Spring Commencement

Campus News

George Mason's Spring 2024 Commencement in pictures

Lauren Reuscher — Thu, 09 May 2024 19:22:24 +0000

George Mason's Spring 2024 Commencement in pictures Lauren Reuscher Thu, 05/09/2024 - 15:22

Spring 2024 Commencement at ��AV on May 9 at EagleBank Arena celebrated nearly 11,000 graduates and certificate recipients. Graduates hailed from 114 countries and 50 states. Mason photographers captured the excitement and spirit of the day.

Photo by Evan Cantwell/��AV

George Mason President Gregory Washington delivered Commencement remarks to an arena packed with graduates. Photo by Ron Aira/��AV

Photo by Evan Cantwell/��AV

Graduate Anissa Clay Zelaya sang “The Star-Spangled Banner” during Spring 2024 Commencement at EagleBank Arena. Photo by Evan Cantwell/��AV

Photo by Evan Cantwell/��AV

Photo by Ron Aira/��AV

Photo by Evan Cantwell/��AV

Photo by Ron Aira/��AV

Interim Provost and Executive Vice President Ken Walsh, student Commencement speaker Zayd Hamid, Rector Horace Blackman, and President Gregory Washington. Photo by Ayman Rashid/��AV

Photo by Evan Cantwell/��AV

Congrats, Grads! Visit the Alumni Association site

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Student Commencement speaker Zayd Hamid learned how to lead through his many roles at George Mason

Colleen Rich — Wed, 08 May 2024 16:02:22 +0000

Student Commencement speaker Zayd Hamid learned how to lead through his many roles at George Mason Colleen Rich Wed, 05/08/2024 - 12:02

During Zayd Hamid’s first internship the summer before he came to ��AV, he worked at Manassas Park City Hall and learned about local government. One day, the assistant city manager took him to check in on their vaccine clinics. George Mason was running those clinics, providing free vaccines in the middle of a global pandemic to communities in need.

Student Commencement Speaker Zayd Hamid. Photo by Ron Aira/Office of University Branding

“After I saw [George Mason] health workers serving my community, it just locked in that choice,” said Hamid.

After seeing George Mason in action at his community center as an instrument of social and economic mobility, Hamid recognized that the university had the same qualities that he loved about Manassas Park High School. He knew he had made the right choice to enroll as a public administration major. Now, as he graduates in May, he’ll share his story as the student speaker at Spring Commencement 2024 on May 9.

As a first-generation Guyanese American student, Hamid has found his calling in empowering his generation of student leaders with the education and experience they need to solve the world’s grand challenges.

“The best way to describe my journey at George Mason would be evolving leadership and being in those spaces where I could represent my fellow students helped shaped me into the leader I am now,” said Hamid, who is also a member of the Honors College.

He has been recognized at the state and national levels for his work supporting higher education funding and following graduation, he will continue that work through George Mason’s master of public policy program.

Hamid put himself through college, working through the federal work-study program for over two-and-a-half years at George Mason Recreation. In Spring 2023, he represented George Mason students on a panel with the Association for Public Land Grant Universities speaking to congressional staff about the importance of the federal work-study program that he benefited from. Through the Schar School of Policy and Government, Hamid attended the U.S. Congress panel on education affordability.

“My story is built on the foundation of everyone who’s supported me—family, friends—and a lot of that support system as an adult has also been from George Mason. I have so much support from faculty and members of the administration,” said Hamid.

During his time as an undergraduate, Hamid also took a leading role in Mason Lobbies, an annual event in which Student Government brings students down to the state capitol in Richmond to lobby state legislators for legislative items that impact Mason and its students.

This year, Hamid helped bring more than 70 students to meet with more than 30 offices in the Virginia General Assembly. He led a student team speaking to State Senator Danica Roem, who represents the Science and Technology Campus, and Delegate Will Morefield.

Roem, who is also Zayd’s hometown representative in the General Assembly, is one of his long-time role models. Hamid met Roem for the first time in his high school senior class council.

“We realized that we had no idea how to represent people or lead as students, so we called our representative and arranged a meeting and she made a really tangible impression on me,” said Hamid. “I spent a lot of my time in student government trying to live up to that model of leadership.”

In 2023, Hamid was the first-ever recipient of Student Advocate of the Year from the National Institute for Lobbying and Ethics (NILE). Hamid was approached by top lobbyist and George Mason alum Bill McCabe of K9s for Warriors, who studied government and international politics at Mason and got his master’s in public policy as Hamid plans to do. Hamid sees McCabe as a successful George Mason alum in his industry and as someone whose level he strives to reach.

