 | |
Former names | Northern Virginia University Center of the University of Virginia (1949–1956) University College of the University of Virginia (1956–1959) George Mason College of the University of Virginia (1959–1972) |
|---|---|
| Motto | "Freedom and Learning" |
| Type | Publicresearch university |
| Established | 1949; 76 years ago (1949)[1] |
| Founder | Virginia General Assembly |
| Accreditation | SACS |
Academic affiliations | |
| Endowment | $222.2 million (2024)[2] |
| President | Gregory Washington[3] |
| Provost | James Soto Antony |
| Rector | Charles "Cully" Stimson |
Academic staff | 2,133 (fall 2023)[4] |
| Students | 39,763 (fall 2024)[5] |
| Undergraduates | 27,160 (fall 2023)[5] |
| Postgraduates | 11,804 (fall 2023)[5] |
| Location | , Virginia ,US 38°49′52″N77°18′29″W / 38.831°N 77.308°W /38.831; -77.308 |
| Campus | Large suburb, 953 acres (386 ha) (Fairfax /George Mason, Virginia), 1,148 acres (465 ha) total |
| Location of campuses | [6][7] |
| Media | Fourth Estate (newspaper) WGMU Radio (radio station) |
| Colors | Green Gold[8] |
| Nickname | Patriots |
Sporting affiliations | |
| Mascot | The Patriot |
| Website | gmu.edu |
 | |
 | |
George Mason University (GMU) is apublicresearch university inFairfax County, Virginia, United States. Located inNorthern Virginia nearWashington, D.C., the university is named in honor ofGeorge Mason, aFounding Father of the United States.[9]
The university was founded in 1949 as a northern branch of theUniversity of Virginia. It became an independent university in 1972, and it has since grown into the largest public university by student enrollment in Virginia.[10][11][1] It has expanded into aresidential college fortraditional students while maintaining its historiccommuter student-inclusive environment at bothundergraduate andpost-graduate levels, with an emphasis on combining modern professional education with a traditionalliberal arts curriculum.[12][13][14]
The university operates four campuses; the flagship campus is in theFairfax, Virginia area.[15] Its other three campuses are inArlington,Front Royal, andPrince William County. It also operates aretreat andconference center inLorton[16] and an international campus inIncheon, South Korea. It isclassified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity".[17] Since the university's founding, two of itseconomics professors have received theNobel Memorial Prize in Economics:James M. Buchanan in 1986 andVernon L. Smith in 2002.[18]
In 1949, theUniversity of Virginia created an extension center to serve mid-career workingprofessionals andnon-traditional students near urban centers in theNorthern Virginia suburbs ofWashington, D.C.[19][1] The extension center offered both for credit and non-credit informal classes in the evenings at various pre-existing venues.[1]: 5 The first for credit classes offered were: "Government in the Far East, Introduction to International Politics, English Composition, Principles of Economics, Mathematical Analysis, Introduction to Mathematical Statistics, and Principles of Lip Reading."[1] By the end of 1952, enrollment was 1,192 students.[1]
A resolution of theVirginia General Assembly in January 1956 changed the extension center into University College, theNorthern Virginia branch of theUniversity of Virginia.[20][self-published source?] John Norville Gibson Finley served as director.[21] Seventeen freshmen students attended classes at University College in a small renovated elementary school building inBailey's Crossroads starting in September 1957.[22]: 24 In 1958 University College became George Mason College.[20]
TheCity of Fairfax purchased and donated 150 acres (60 hectares) of land just south of the city limits to the University of Virginia for the college's new site, which is now referred to as theFairfax Campus. In 1959, theBoard of Visitors of the University of Virginia selected a permanent name for the college: George Mason College of the University of Virginia. The Fairfax campus construction planning that began in early 1960 showed visible results when the development of the first 40 acres (16 hectares) of Fairfax Campus began in 1962. In the Fall of 1964 the new campus welcomed 356 students.[23][self-published source?]
