Sydney Kosztolnik

Study Abroad? Meet the Schar Scholar Who Finished Her First-Year in Ecuador

Andrew J Schappert — Fri, 05 Aug 2022 15:01:42 +0000

Study Abroad? Meet the Schar Scholar Who Finished Her First-Year in Ecuador Andrew J Schappert Fri, 08/05/2022 - 11:01

Fiona Lighthiser: ‘I like that we have a close-knit community within a big school.’

Colorado-native Fiona Lighthiser has already traveled across both the country and the world in pursuit of her degree at ��AV. The sophomore and government and international politics major is a Schar Scholars program recipient who, in just her second semester at Mason, participated in the university’s Global Gateway program and studied at Universidad San Francisco de Quito in Quito, Ecuador.

The competitive Schar Scholars program provides financial assistance to first-year Schar School students who are interested in government, political science, international relations, public policy, pre-law, and public administration.

The program, and the spring semester abroad, was a bonus for Lighthiser, who had her sights on the Schar School early. She found herself attracted to Mason because she wanted to study “where government happens—Washington D.C.,'' and to incorporate a diverse student environment into her college career as well as study abroad.

As it happens, Mason is one of the highest-ranked majority-minority schools in the country, according to U.S. News & World Report. That social diversity is important to her because it makes “class discussion so much richer, because we are able to learn from others who have different experiences,” she said.

In her first semester of her first year, Lighthiser discovered like-minded classmates among the large undergraduate population on campus, thanks to copious opportunities to meet others. “Events like [the Schar Scholars social] make the community smaller,” she said. “I like that we have a close-knit community within a big school.”

Lighthiser said she has enjoyed the Schar Scholars program and the chances to network and engage not only with fellow students but also with professors and staff within the Schar School. “This has made me feel like I have more support within the program,” she said. “I feel I can reach out in the future for assistance and professional opportunities.”

Pursuing her education and love of travel, Lighthiser described her unique study abroad experience in Ecuador. In her government classes, the interconnectivity of global issues and the influence of various cultures were discussed. The result? “Hearing different perspectives widened my view on many issues and current events,” she said.

Lighthiser especially enjoyed being able to focus on Latin American issues in many of her classes. “Being in the country and researching issues happening around me was powerful,” she said. “There are aspects to research which can be done through books and databases. But being there in person was a whole other factor.”

Additional reporting by Taylor Ramirez.

Topics

study abroad

Schar School News August 2022

Student Spotlight: Barbara Montgomery, Seizing Opportunities—And Earning Results

Andrew J Schappert — Fri, 29 Apr 2022 15:13:06 +0000

Student Spotlight: Barbara Montgomery, Seizing Opportunities—And Earning Results Andrew J Schappert Fri, 04/29/2022 - 11:13

In This Story

Heba F. El-Shazli

Barbara Montgomery: ‘I have worked so hard. And my hard work has been worth it.’ Photo by Charlotte Daigle

As Barbara Montgomery prepared to present at the Pi Sigma Alpha Political Science National Honors Society Student Research Conference in March, she admitted to feeling a bit apprehensive.

But her confidence surged after the presentation and during the Q&A session as she engaged with the audience members who asked questions about her paper, “The Importance of Incorporating Behavioral Analysis into Rational Choice Theory.”

The experience taught Montgomery, a Schar School of Policy and Government senior and Bachelor’s Accelerated Master’s program student, to seize every opportunity, no matter how challenging.

“You may feel nervous or that you are not ready, but it could end up being a great learning experience that prepares you for future endeavors,” she said.

Montgomery’s research explores the complexity of decision-making in international conflicts and the need to supplement rational choice theory when analyzing the behavior of international actors. She chose the topic because she believes in the importance of learning how to make better decisions. Additionally, she finds game theory and decision-making interesting.

Heba El-Shazli, an assistant professor at the Schar School, introduced Montgomery to the possibility of research and encouraged her to join the Undergraduate Research Community (URC). The URC helps students gain hands-on research skills by providing tools, tips, mentorship, and a community in which they can share ideas and learn from their peers.

Montgomery appreciates how El-Shazli, who serves as URC director, and the research community helped shape her interest and passion for government.

“Professor El-Shazli has highly invested in me as a student to succeed over the years,” she said. “I was in the URC at the time of writing the paper and my experience there inspired me to submit my work to the Pi Sigma Alpha research conference.”

