CHSS will host its degree celebration tomorrow, May 16, at 9:30 a.m. at EagleBank Arena. Congratulations to our newest graduates!

The CHSS Staff and A/P Faculty Advisory Council invites all CHSS A/P faculty, classified staff, and non-student wage employees to our inaugural spring social on May 21.

The 2025–2026 open enrollment period will be held May 16–30. Open Enrollment is your annual opportunity to review and adjust your benefits to meet your needs for the upcoming year.

As a reminder, CHSS A/P faculty, instructional/research faculty, research staff, and non-probationary classified employees who are graduating with a degree or certificate this semester may be eligible to receive a one-time degree or certificate recognition bonus as a token of appreciation for their hard work and dedication.

Former Special Counsel Jack Smith will deliver George Mason University’s 2025 Roger Wilkins Lecture on Sept. 16 at 4:30 p.m.

Spring 2025 was the last semester in which courses can be taught in Blackboard. Starting summer 2025, courses that use the learning management system must use Canvas (all sessions). Access to save any content from Blackboard will end on July 15.

2024 updates to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) reaffirmed that public entities, including George Mason University, must provide fully accessible digital experiences. By April 2026, all university websites and digital content must comply with WCAG 2.1 AA and Section 508 standards.

George Mason continues to provide updates and guidance on federal policy changes on its Federal Compliance Updates website. Resources for George Mason’s research community can be found on the Federal Research Funding Updates website.

The Office of Research, Innovation, and Economic Impact (ORIEI) will host a half-day research resilience workshop on May 20 at 9 a.m. in Dewberry Hall. The event is open to faculty, students, administrators, and research leaders, and will provide a forum to hear from the George Mason community about their concerns and challenges in the current research landscape.

Faculty Research and Development Awards (FRDA Seed Funds), funded by CHSS, are short-term awards that are designed to help CHSS tenured and tenure-track faculty initiate new programs of research and scholarship or enhance existing ones. CHSS awarded 10 FY2025 FRDA Seed Funding Awards to faculty.

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has released two new notices that may impact any upcoming grant applications.  

New in 2025! Eligible faculty who wish to apply for a faculty study leave for tenured instructional faculty will submit their application using George Mason’s new internal grants and limited submission platform from WizeHive/Submittable. The application deadline for faculty study leaves to be taken during the 2026–2027 academic year is October 10.

Qualtrics, an online survey tool used by George Mason researchers, provides virtual live training events. Onboarding office hours trainings introduce users to Qualtrics’ best practices and resources with a live Q&A session. Qualtrics AI trainings provide an overview of the newest AI features and products. Space is limited for these events and registration is required.

On April 28, the Institute for Immigration Research welcomed five panelists who shared their own personal and family stories as refugees fleeing Vietnam during and after the war.

George Mason University alumni, students, and members of the community gathered in the Buchanan Hall Atrium Gallery on April 24 for the spring celebration of the ongoing exhibition, Offerings to the Potomac: Acknowledging Indigenous Place.  

What would it mean to build a Northern Virginia that is democratic, sustainable, and inclusive, and what tools do we already have to get there? These were the guiding questions behind the 2025 Democratizing NOVA Summit: Building Community Power, Growing Community Wealth.

CHR is thrilled to have the support of George Mason's Graduate Division to offer competitive summer fellowships to doctoral fellows conducting research in the humanities. Read on to learn about our summer 2025 fellows.

Congratulations to our new faculty and graduate fellows!

The Social Science Research Council has exceeded its ambitious $100M Centennial Campaign goal. The robust philanthropic support for the social and behavioral sciences will be a critical support for the research community in the years to come.

Each semester we honor graduating students nominated by their departments for their academic achievement and contributions to their respective fields. Please join us in celebrating the spring 2025 undergraduate and graduate student honorees.

Stillhouse Press is thrilled to announce that Amy Stuber’s debut short story collection, SAD GROWNUPS has been awarded the 2025 PEN/Robert W. Bingham Prize for Debut Short Story Collection. Publicized at the 61st annual PEN America Literary Awards on May 8, this remarkable recognition establishes Stuber as an exciting new voice in fiction—and marks a major milestone for Stillhouse Press and the alumni, graduate, and undergraduate students, each of whom assisted in making this prodigious accolade possible.

Prem Ganesan, who graduated this spring with a bachelor’s degree in economics, won individual national championships during their career in a record six different categories—the most by a student in the 75-year history of intercollegiate competitive speech. Prem plans to attend Illinois State to pursue a master’s degree in communication and work as a graduate teaching assistant for the university’s forensics team. 

Senior of the Year Haley White said double majoring in business and art history was one of the best decisions she made during her time at George Mason University. Her second best decision was joining the Mason Chooses Kindness initiative. Haley looks forward to traveling and being happy with whatever she chooses to do, extending everything she has learned about kindness to others and herself.

Zain Alzubaidy, an anthropology major, recently completed an internship with the United States Department of Commerce. He worked in the Advocacy Center, a government service that provides commercial diplomatic support to American businesses in foreign markets. Zain’s future goals include pursuing further diplomatic work and possibly running for public office in the future, drawing on not only his competency and capability but also his intention to help others. 

Kendall Cade, who was honored as CHSS Senior of the Year at the college's Community and Catalysts event, graduated this spring with a degree in human development and family science and a minor in nonprofit studies. Kendall plans to pursue a master’s degree in social work and business administration. She plans to eventually become a marriage and family therapist and aspires to establish her own private practice with the goal of reducing domestic violence through addressing housing insecurity and instability.

Senior and men’s basketball guard Jared Billups graduated this spring with a bachelor’s degree in economics. He's also George Mason’s first conference Defensive Player of the Year since 2001 and was a finalist for the Lefty Driesell Award, given to the nation’s top defensive player. Looking toward the future, Jared plans to play basketball professionally and has already signed with an agent. 

Welcome to our monthly compilation of good news, gathered from CHSS faculty and staff!

The report states that while the U.S. leads the world in Nobel Prize winners, 35% of the award winners were immigrants.

Funds from the event will go directly toward providing essential mental health services to individuals in need.

Latif’s book, President Trump’s First Term, is also mentioned.

A study authored by D’Amico, Higher Education Program, is also cited.

Cowen, Department of Economics and Mercatus Center, and Hanson, Department of Economics, are featured among experts and advocates, outside the government, who are playing big roles in Washington’s policy debates.