CHSS Digest

March 19, 2026

CHSS Digest March 19, 2026

Welcome to the College of Humanities and Social Sciences bi-weekly newsletter!

For the most up-to-date information, visit the CHSS website.

Have news to share? Send us your news via the submission form.

The next issue of CHSS Digest will be published on April 2. View the full CHSS Digest schedule

Announcements & Resources
Support Mason Giving Day

Support Mason Giving Day

On Mason Giving Day this April 2, choose your impact by supporting the department, program, center, or initiative that means the most to you.

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In Memoriam: Professor Emerita Katherine E. Rowan

In Memoriam: Professor Emerita Katherine E. Rowan

Kathy was a treasured colleague, professor, mentor, and friend to many in our community during her 20 years with the Department of Communication.

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Applications wanted for 2026 Dean's Challenge Award

Applications wanted for 2026 Dean's Challenge Award

The College of Humanities and Social Sciences seeks applications for the Graduate Dean’s Challenge Scholarships for 2026. The recipients of this award receive a stipend, funded by generous donations from friends of the college, to help with their educational expenses.

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Save the date for CHSS Undergraduate Research Symposium

Save the date for CHSS Undergraduate Research Symposium

The 16th annual College of Humanities and Social Sciences Undergraduate Research Symposium will be held on the bottom floor of Horizon Hall on April 23.

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Registration open for Mason AI Day

Registration open for Mason AI Day

Save the date for Mason AI Day on April 29 at 9 a.m. in Fuse at Mason Square. This all-day event will bring together researchers pursuing foundational questions in AI, faculty integrating these tools into teaching and scholarship, policymakers wrestling with governance, students navigating a shifting landscape, and practitioners deploying systems in the field.

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Celebrate our graduates with a message of congratulations!

Celebrate our graduates with a message of congratulations!

Sign up to record a brief video message of congratulations for our 2026 grads! Messages will be featured in the CHSS degree celebration's pre-ceremony slideshow. It's a fun and meaningful way for faculty, academic advisors, students, and alumni to cheer on our students and let them know how proud we are of all they've accomplished. Multilingual messages are welcome to showcase the many languages that make up our community.

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Remind your students about George Mason University Foundation scholarships

Remind your students about George Mason University Foundation scholarships

Please let your students know that George Mason University Foundation scholarships are available and are open to all continuing undergraduates, admitted transfers, and graduate students.

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Research, Scholarship & Creative Activity
ACE 2026 Women's Network Virginia Annual State Conference

ACE 2026 Women's Network Virginia Annual State Conference

The American Council on Education (ACE) Women’s Network Virginia will be holding its 2026 Annual State Conference, “Navigating Rough Waters,” on June 5 at Fuse at Mason Square in Arlington. The ACE Women's Network Virginia is seeking proposals for the 2026 Annual State Conference that will engage women leaders in higher education and help build their networks in times of uncertainty, challenge, and change.

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Call for Applications: 2026 Commonwealth Coastal & Marine Policy Fellowship

Call for Applications: 2026 Commonwealth Coastal & Marine Policy Fellowship

Recent and upcoming Virginia graduate students (master's/PhD) are invited to apply for the 2026 Commonwealth Coastal & Marine Policy Fellowship sponsored by Virginia Sea Grant, the Virginia Environmental Endowment, and the Virginia Coastal Zone Management Program. Application deadline is May 1.

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NHA Professional development course

NHA Professional development course

The National Humanities Alliance (NHA) is offering a virtual professional development course designed for higher education researchers who may have little or no experience with social science research methods. This course runs for four weeks starting on March 26.

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Host a Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence in 2027-2028

Host a Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence in 2027-2028

The Fulbright Scholar-in-Residence (S-I-R) Program is a unique Fulbright Scholar Program initiative that is driven by U.S. institutions of higher education curriculum and teaching needs. Fulbright Scholar Program will host upcoming webinars in April and May to provide additional information about the program and competition. Deadline to apply to the Fulbright S-I-R Program is June 1, 2026.