The honors continued into the spring for Montgomery: In April, she was inducted into the prestigious honor society, Phi Beta Kappa. Another opportunity to be seized.

“A lot goes on beyond what is seen in earning a college degree that is hard to express,” she said. “But this initiation speaks volumes and reflects my academic journey so beautifully. I have worked so hard. And my hard work has been worth it."

Topics

Honors

Schar School News April 2022

For this First-Year, Performing Research Was a Surprising—and Rewarding—Experience

Andrew J Schappert — Tue, 26 Apr 2022 19:11:43 +0000

For this First-Year, Performing Research Was a Surprising—and Rewarding—Experience Andrew J Schappert Tue, 04/26/2022 - 15:11

In This Story

Jennifer N. Victor

Nylah Mitchell: ‘One piece of advice I would give to a new student is to explore everything.’

To many, the idea of working on original research is reserved for professors and graduate students who have the time and tools to do the deep dives into a topic necessary to contribute to producing a peer-reviewed paper for publication.

The Schar School of Policy and Government—and ��AV in general—has a different idea: Undergraduates participate in projects supported through a number of programs that teach how to perform advanced research using sophisticated tools—some of which are normally available only to master’s and PhD students—and to contribute to studies with the assistance of professors.

These are opportunities more students should know about. Case in point: “I was not sure if I wanted to do research before I came to Mason,” said Schar School freshman Nylah Mitchell. “I only became involved with research when [Associate] Professor [Jennifer N.] Victor mentioned in class about her own undergrad research projects involving [Congressional] caucus and member attributes collection” using student volunteers.

The government and international politics major from Alexandria, Virginia, found herself in the Schar School’s Undergraduate Research Assistant Program, or URAP. In addition to aiding Victor in her study of legislative caucuses, Mitchell joined a team of like-minded students who were studying state legislation regarding the perceived penalties of menstruation.

The fruits of the team’s work were recently presented during the Schar School’s annual Research Fair, an event at Mason where 15 Schar School undergrad teams presented posters depicting the results of their URAP projects.

The poster, “Pink Taxes and Period Poverty,” was put together by a team including Mitchell and fellow undergraduate researchers Shafuq Naseem, Lexi Alease Wilson, Rosemary Obinim, Ava Florentyne Kuch, Natalia P. Medina, and graduate research assistant Ryan Barock, who is in the Master of Public Administration Program at the Schar School. The faculty advisor was Associate Professor Bonnie B. Stabile, who also serves as associate dean of student and academic affairs and director of the Gender and Policy (GAP) Center.

One of Mitchell’s favorite aspects of performing research is attending Victor’s Politics Research Lab meetings. Each week Mitchell finds herself in the company of other student researchers “who share resources and opportunities for other members,” she said. At those meetings, she is likely to encounter other research assistants, including several PhD students—another unexpected bonus of the URAP program.

How does she do it all—a full load of courses, independent and group research—and do it successfully? Actually, it’s the opportunity that drives her.

“One piece of advice I would give to a new student is to explore everything,” she said. “It is OK to not know what you want to do when you arrive. I, in fact, have changed my major twice before I committed to government and international politics.”

But clearly, she found a home at the Schar School.

Additional reporting by Buzz McClain, Schar School of Policy and Government.

Topics

Undergraduate

Research

Schar School News April 2022

Inspired by Revolution to Study Government, She’s Now Earning a BA and Master’s Degree at the Same Time

Andrew J Schappert — Mon, 06 Dec 2021 16:04:42 +0000

Inspired by Revolution to Study Government, She’s Now Earning a BA and Master’s Degree at the Same Time Andrew J Schappert Mon, 12/06/2021 - 11:04

Nardine Mossad: The BAM program allows the senior to take graduate-level courses, condensing the time it takes to complete her master’s degree. Photo by Ron Aira/Creative Services

When Nardine Mosaad was 11 years old, she witnessed the protests of the 2011 Egyptian revolution firsthand. Watching from her balcony in Cairo, her eyes stung from the gas bombs exploding in the streets. Mosaad saw young students and others taking to the streets to fight for a change. She admired their tenacity and fearlessness even when the police fought back. The experience inspired her to study how governments work.

“I saw a group of young people in Egypt topple down a 30-year-old regime and it really had a profound impact on my development,” she said. “It really impressed on me how a group of young people could have a tremendous effect on how the government could be structured.”