In 1966, in theVirginia General Assembly,Alexandria delegateJames M. Thomson, with the backing of the University of Virginia, introduced a bill in the General Assembly to make George Mason College a four-year institution under the University of Virginia's direction. The measure, known as H 33,[24] passed the Assembly easily and was approved on March 1, 1966, making George Mason College a degree-granting institution. During that same year, the local jurisdictions ofFairfax County,Arlington County, and the cities ofAlexandria andFalls Church agreed to appropriate $3 million to purchase land adjacent to Mason to provide for a 600-acre (240-hectare) Fairfax Campus with the intention that the institution would expand into a regional university of major proportions, including the granting of graduate degrees.[citation needed]
In 1972, Virginia separated George Mason College from theUniversity of Virginia inCharlottesville and renamed it George Mason University.[25]
In 1978,George W. Johnson was appointed to serve as the fourth president.[26] Under his eighteen-year tenure, the university expanded both its physical size and program offerings at a tremendous rate.[26][27] Shortly before Johnson's inauguration in April 1979, Mason acquired theSchool of Law and the new Arlington Campus. The university also became a doctoral institution.[26] Toward the end of Johnson's term, Mason would be deep in planning for a third campus inPrince William County atManassas. Major campus facilities, such as Student Union Building II,EagleBank Arena, Center for the Arts, and the Johnson Learning Center, were all constructed over the course of Johnson's eighteen years as University President. Enrollment once again more than doubled from 10,767 during the fall of 1978 to 24,368 in the spring of 1996.[28]
In 1996,Alan Merten, dean of theSamuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management atCornell University was appointed the university's president. He believed that the university's location made it responsible for both contributing to and drawing from its surrounding communities—local, national, and global. George Mason was becoming recognized and acclaimed in all of these spheres. During Merten's tenure, the university hosted theWorld Congress of Information Technology in 1998,[29] celebrated a secondNobel Memorial Prize-winning faculty member in 2002, and cheered theMen's basketball team in theirNCAAFinal Four appearance in 2006. Enrollment increased from just over 24,000 students in 1996 to approximately 33,000 during the spring semester of 2012, making Mason Virginia's largest public university.[30]
Following Merten's retirement in 2012,Ángel Cabrera was appointed the university's sixth president on July 1, 2012.
In a resolution on August 17, 2012, the board asked Cabrera to create a new strategic vision that would help Mason remain relevant and competitive in the future. The drafting of the Vision for Mason, from conception to official outline, created a newmission statement that defines the university.[31]
On March 25, 2013, Cabrera held a press conference to announce the university's decision to leave theColonial Athletic Association to join theAtlantic 10 Conference (A-10). The announcement came just days after the Board of Visitors' approval of the university's vision document that Cabrera had overseen. Mason began competition in the A-10 during the 2013–2014 academic year.[32]The Chronicle of Higher Education listed Mason as one of the "Great Colleges to Work For" from 2010 to 2014.[33]The Washington Post listed Mason as one of the "Top Workplaces" in 2014.[34]
The WorldatWork Alliance for Work-Life Progress awarded Mason the Seal of Distinction in 2015.[35] TheAARP listed Mason as one of the Best Employers for Workers Over 50 in 2013.[36]Phi Beta Kappa established a chapter at the university in 2013.[37]
In 2018, aFreedom of Information Act lawsuit revealed that conservative donors, including theCharles Koch Foundation andFederalist Society, were given direct influence over faculty hiring decisions at the university's law and economics schools. GMU President Ángel Cabrera acknowledged that the revelations raised questions about the university's academic integrity and pledged to prohibit donors from sitting on faculty selection committees in the future.[38]