“Seeing McCabe go from doing Mason Lobbies at a student level to being an award-winning lobbyist was incredible,” said Hamid. “It’s great to see someone in my industry get to those heights. The George Mason degrees paved the way for him.”

"It's always great to meet students who are interested in pursuing policy and government affairs as their career after graduation,” McCabe said. “When I first met Zayd at NILE's Top Lobbyist Reception, I could instantly see his passion for the profession. His hunger to learn and develop as an advocate will serve him well whether it's at the federal, state, or local levels of government. I'm confident Zayd will thrive in whichever industry he chooses to pursue.”

Spring Commencement 2024

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Schar School of Policy and Government

Honors College

Schar School News for May 2024

Schar School Student Spotlight

Graduating Carter School student is trailblazing a new path to peace

Sarah Holland — Tue, 07 May 2024 19:31:22 +0000

Graduating Carter School student is trailblazing a new path to peace Sarah Holland Tue, 05/07/2024 - 15:31

Keil Eggers is the first to admit that his research methods are unique to the world of conflict analysis and resolution. But as he is hooded at the 2024 Commencement ceremony at George Mason, his unorthodox approach is becoming the standard for George Mason Peace Engineering Lab in the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution.

Photo provided

Eggers, who is graduating from Mason with his PhD in Conflict Analysis and Resolution, has been a champion of complexity-informed conflict transformation, futures, and SenseMaker: a technology that applies a quantitative framework to narrative data submitted and interpreted by the subjects themselves.

“My professors have always been willing to let me experiment and have supported me in trying new things,” he said. “That’s one of the biggest strengths of the Carter School, how it allows people to explore unique combinations of scholarship, ideas, and disciplines.”

As a Kansas native with an interest in international politics, Eggers knew he wanted to be in the center of the action in the Washington, D.C., region when applying as an undergraduate. George Mason was the perfect fit. After a year in the international politics degree program, however, he took a course in the Carter School, and “it sealed the deal,” he said.

“I found it to be a much more helpful approach to problem-solving. It’s less about protecting one country’s interests and more about building international relationships based on dialogue, mutual learning, and mutual respect. It creates much more fulfilling relationships.”

After graduating with his BA in Conflict Analysis and Resolution from the Carter School and the Honors College in 2015, Eggers received his MA in International Peace Studies from the UN-Mandated University for Peace before returning to George Mason for his PhD.

Eggers’ approach to research using sensemaking technology is unique, particularly in academia, and very few programs could accommodate it. The Carter School, however, was interested in Eggers’ methodology and had a fellowship with that topic in mind. He was the first to receive the Peace Engineering Fellowship, one of the Provost PhD Awards designed to support the creation of the Peace Engineering Lab, where conflict analysis and resolution experts would work with engineers to create innovative technologies for peace building.

“More and more often, engineers are put on the front lines to solve social conflict through designing infrastructure or new technologies,” Eggers explained. “But their solutions also have social impact, which needs to be accounted for and considered during the design process. They need more tools to understand that impact and how it will affect peace, which we can provide. And, on the other side, we need support in developing and implementing new analytical technologies.”

Part of Eggers’ work with the lab included setting up internal and external partnerships, including with the Cynefin Centre for Applied Complexity: the creators behind the SenseMaker tool. The lab has used SenseMaker in local, national, and international research projects.

“I saw my role as creating a strong intellectual foundation for the lab, trying to figure out what our unique approach as the only conflict analysis and resolution school in the broader peace engineering field could be,” Eggers said. “We were building the plane as we were flying it, so to speak. We had a strong belief that this is an emerging field and a gap that needed to be filled. We keep showing up, putting in the work, and we’re cementing our role in the field as being at the forefront of this.”

Through the largest grant ever given to Carter School, the lab recieved funding to expand into one of the university's research centers. It plans to relaunch in fall 2024.

Meanwhile, Eggers simultaneously completed his dissertation, utilizing the same sensemaking technology he worked to implement in the lab. With the support of partnering organizations Horizon Project and Common Ground USA, “Us Against When: Futures and Complexity-Informed Conflict Transformation in the United States” looked at five states with higher risk of political violence, collecting data from 800 subjects. He presented his work at the Alliance for Peacebuilding’s PeaceCon2023, and used his research to build the syllabus for and teach Honors 360: "Us Against When: Exploring Peaceful Futures for the United States."

After graduation, Eggers hopes he can continue his work to develop complexity-informed approaches to research, sensemaking, and futures methodologies through a postdoc position. He also has a dream of putting together a music festival for peace at the Carter School's Point of View facility.

“Your destiny is in your hands when you enter a PhD program,” Eggers said, when asked what advice he would give to a first year PhD. “Explore what you like, craft the experience you want. Believe in your own power to be persistent and pave the path you want to see.”