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NEH webinar and upcoming funding opportunities

NEH webinar and upcoming funding opportunities

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) recently hosted a webinar that discussed their purpose, some funding priorities, and grant writing tips. For 2026, unless specified otherwise in the NOFO/program, the NEH will prioritize projects that research American history and the culture and Western civilization.

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Hanover Research: Upcoming webinars and grant opportunities for Spring 2026

Hanover Research: Upcoming webinars and grant opportunities for Spring 2026

Hanover Research supports colleges and universities with research development, grant writing, and strategic advising. George Mason faculty, staff, students and administrators have access to Hanover’s Grants Learning Center. Hanover Research will be hosting two webinars this spring on grant writing and effective research translation.

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Writing Across the Curriculum offering funding for faculty this summer

Writing Across the Curriculum offering funding for faculty this summer

Writing Across the Curriculum (WAC) is offering faculty an opportunity for early summer funding. Work on the project would run from May 25 to August 9. Submit a proposal for a WAC early summer funding project before April 20. WAC solicits proposals from all departments, programs, colleges, and schools at George Mason University, including both full-time and part-time faculty.

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CHSS hosts History and Humanities Fair for elementary and middle school students

CHSS hosts History and Humanities Fair for elementary and middle school students

The College of Humanities and Social Sciences hosted a History and Humanities Fair in February for more than 50 elementary and middle school students from City of Fairfax Schools.

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Faculty, Staff, Student & Alumni Recognition
Honoring lives, shaping futures

Honoring lives, shaping futures

Through a remarkable planned gift to George Mason University, Robert “Ken” Hedrick Jr., BA History ’71, has created four endowed scholarships to benefit first-generation students.

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MAIS student advances theater research through yearlong workshop at Folger Shakespeare Library

MAIS student advances theater research through yearlong workshop at Folger Shakespeare Library

This academic year, Samantha “Chevi” Chung has had a research opportunity that few have had by participating in a yearlong workshop at the Folger Shakespeare Library. The theme of Chung’s workshop is “Shakespeare and Black Performing Women,” which ties in perfectly with her thesis. 

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Shout Outs, March 2026

Shout Outs, March 2026

Welcome to our monthly compilation of good news, gathered from the college's faculty and staff!

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Events

James Buchanan and Vernon Smith Seminar

Dr. Charles Manski, Northwestern University

Clock Icon for Thursday, March 19, 2026  5:00 PM to  7:30 PM EDTThursday, March 19, 2026 5:00 PM to 7:30 PM EDT

Map Icon for Johnson Center, GeorgeJohnson Center, George's (third floor)

CHR and George Mason Libraries present “Open Access Publishing and the Humanities: Mapping the Terrain"

A Panel with OA Publishers

Clock Icon for Monday, March 23, 2026 12:00 PM to  1:30 PM EDTMonday, March 23, 2026 12:00 PM to 1:30 PM EDT

Map Icon for HYBRID- Horizon Hall 6325 and ZoomHYBRID- Horizon Hall 6325 and Zoom

CHR Residential Fellow Talk: Jane Hooper (Professor, History and Art History)

"Islands of Unfreedom: Slavery and Emancipation in the Seychelles"

Clock Icon for Tuesday, March 24, 2026 12:00 PM to  1:00 PM EDTTuesday, March 24, 2026 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM EDT

Map Icon for Horizon Hall 6325 and ZoomHorizon Hall 6325 and Zoom

Visiting Filmmakers Series: Mahrya MacIntire with An American Bombing: The Road to April 19th

Clock Icon for Tuesday, March 24, 2026  5:00 PM to  7:00 PM EDTTuesday, March 24, 2026 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM EDT

Map Icon for Johnson Center, CinemaJohnson Center, Cinema

Cultural Studies Colloquium: Dr. Timothy Shenk

Clock Icon for Wednesday, March 25, 2026  1:00 PM to  2:30 PM EDTWednesday, March 25, 2026 1:00 PM to 2:30 PM EDT