Cabrera resigned his position on July 31, 2019, to become president ofGeorgia Tech.[39][40] Following Cabrera's resignation,Anne B. Holton served as interim president until June 30, 2020.[40]
On February 24, 2020, the Board of Visitors appointedGregory Washington as the university's eighth president, and he assumed that role on July 1, 2020. Washington is the university's first African-American president.[41]
On March 23, 2020, George Mason shifted to exclusively online instruction during theCOVID-19 pandemic. Hybrid instruction occurred during the Fall 2020, Spring 2021, and Fall 2021 semesters during which the university offered a combination of online and in-person instruction.[42]
Mild unrest occurred on George Mason's campus in the aftermath of theOctober 7, 2023 attack ofHamas onIsrael and the resultingwar.[43] Statements denouncingantisemitism andIslamophobia were made by the Office of the President.[44][45] An encampment on nearbyGeorge Washington University's campus was organized in part by George Mason students.[46]
In August of 2025, the Department of Education found that university President,Gregory Washington, had unlawfully discriminated when hiring employees in the name of "diversity, equity and inclusion."[47]
George Mason University has four campuses in the United States, each of which is located in Virginia.[48] Three are in theNorthern Virginia suburbs of theWashington metropolitan area, and one is in Virginia'sBlue Ridge Mountains.[48] The university also has one campus in South Korea, in theSongdo International Business District ofIncheon.[49][48] Between 2005 and 2009 the university had a campus atRas al-Khaimah,United Arab Emirates.[50] The Blue Ridge campus, just outside Front Royal, is run in cooperation with theSmithsonian Institution.[51]
The university's primary Fairfax Campus is situated on 677 acres (274 hectares) in centralFairfax County.[52] The campus lies just south of theCity of Fairfax, and approximately 20 miles (32 km) fromWashington, D.C..[a] The City of Fairfax covers a small piece of the university grounds.[55]
Notable buildings include the 320,000-square-foot (30,000 m2) student union building, the Johnson Center; the Center for the Arts, a 2,000-seat concert hall; the 180,000-square-foot (17,000 m2) Long and Kimmy Nguyen Engineering Building; Exploratory Hall for science, new in 2013; an astronomy observatory and telescope; the 88,900-square-foot (8,260 m2) Art and Design Building; the newly expanded Fenwick Library,[56] theKrasnow Institute; and three fully appointed gyms and an aquatic center for student use.[57] The stadiums for indoor and outdoor track and field, baseball, softball, tennis, soccer and lacrosse are also on the Fairfax campus,[58] as is Masonvale, a housing community for faculty, staff and graduate students.[59]
The bronze statue ofGeorge Mason on campus[b] was created by Wendy M. Ross and dedicated on April 12, 1996.[60] The 71/2 foot statue shows George Mason presenting his first draft of theVirginia Declaration of Rights which was later the basis for the U.S. Constitution'sBill of Rights. Beside Mason is a model of a writing table that is still in the study ofGunston Hall, Mason's Virginia estate. The books on the table, volumes ofHume,Locke, andRousseau, represent influences in his thought.[61]
In 2021, an Enslaved People of George Mason Monument designed by Perkins & Will was installed near the George Mason Statue.[62] The memorial includes panels describing the lives of two of the enslaved atGunston Hall: Penny, who was gifted by Mason to his daughter, and James, Mason's personal attendant.[63]
