandatory fees. Additional details on the meeting and the public comment process will be available on the Board of Visitors website by the evening of Monday, March 20.
Go for Gold! 2020 Olympic Karate Athlete Sakura Kokumai
Sakura Kokumai is a Karate World Bronze Medalist and karate athlete for the USA team at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Go for Gold! 2020 Olympic Karate Athlete Sakura Kokumai
Thursday, March 30, 2–3 p.m.
Fairfax Campus, Johnson Center, Cinema
RSVP
Kokumai will discuss her lifelong mission of introducing American communities to karate, her training regimen, experiences as an Asian American woman, her struggles competing in a sport dominated by men, and experiences as a victim of anti-Asian hate. Students will have the opportunity to join Kokumai in her karate demonstration.
This event is sponsored by Mason’s Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, University Life, Department of History and Art History, and Department of Modern and Classical Languages. Contact Kirk Kanesaka with questions.
Transit Driver Appreciation Day: March 18
Mason Shuttles is celebrating Transit Driver Appreciation Day on March 18. It’s a wonderful time to celebrate our dedicated shuttle drivers. Help us say “thank you” by sharing kind words about your experiences on Mason Shuttles. Your email compliment will enter you into a drawing for a $20 Starbucks gift card. Read more details.
Training and Professional Development
Intersectionality 101 Trainings
Mason’s Women and Gender Studies Center is offering a basic training for students, faculty, and staff interested in applying intersectional theory to their work. Throughout this online module, participants will learn about intersectionality and how it can be applied in various areas of social justice work.
Intersectionality 101 Training
Tuesday, April 4, 4:30–7 p.m.
Register
Contact wgst@gmu.edu with questions.
University Life Faculty Engagement Series
The University Life Faculty Engagement Series is designed to provide information about Mason students and services, hear faculty perspectives and insights from the classroom, and identify the ways our collective work in student success intersects and overlaps. Upcoming sessions include:
Justice, Education, Diversity, Inclusion
Wednesday, March 15, from 2–3 p.m.
Fairfax Campus, SUB I, Room 3B and via Zoom
Presenter: Creston Lynch, assistant vice president of University Life
It's More Than a Dorm: The Current Landscape of On-Campus Living
Wednesday, March 22, from 2–3 p.m.
Fairfax Campus, Merten Hall, Room 1202 and via Zoom
Presenter: Shannon Jordan, associate dean and chief housing officer
Workshop to Explain COACHE Data Uses
Last spring, Mason faculty participated in the Harvard COACHE Faculty Satisfaction Survey. Mason received a customized report during the fall semester that highlighted key findings and access to data files that offer a deeper understanding of faculty satisfaction.
As this data can be examined to learn more about trends across colleges, faculty demographics, and faculty ranks, the COACHE Leadership Team will host a three-hour workshop on Wednesday, March 29, from noon to 3 p.m. in Fenwick Library’s Main Reading Room. The presenters will introduce the data, provide hands-on experiences to analyze key topic areas, and guide individuals on how they might be able to use the data to support positive changes. RSVP.
Resources for You
Registration Open: Bike to Mason Days
Celebrate cycling at Mason! Whether you bike to campus regularly for school or work or are contemplating starting to bike, Bike to Mason Day is open to all Mason cyclists.
- SciTech: Tuesday, April 18, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m., Colgan Front Patio
- Mason Korea: Wednesday, April 19, 8:30–10:30 a.m.
- Mason Square: Wednesday, April 19, 3–7 p.m., Founders Plaza
- Fairfax: Thursday, April 20, 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m., Merten Hall Lawn
There will be food, resource information, and fun giveaways. For planning purposes, let us know you are coming. Register at bike.gmu.edu.
Reminder: Daily Complimentary Parking Passes
Employees who participate in carpooling, vanpooling, Commuter Choice, or Bike Commuter Choice may be eligible to receive complimentary daily parking passes as part of these programs.
Remember that when you use daily passes, they are meant for one day of parking, so you must include a date on the pass when you use it, or risk getting a parking ticket. Parking and Transportation doesn’t want this to happen to anyone, so please take a moment and put the date on the daily pass you are using.