Spring Commencement 2024

Build peace in the Carter School

Recognizing George Mason's 2024 graduates

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June 24, 2024
Mason Korea Commencement caps off a week of festivities
June 20, 2024
Going global as Mason Korea’s first computational and data sciences graduate
May 21, 2024
Outstanding Graduating Student: Amanda Magpiong
May 17, 2024
This Senior of the Year found ‘true community’ at George Mason
May 9, 2024

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Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution

Peace Engineering Lab

graduate students

Honors College

Q&A with Barbara Humpton, Spring 2024 Commencement Speaker

Colleen Rich — Wed, 01 May 2024 17:56:21 +0000

Q&A with Barbara Humpton, Spring 2024 Commencement Speaker Colleen Rich Wed, 05/01/2024 - 13:56

Barbara Humpton, president and CEO of Siemens, is ��AV’s Spring 2024 Commencement speaker. Humpton guides the technology company’s strategy and engagement in the United States.

Barbara Humpton. Photo provided

Can you share one piece of personal or professional advice you received that has influenced your life or career and that you would like to impart to this Class of 2024?

Raise your hand. Throughout my career, I’ve often answered the call when someone reached out to me and said, “We need you to do this.” Becoming CEO of Siemens USA was different. I raised my hand and said, “I’m interested.” And when I was selected, there was this real sense of joy that I was coming into a position having expressed confidence and optimism that I could contribute. So I encourage everyone to think about what brings you joy, and then raise your hand for the kinds of jobs that will deliver that.

What is one thing every college student should do in order to set themselves up for success after graduation?

There’s not a single degree or requirement for success. Recognize the variety of opportunities available to you after college. Maybe it’s getting additional training. Maybe it’s pursuing an internship or job. The key is to be in a place where you can continue to learn and grow. Manufacturing is a place that offers this. With so much technological change, it has become a cutting-edge sector of the digital economy where people can engage at any stage of their education or career.

Also, your own mindset matters. Once you are in a field, there might be this sense that you should “move up.” Let me challenge you to ask this, “Which way is up?” For one person, it might mean working more with customers. For another, it might mean becoming an expert in a technical field. “Up” doesn’t always have to mean climbing the management ladder. Finding success is when you figure out which way is up for you and then focus on what needs to be done.

Dr. Washington believes that companies and corporations need to offer infinitely more internship opportunities to better prepare graduates with the skills and experiences employers need. How does Siemens succeed in this area, and how can that be achieved on a large scale?

Businesses have a leadership role to play in workforce development. It’s actually part of my own story. I was a senior in college studying math when IBM came to campus and offered to train me to be a software programmer. It changed my life. And I saw through that experience the value of combining academic training with hands-on training.

We recognize at Siemens that we’re a technology provider with the expertise to help develop the skills needed in high-demand sectors across industry and infrastructure. Our strong internship and talent development programs reflect this. We’ve created opportunities for students across our business—from cybersecurity and electric mobility to engineering, sales, and finance—where they can apply what they learn in the classroom to real-world projects. Both are critical to job readiness and career advancement. In addition, internships help us create the collaboration around workforce development that we need across business, academia, government, and philanthropy to build a next-generation workforce.

How would you say that George Mason’s perspective of “All Together Different” helps prepare students for the workforce?

It’s the right perspective for the moment we’re in right now. Technological advances are enabling us to do things differently than they’ve always been done. We need diverse teams bringing all sorts of ideas to the table. These are the teams that keep us innovative and competitive. Now, the next question is, how do you build them? And our perspective at Siemens is this: Belonging transforms. We want people to feel a sense of belonging on our teams and to be empowered to tap into their individual strengths. Because it’s when we combine our different strengths that we deliver the best results.

What are the three most important qualities your company looks for in an employee, and do you see these qualities in George Mason students?

I think it actually boils down to two qualities: curiosity and initiative. With these qualities we believe we can learn new things and do new things. Mason students have that. They have chosen to come to a top-tier research institution where a sense of wonder is encouraged and where they are supported to learn more. That’s what curiosity and initiative are all about. And these qualities create the growth mindset that we believe is critical as change accelerates—so critical, in fact, we made it one of our four strategic priorities at Siemens, with a focus on lifelong learning and being open to change.

You view the purpose of technology as expanding human potential. What most interests and excites you about current technological breakthroughs or innovations?

We often hear that technology will replace humans. That’s not my view at all. From the first time a human picked up a rock and used it as a tool, tools have elevated the role of the human. Today’s technologies, even something as advanced as artificial intelligence (AI), are no different. What I’m most excited about are the ways in which these tools can connect people without specialized skills to careers in industry and infrastructure. Let’s use AI as an example, what I like to call “augmented intelligence.” What we’re seeing is that AI in industrial environments can be applied in ways that empower people to do more and do more safely. We have tools now that make manufacturing work feel like playing a video game.