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The Arlington Campus, named Mason Square in 2022,[64] is situated on 5.2 acres (2.1 hectares) inVirginia Square, an urban environment on the edge ofArlington County, Virginia'sClarendon business district and four miles (6.4 km) from downtown Washington, D.C. The campus was founded in 1979 with the acquisition of a law school.[65] In 1998, Hazel Hall opened to house theAntonin Scalia Law School; subsequent development created Van Metre Hall (formerly Founders Hall), home of theSchar School of Policy and Government,[66] the Center for Regional Analysis,[67] and the graduate-level administrative offices for the School of Business.[68] Vernon Smith Hall houses theJimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, theMercatus Center, and theInstitute for Humane Studies. The campus also houses the 300-seat Van Metre Hall Auditorium.[69] A new building, Fuse at Mason Square, is scheduled to be completed in 2025.[70]
The campus is served by theWashington Metro's Orange and Silver lines at theVirginia Square–GMU station, a campus shuttle service, andMetrobus, Arlington Transit (ART), and OmniRide buses.[71]
The Science and Technology campus opened on August 25, 1997, as the Prince William campus inManassas, Virginia, on 134 acres (54 hectares) of land, some still currently undeveloped.[72] More than 4,000 students are enrolled in classes inbioinformatics,biotechnology, information technology, and forensicbiosciences educational and research programs.[73] There are undergraduate programs in health, fitness and recreation. There are graduate programs in exercise, fitness, health, geographic information systems, and facility management. Much of the research takes place in the high-security Biomedical Research Laboratory.[74] The 1,123-seat Merchant Hall and the 300-seat Verizon Auditorium in the Hylton Performing Arts Center opened in 2010.[75][76]
The 110,000-square-foot Freedom Aquatic and Fitness Center is operated by the Mason Enterprise Center.[77] The Mason Center for Team and Organizational Learning stylized as EDGE is an experiential education facility open to the public.[78] The Sports Medicine Assessment Research and Testing lab stylized as SMART Lab is located within the Freedom center. The SMART Lab is most known for itsconcussion research.[79] On April 23, 2015, the campus was renamed to the Science and Technology Campus.[80]
In 2019, the university engaged in a feasibility study of creating a medical school at the Prince William Campus.[81][82]
The campus inFront Royal, Virginia, is a collaboration between theSmithsonian Institution and the university.[51] Open to students in August 2012 after breaking ground on the project on June 29, 2011, the primary focus of the campus is global conservation training.[51] The Volgenau Academic Center includes three teaching laboratories, four classrooms, and 18 offices.[51]Shenandoah National Park is visible from the dining facility's indoor and outdoor seating.[51] Living quarters include 60 double occupancy rooms, an exercise facility, and study space.[51]
Mason Korea Korea Campus | |
|---|---|
| Songdo Campus Korean: 송도 캠퍼스 | |
![Data Center, Library, Guest House, Student's Hall[c]](/mt/?noimg=&dark=on&url=https%3a%2f%2fen.wikipedia.org%2fwiki%2fFile%3aSongdo_Campus%2c_Mason_Korea..jpg) Data Center, Library, Guest House, Student's Hall[c] | |
 | |
| Country |  South Korea |
| Region | Seoul Capital Area (Sudogwon) |
| Metropolitan City |  Incheon |
| District | Yeonsu-gu |
| International Business District | Songdo |
| Postal Code | 21985 |
| Website | Official website |
Opened in March 2014, Mason Korea is located in theSongdo International Business District inSouth Korea, a 42,000-acre (17,000-hectare) site designed for 850,000 people. It is located 25 miles (40 km) fromSeoul and a two-hour flight fromChina andJapan, and is connected to theSeoul Metropolitan Subway.[citation needed]
The Commonwealth of Virginia considers the Songdo campus legally no different from any other Mason campus:
"... board of visitors shall have the same powers with respect to operation and governance of its branch campus in Korea as are vested in the board by theCode of Virginia with respect to George Mason University in Virginia ..."[83]
Mason Korea's first commencement class graduated in December 2017.[84]
Students can take seven bachelor's degree courses in Mason Korea.