Mosaad, a senior at the Schar School, moved to Fairfax when she was 13, and it wasn’t long after that she learned a teacher from her school in Egypt was murdered in a church bombing. That event solidified her drive to go into government, with the intention of representing those who do not have an effective public voice. Mosaad chose the Schar School because the government and international politics program is known as one of the best in the country. For her, it was important—not to mention energizing—to know she could study at a top government school.

Enrolled in Mason’s Bachelor’s/Accelerated Master’s (BAM) program, Mosaad is majoring in government and international politics with a concentration in international relations and a minor in French. Her accelerated master’s degree studies are in international security. The BAM program allows her to take graduate-level courses as an undergraduate, condensing the time it takes to complete her master’s degree.

“I thought, I’m just going to get my degree and leave,” she said. But when she saw “how Mason really cares about students and wants them to get involved” in issues that interest them, “that really motivated me to go out and get out of my comfort zone and talk to people.”

She immersed herself in several Schar School offerings, signing on in the Undergraduate Research Assistant Program (URAP), which provides significant research opportunities for undergraduates; joining the International Relations Policy Task Force (IRTF), which gives juniors and seniors a chance to become policy experts by researching and crafting policy recommendations; and pursuing an internship that can reinforce her studies.

Through all these available opportunities, Mosaad discovered her favorite thing about the Schar School: its diversity.

“When you listen and learn from people from all around the world, you start seeing the world from a whole different perspective,” she said.

Topics

Bachelor’s/Acclerated Master’s Program

International Security

Government and International Politics

Schar School News December 2021

Schar School BA in Government and International Politics

International Relations Policy Task Force

College Life Is Not Like the Movies, It’s Better, Says Spanish Exchange Student Clara del Olmo

Andrew J Schappert — Tue, 16 Nov 2021 18:50:42 +0000

College Life Is Not Like the Movies, It’s Better, Says Spanish Exchange Student Clara del Olmo Andrew J Schappert Tue, 11/16/2021 - 13:50

In This Story

Eric McGlinchey

Spanish exchange student Clara del Olmo: ‘Students at Mason care about creating a real well-connected community that makes me feel safe to express my own thoughts without feeling judged.’

When Clara del Olmo learned she was coming to America as a college exchange student from her home in Spain, she imagined the experience would be something “like in the movies, where there would be lots of partying.”

The reality, she reports now, turned out to be better.

The junior from the Universidad Carlos III in Madrid arrived at ��AV’s Schar School of Policy and Government on a one-year exchange program this fall to continue her study of politics and global affairs. Much to her relief, Mason and the Schar School were more about academics than the social activities seen in films.

“The university experience is organized better here than in Spain,” she said. “There is a bigger emphasis on learning and on networking and less on studying and memorizing.”

She soon discovered the school increases a student’s sense of community by providing opportunities to become involved in campus life and to explore the school’s culture, something that is not emphasized in her country.

When trying to pick a school, del Olmo’s study abroad advisor pointed her to Mason because of its reputation for having a great government program and a diverse student body. (In fact, Mason is majority minority and the most diverse university in Virginia). Del Olmo also talked with other students who had studied at Mason; they described the school as “very international student friendly” and the community as “very accepting,” she reported.

Since del Olmo is studying politics, she finds it important to be surrounded by a diverse group of people in order to better understand the world. Different cultures, backgrounds, and beliefs give insight into how different world governments work and how people can interact with each other.

Faculty Is a Favorite

Del Olmo says the best part of the school is its professors. Each of her professors, she said, care about what they teach and is very involved with students, which fosters a good environment for sharing ideas.

Associate Professor Eric McGlinchey teaches theory and important background information, but also applies topics to daily life and makes learning fun, she said. He’s the reason why del Olmo decided to join the International Relations Policy Task Force Learning Community, which gives students a chance to become policy experts by researching and crafting policy recommendations in one of three task force areas.

What she likes about the task force is that she is learning about the American political system from insiders with different perspectives on a variety of issues:

“Students at Mason care about creating a real well-connected community that makes me feel safe to express my own thoughts without feeling judged,” she said. “I expected Mason to be an eye-opening experience, and that is what I got. There is time for learning and there is time to have fun, the perfect balance that keeps you motived and engaged with your university life.”

Topics

Exchange Students

International Relations Policy Task Force

Schar School News November 2021