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HNRS 360 The Silkroad and the Railroad is the kind of course that could only happen at Mason. With artists-in-residence Silkroad Ensemble as partners, 25 Honors College students from 17 majors are exploring cultures and histories, music and narratives, impacts and legacies of the Transcontinental Railroad.

On Friday, Oct. 27, Mason’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences and Department of Psychology hosted a grand opening of its new facility for the Center for Community Mental Health and Center for Evidence-Based Behavioral Health, two centers whose research and community services are deeply connected to strengthening our communities.

Returning for their second of three years as a Mason Artist-in-Residence, Silkroad Ensemble and Artistic Director Rhiannon Giddens present the world premiere of American Railroad, an initiative that maps American music through the various communities involved in building the late-1800s Transcontinental Railroad and its connecting railways. As a Mason Artist-in-Residence, Silkroad artists will also work with the community through classes and workshops surrounding the performance, which are detailed within.

Location? Check. Access? Double check. When the White House wanted to invite students to help welcome Australia’s prime minister Anthony Albanese to Washington for a state visit, they reached out to ����AV. Schar School of Policy and Government undergraduates were only too happy to answer the call.

The Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution hosted a two-day symposium, “A Celebration of Legacy and Impact: Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter Peacemakers and Leaders for Change,” at Mason Square in Arlington on Oct. 16-17. The symposium commemorated the Carters’ contributions to making the world more peaceful.

Mason researcher Fereshte Ghahari Kermani recently received the highly competitive U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Early Career Award. She is the first Mason faculty member to receive this honor, one that highlights the significance of her contributions to the field of condensed matter physics.

Certain types of mushrooms—or fungi—may have a place in infrastructure, potentially saving costly repairs and time. Xijin “Emma” Zhang, assistant professor in civil engineering, is researching this relatively new area of engineering and other green technology solutions for common challenges.

����AV announced the first series of direct admissions partnerships with eight Northern Virginia high schools. The goal of the pilot is to directly reach students who are academically eligible to Mason but may be experiencing challenges in pursuing higher education.

With nearly 1,000 acres of land, waterways, forests, and buildings, ����AV’s campuses are a dynamic, living learning environment of hands-on applied research.

With funding from the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), CEIE professor Shanjiang Zhu and his research team will reconcile travel data from three different sources—surveys, smartphones, and connected vehicles—into invaluable travel information.

In a 16-week study, athletes on Mason's women's lacrosse team were tracked on their total distance run, changes in direction, high speed distance, and heart rate. The study, published in the Journal of Strength and Conditioning Research, is believed to be the first to focus solely on the training demands and in-season physical demands of Division I women’s lacrosse players.

Student Government President Paul Wyche and Vice President Nell Palumbo’s campaign motto was “Making sure Mason is a place for ALL.”