Students from Mason Korea earn the same diploma as home campus students, withEnglish as the language of instruction.[85]
| Academic rankings | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Forbes[86] | 91 |
| U.S. News & World Report[87] | 109 |
| Washington Monthly[88] | 61 |
| WSJ/College Pulse[89] | 178 |
| Global | |
| ARWU[90] | 201–300 |
| QS[91] | 951–1000 |
| THE[92] | 401–500 |
| U.S. News & World Report[93] | 503 (tie) |
Mason offers undergraduate, graduate master's, law, and doctoral degrees with an emphasis on combining modern practice-basedprofessional education with a comprehensive traditionalliberal arts curriculum.[94][95][96][97] The student-faculty ratio is 17:1; 58 percent of undergraduate classes have fewer than 30 students and 30 percent of undergraduate classes have fewer than 20 students.[98]
In 2024,U.S. News & World Report ranked George Mason tied at #109 out of 436 National Universities, tied at #52 in Top Public Schools, #156 in Best Value Schools, tied at #98 in Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs at schools where doctorate not offered, tied at #114 in Nursing, tied at #93 in Economics, tied at #20 in Co-ops/Internships, tied at #70 in Best Colleges for Veterans, #25 in Most Innovative Schools, and tied at #82 in Top Performers on Social Mobility.[99]
In 2024, the university accepted 90% of its undergraduate applicants, and did not consider high school class rank or require standardized test scores for admission. Those admitted had an average 3.68 high schoolGPA. For those submitting scores the average student had anSAT score of 1250 (38% submitting scores) or an averageACT score of 28 (3% submitting scores).[100]
Between 2009 and 2013, George Mason saw a 21% increase in the number of applications, has enrolled 4% more new degree-seeking students, and has seen the percentage of undergraduate and graduate applications accepted each decrease by 4%. Law applications accepted increased by 10%.[97] Mason enrolled 33,917 students for fall 2013, up 956 (+3%) from fall 2012. Undergraduate students made up 65% (21,990) of the fall enrollment, graduate students 34% (11,399), and law students 2% (528). Undergraduate headcount was 1,337 higher than fall 2012 (+7%); graduate headcount was 262 lower (−2%); and law student headcount was 119 lower (−18%). Matriculated students come from all 50 states and 122 foreign countries.[97] As of fall 2014, the university had 33,791 students enrolled, including 21,672 undergraduates, 7,022 seeking master's degrees, 2,264 seeking doctoral degrees and 493 seeking law degrees.[97] As of 2023, the university enrolled 40,185[101] students, making it the largest university by head count in Virginia.[102]
George Mason University hosts $149 million in sponsored research projects annually, as of 2019.[103] In 2016, Mason wasclassified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity".[104] Mason moved into this classification based on a review of its 2013–2014 data that was performed by the Center for Postsecondary Research at Indiana University.[105]
The research is focused on health, sustainability and security. In health, researchers focus is on wellness, disease prevention, advanced diagnostics and biomedical analytics. Sustainability research examines climate change, natural disaster forecasting, and risk assessment. Mason's security experts study domestic and international security as well as cyber security.[106]
The university is home to numerous research centers and institutes.[107]
| Race and ethnicity | Total | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 33% | ||
| Asian | 24% | ||
| Hispanic | 17% | ||
| Black | 12% | ||
| Two or more races | 6% | ||
| International student | 5% | ||
| Unknown | 3% | ||
| Economic diversity | |||
| Low-income[d] | 30% | ||
| Affluent[e] | 70% | ||
Students have often decorated the George Mason statue on the Fairfax campus for events. Some have rubbed the statue toe to bring good luck. Many pose with the statue for graduation photographs.[125] Between 1988 and 1990 Anthony Maiello wrote the originalGeorge Mason Fight Song, which was edited by Michael Nickens in 2009.[126]
Each spring, student organizations at Mason compete to paint one of the 38 benches located on the Quad in front of Fenwick Library. For years, student organizations have painted those benches that line the walkway to gain recognition for their group. With more than 300 student organizations, there is much competition to paint the benches. Painting takes place in the spring.[127]
George Mason University has around 40 residence halls in the Fairfax campus, 22 of which are used specifically for freshmen. Many halls are named after famous Virginia regions and terms.[128]
Student organizations may have academic, social, athletic, religious/irreligious, career, or other focus. The university recognizes 500 such groups.[129]
Mason sponsors several student-run media outlets through the Office of Student Media.[130]
Mason recognizes 42 fraternities and sororities,[134] with a total Greek population of about 1,800. Mason does not have a traditional "Greek Row" of housing specifically for fraternities, although recruitment, charitable events—including a spring Greek Week—and other chapter activities take place on the Fairfax Campus.[135]
TheGeorge Mason Patriots are the athletic teams of George Mason University located in Fairfax, Virginia.[136] The Patriots compete in Division I of theNational Collegiate Athletic Association as members of theAtlantic 10 Conference for most sports. About 485 student-athletes compete in 22 men's and women's Division I sports – baseball, basketball, cross-country, golf, lacrosse, rowing, soccer, softball, swimming and diving, tennis, indoor and outdoor track and field, volleyball, and wrestling. Intercollegiate men's and women's teams are members of the National Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I, the Atlantic 10, theEastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC), theEastern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association (EIVA), theEastern Wrestling League (EWL), and theIntercollegiate Association of Amateur Athletes of America (IC4A).[137]
In addition to its NCAA Division I teams, George Mason University has several club sports.[138][139]
The Mason Players is a faculty-led student organization that produces six productions per year.