Learn more about these transportation programs. If you have any questions, contact transpo@gmu.edu.
Upcoming Performances at Mason
Visual Voices Lecture Series with Koyoltzintli Miranda-Rivadeneira
School of Art
Thursday, March 23, at 4:45 p.m.
Virtual via Zoom
Koyoltzintli Miranda-Rivadeneira is an Ecuadorian-American artist and curandera from Queens, New York, who investigates Indigenous ways of relating to the land through photography, video, ceramics, and sound. The artist captures a multifaceted exchange between herself and the land, achieving levels of intimacy as both a creator and a subject, an intimacy that is often withheld through the Westernized lens of photography and video’s history of colonial bias.
Mason Dance Company Gala Concert
School of Dance
Friday, March 24, and Saturday, March 25, at 8 p.m.
Center for the Arts
Dance enthusiasts are invited to witness talented dancers perform spectacular works from world-renowned choreographers this spring during the 2023 Mason Dance Company Gala Concert performances. This highlight of the season showcases School of Dance students in four thrilling and technically demanding works choreographed by some of the biggest names in dance. Held prior to the March 25 Dance Gala Concert performance, the Mason Dance Fête is an intimate benefit event to showcase Mason dancers and the Gala Concert program. Guests of the Fête are invited into rehearsal studios to see sections of the soon-to-be-performed works, as well as insights about the choreographer and the work itself.
Enchantment Theatre Company Presents The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon
Family Series
Sunday, March 26, at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m.*
Center for the Arts
*The 4 p.m. performance will be sensory-friendly.
The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon follows the zany adventures of an inventive young boy. Harold creates the world he wants to explore using nothing more than a big purple crayon and his sky’s-the-limit imagination. Combining life-size puppets, pantomime, dance, magic, and original music, The Adventures of Harold and the Purple Crayon will delight and amaze. Recommended for ages 5 and up.
Mason Jazz Ensemble and Jazz Workshop: Big Band Showdown
Dewberry School of Music
Monday, March 27, at 8 p.m.
Center for the Arts
Join the Mason Jazz Ensemble (director Jim Carroll) and the Jazz Workshop (director John Kocur) for an evening that celebrates the hot sounds and swinging beats of the Big Band era.
Mason School of Theater: The Hunchback of Seville
Multiple dates, March 30 through April 8
Harris Theatre
At the turn of the 16th century, Christopher Columbus has just returned from the New World with gold in his pockets and blood on his hands. Maxima Terriblé Segunda, the brilliant, adopted sister of dying Queen Isabella, is living out her life locked away in a tower…until it is decided that the future of the country is in her nerdy, reclusive hands. In a bitingly funny and madcap take on Spanish history and colonialism, Maxima weaves her way through mountains of prejudice, politics, religion, and the horrors of history.
Cirque FLIP Fabrique: Muse
Friday, March 31, at 8 p.m.
Saturday, April 1, at 2 p.m.
Center for the Arts
In this all-new, high-energy production, the seven acrobats of FLIP Fabrique don high heels, then football shoulder pads, to dazzle audiences of all ages. This performance combines breathtaking artistry and athleticism. Prepare for whimsy and wonder as mighty women, elegant men, and gravity-defying humans rejoice in who they are. Recommended for ages eight and up.
Daniel Hope and the Zurich Chamber Orchestra: America
Sunday, April 2, at 2 p.m.
Center for the Arts
Violin luminary Daniel Hope returns with the Zurich Chamber Orchestra to reveal the charisma of American music. This concert celebrates the country’s most recognizable tunes from across the 20th century. With new classical and jazz arrangements by Paul Bateman, Hope illuminates the American spirit. The acclaimed musicians of the Zurich Chamber Orchestra create the perfect partnership with Hope's violin mastery. This performance is appropriate for all ages.
Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra
Saturday, April 8, at 8 p.m.
Center for the Arts
Calling all cool cats to head to the Center for the Arts for a swinging evening of jazz with Northern Virginia’s own Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra, featuring keyboardist/organist Bobby Floyd on the Hammond organ and led by Founder, Artistic Director, and virtuoso saxophonist Jim Carroll. Don’t miss this signature event including some of the most remarkable jazz musicians in the metro region.