More American Than Whom? Race, Status, and National Identity

Dr. Victoria S. Asbury-Kimmel, New York University

Clock Icon for Wednesday, March 25, 2026  1:30 PM to  2:30 PM EDTWednesday, March 25, 2026 1:30 PM to 2:30 PM EDT

Map Icon for Johnson Center, Meeting Room EJohnson Center, Meeting Room E

Join us for the first talk in our third annual Emerging Scholars Symposium

Details

Between Labor, Love, and Decent Work: Domestic Worker Organizing across National Contexts 

Kritika Pandey, University of Southern California

Clock Icon for Wednesday, March 25, 2026  3:00 PM to  4:00 PM EDTWednesday, March 25, 2026 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM EDT

Map Icon for Johnson Center, Meeting Room FJohnson Center, Meeting Room F

Join us for the second presentation in our third annual Emerging Scholars Symposium

Details

Biased from the Beginning: Disparities in Mental Health Language in Clinical Notes, an Original Video Vignette Survey Experiment

Fatima Fairfax, Duke University

Clock Icon for Thursday, March 26, 2026 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM EDTThursday, March 26, 2026 11:00 AM to 12:00 PM EDT

Map Icon for Johnson Center, Meeting Room FJohnson Center, Meeting Room F

Join us for the third presentation in our third annual Emerging Scholars Symposium.

Details

Mark Oppenheimer on Judy Blume

Clock Icon for Monday, March 30, 2026  6:30 PM to  8:00 PM EDTMonday, March 30, 2026 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM EDT

Map Icon for Fenwick Library, Main Reading RoomFenwick Library, Main Reading Room

Author and podcaster Mark Oppenheimer visits George Mason to discuss his just-published biography of Judy Blume.

Details

CHR Residential Fellow Talk: Angela Ho (Associate Professor, History and Art History)

"Imagining China at Home: European Material Culture in the Age of Maritime Trade"

Clock Icon for Tuesday, March 31, 2026 12:00 PM to  1:00 PM EDTTuesday, March 31, 2026 12:00 PM to 1:00 PM EDT

Map Icon for Horizon Hall 6325 and ZoomHorizon Hall 6325 and Zoom

CHR Book Launch: "I Will Not Abandon You: Queer Women in Nazi Germany" by Samuel Clowes Huneke

A conversation moderated by Rachel Jones

Clock Icon for Friday, April  3, 2026 12:30 PM to  2:00 PM EDTFriday, April 3, 2026 12:30 PM to 2:00 PM EDT

Map Icon for Hybrid- Horizon Hall 6325 and ZoomHybrid- Horizon Hall 6325 and Zoom

CHSS in the Media

Welcome to CHSS in the Media! Some articles may be behind a paywall. University Libraries provides direct access to current news sources. For more information, go to InfoGuides: Current News: Direct Subscriptions

Research by Zachary Schrag, Department of History and Art History, referenced in Washingtonian article on Metro's 50th anniversary

Schrag's book, Great Society Subway, discusses how Metro system showed Lyndon B. Johnson administration’s commitment to egalitarian public investments that reflected the nation’s huge wealth and equally grand ambitions.

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Peiyu Yang, Department of Modern and Classical Languages, quoted in NBC News about President Trump's upcoming visit to China

Yang discusses the relationship between China and Iran and how it is based on economic interests, not "ideological standard or viewpoint."

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Todd Kashdan, Department of Psychology, interviewed about curiosity on The Connection Effect podcast

The Connection Effect host Bill Groner interviewed Kashdan to explore what curiosity really is and why it's far more powerful, more complex, and more trainable than most of us realize.

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Exploratory studies major Ilia Malinin featured in Associated Press for winning Olympics' Fair Play Award

Malinin was awarded the Milan Cortina Olympics fair play award for his sportsmanship after he finished off the podium in the individual figure skating event.

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Alex Tabarrok, Department of Economics, quoted in Scripps News after lawmakers call to ban government officials from prediction markets

Tabarrok discusses the dynamics of prediction markets after millions of dollars in bets were placed on Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's death.

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