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According toU.S. News & World Report University Rankings, George Mason University is ranked #1 inSocial Mobility among universities in the Commonwealth of Virginia and nationally ranked #72 in Top Performers on Social Mobility.The New York Times Top U.S. Colleges with the Greatest Economic Diversity ranking ranks the university at #19 for advancing social mobility for its students and alumni and havingsocioeconomic status diversity throughcultural capital.[141] The university is also ranked No. 8 in the nation forFreedom of Speech and protecting rights enshrined in theFirst Amendment to the United States Constitution according to theFoundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE), FIRE also posits that the majority viewpoint of the student body leans politically liberal in the sense ofmodern liberalism in the United States,[142][143] although the political ideologies oflibertarianism in the United States[144][145][146] andconservatism in the United States[147][148] are also visible on campus with the university stating that it strives for "comprehensive ideological balance," evidence including but not limited to the university being "home to both theAntonin Scalia Law School and theJimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution," named after a conservative U.S. Supreme Court Justice (Antonin Scalia) politically appointed byRepublican Party U.S. President and a liberal U.S. President (Jimmy Carter) and First Lady (Rosalynn Carter) who were members of theDemocratic Party, respectively.[149]
According to theU.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, 44% of students have taken onfederal student loans, and in terms of socioeconomic diversity, 28% of students have received Pell grants reserved forlow-income students. Among undergraduate students, 80% of students are enrolled full-time while 20% are enrolled part-time[150]
In terms of ethnic and racial demographics:American Indian/Alaska Native people make up 0% of the student body and 0% of the full-time staff; Asian people make up 22% of the student body and 14% of the full-time staff;Black people make up 11% of the student body and 5% of the full-time staff;Hispanic and Latino people make up 17% of the student population and 3% of the full-time staff;Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander people make up 0% of the student body and 0% of the full-time staff;non-resident alien people make up 5% of the student body and 8% of the full-time staff; people oftwo or more races/multiracial people make up 5% of the student body and 2% of the full-time staff; people of an Unknown ethno-racial demographic make up 3% of the student body and 3% of the full-time staff; andWhite people make up 36% of the student body and 65% of the full-time staff.[150]
George Mason University has been subject to controversy surrounding donations from theCharles Koch Foundation, in particular to the College of Humanities and Social Sciences' Department ofEconomics,[144][145][146] which was seen as being allegedly influenced bylibertarian political thought, evidenced by thepolitical activities of the Koch brothers. University documents revealed that the Koch brothers were given the ability to pick candidates as a condition of monetary donations.[145] George Mason University altered its donor rules following the controversy.[151]
The naming of theAntonin Scalia Law School after the lateconservative United States Supreme Court JusticeAntonin Scalia, the hiring of conservative United States Supreme Court JusticesBret Kavanaugh,Neil Gorsuch, andClarence Thomas as professors, the allegedly "lavish treatments," speaking gigs, and "all-experiences-paid" travel arrangements they received, its close ties with theFederalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies, and the extensive provision ofprofessional development andcontinuing education programs, as well as speaking engagements for sittingjudges oflower andappellate divisions – in particular dealing with the topic oflaw and economics – has brought on controversy on the university itself, theSupreme Court of the United States, and theFederal Judiciary of the United States as a whole over the overt conservative political influence taking place at the law school and the university's growing influence over the U.S. judicial system. The law school had also received some controversy due to its relationship with the overtly libertarian university-affiliatedMercatus Center[152][147] think tank which is known to have received donations from a conservative political donor group known asThe 85 Fund-Judicial Education Project headed by conservative legal activistLeonard Leo.[147]
George Mason University's public policy school and political science department, theSchar School of Policy and Government, was the subject of some controversy over its relationship with former US intelligence agency personnel. In particular, the 2009 hiring of GeneralMichael Hayden, former director of theCentral Intelligence Agency and theNational Security Agency (NSA), and ofRobert Deitz, former general counsel of the NSA, were controversial due to Hayden's and Deitz's intelligence careers which involved lawful but unpopular use ofmass surveillance.[153]
TheGeorge Mason University's historical hoaxes were a group ofinternet hoaxes anddisinformation campaigns created by students as part of a class project for a course on "Lying about the Past" taught byhistory professor T. Mills Kelly, with the goal of creating an Internet deception that affected news media platforms.[154][155][156][157][158][159][160][161]
In 2016 a male student won an appeal overturning his suspension for sexual assault.[162]
The Title IX process (which investigates sex discrimination) at George Mason University has continued to be subject to controversy. Following the hiring ofBrett Kavanaugh as a visiting professor in the law school in 2019, students circulated a petition demanding not only the removal of Kavanaugh, but to increase the number ofTitle IX Coordinators on campus. The petition received 10,000 signatures and resulted in approval for funding for two more Title IX Coordinator positions.[163]
In 2018, Peter Pober was alleged to have committed sexual misconduct during his tenure as a Competitive Speech coach.[164] He retired while being investigated for misconduct.[165]
In July 2025, the US Department of Education announced two investigations of the university, one concerning "allegations that it failed to respond effectively to a pervasively hostile environment for Jewish students and faculty from October 2023 through the 2024-2025 academic year," and another "based on a complaint filed with OCR by multiple professors at GMU who allege that the university illegally uses race and other immutable characteristics in university policies, including hiring and promotion."[166]
On July 17, 2025, theUS Department of Justice (DOJ) announced an investigation into possible discriminatory hiring and promotion practices at GMU.[167] In their letter to the university, the DOJ made several claims regarding racial or gender-oriented hiring preferences.[168] GMU's president, Gregory Washington, responded to the announcement the following day with a public statement providing context on some of the accusations and a statement that they intend to cooperate fully and had already removed some of the policies in question. They also state that they had been obeying the current state laws on the matter at the time the messages and posts in the DOJ letter were made.[169]
On July 21, 2025, the DOJ announced a second investigation, this time into admissions procedures and awarding of student benefits and scholarships and their compliance with federal non-discrimination laws.[170] The second investigation's letter to the University makes no specific accusations about admissions practices or student treatment, instead listing this investigation as a compliance check,[171] but GMU's public response mentions allegations of non-compliance with these policies and DOJ concerns over the university response to anti-semitism on campus.[172]
On July 25, 2025, the Department of Justice stated its plans to review a resolution by the Faculty Senate which had quoted from the university's 2023 strategic plan.[173]
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"The report that follows is a progress report on the Northern Virginia University Center since its beginnings in 1949 by its Local Director, Professor J. N. G. Finley." George B. Zehmer, Director Extension Division University of Virginia
George Mason was one of many campuses that experienced a wave of protests after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas on Israel and the resulting war. Three people were detained but not arrested in November 2023 after an altercation at a protest. In the spring demonstrations — which brought some schools across the country to a halt and led to the arrest of thousands of students — some pro-Palestinian students from George Mason helped organize a regional encampment at George Washington University to call for that school to cut ties with Israel. This fall, messages voicing support for Hamas have intensified on some campuses.
Hail to George Mason! Don your green and gold! We're going to sing for George Mason, Patriots brave and bold! We're going to cheer for George Mason, Proud for the world to see! We'll prove our honor and might, And we'll FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT! As we march onward to victory!
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