You started your podcast, “The Optimistic Outlook,” during the pandemic, because as you said, “in moments of unprecedented disruption we have the greatest opportunity to create the future we want.” How would you say our future has been transformed as a result of the pandemic?

I’ve been using the term “glocalization” to describe the future. Because what we saw during the pandemic was the need for local decision-making. Our response at Siemens was to let people who were closest to the problem and closest to our customers lead. What happened was business thrived. We’ve embraced this approach ever since.

More broadly, we’re seeing the impact of “glocalization” on manufacturing and what it means for a future that’s more resilient, sustainable, and equitable. By combining global innovation with local production, we can now innovate anywhere and make things everywhere. We’re better prepared for future crises as we drive economic growth.

You and Dr. Washington are both members of the Economic Club of Washington, D.C. What role does George Mason play in the innovation and economic prosperity of Northern Virginia?

George Mason is an incredible institution to have in our region—not only because of its educational impact but because of its societal impact. Mason brings together students from every state in the nation and 130 countries. Think about the synergy that creates around research and collaboration. It’s no wonder that Mason is ranked so highly nationally for innovation. When businesses are looking to invest in the United States, or in areas of Northern Virginia, universities like George Mason are a huge asset. The synergy continues off-campus between industry and academia around a trained workforce.

2024 Spring Commencement

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Campus News

For this graduate, Mason’s academic options were a career road map

Colleen Rich — Thu, 25 Apr 2024 15:29:09 +0000

For this graduate, Mason’s academic options were a career road map Colleen Rich Thu, 04/25/2024 - 11:29

For Ari Williams, her journey toward graduation at ��AV was anything but linear.

Photo by Cristian Torres/Office of University Branding

The CliffsNotes version is that of a criminology, law and society major who will graduate in May with an eye toward a career in government contracting.

The more complete story is how the options for a diversified education at George Mason—Williams’ major concentration is in homeland security and justice with minors in sociology and intelligence studies—helped prepare her for that career.

“My course load has been learning a lot about the government and its agencies and what they do, and that’s actually really applicable to government contracting,” Williams said. “There’s a lot to be said for being able to read scientific research and journals. That was really great practice for me to doing things such as market research.”

The road that brought Williams toward a government contracting career was winding.

When the Fredericksburg, Virginia, native came to Mason as a first-generation student and a member of the Honors College, she wanted to work in the federal government. She also considered being an FBI agent, a police officer, and joining the military.

She landed on government contracting by chance, she said, after a faculty member in Mason’s Costello College of Business recommended giving the career a look.

Once committed, Williams took things into her own hands, securing analyst internships with CACI International, Cambridge Associates, and PingWind.

“I’ve always been a bit of a determined person,” Williams said. “When I want something or have a plan for something, I always try to enact it because closed mouths don’t get fed, right? So that’s the mentality I’ve always had.”

It was the same for her pursuit of academics.

“I was hungry to learn,” Williams said. “That’s one of the reasons I decided to come to college, because I knew I was going to be interested in what I was learning.”

“Ari is one of the most impressive students I have had the pleasure of teaching at Mason,” said Marie Mele Thomas, associate professor in the Department of Criminology, Law, and Society in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. “Ari cares deeply about what she is learning, and her ability to think critically about complex issues and share her perspectives in insightful ways has been a joy to witness. I am confident she will continue to excel academically and professionally in whatever path she chooses.”

Continued learning is a big part of the plan for Williams, who said she plans to pursue an MBA after establishing herself in the workforce.

As for her time at George Mason, Williams said the great upsides are the opportunities to network, the quality of the faculty, and its proximity to Washington, D.C.

“All in all, in the last four years I’ve been able to get a lot of work experience. I’ve been able to make a lot of connections,” she said. “I’m as prepared as I can be.”

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College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Honors College

A second chance at a college degree for this Mason Korea computer game design graduate

Colleen Rich — Wed, 17 Apr 2024 14:12:29 +0000

A second chance at a college degree for this Mason Korea computer game design graduate Colleen Rich Wed, 04/17/2024 - 10:12

Juyoung Cha was the first in her family to consider studying abroad for college. Starting in high school, she wanted to experience a different culture, specifically the United States.

Computer game design major Juyoung Cha by Mason Pond on the Fairfax Campus. Photo provided

After she faced closed doors to her fine arts college applications in Korea, her local pastor who had lived in the United States recommended that she take the community college route in the state of New York. Cha decided to study accounting, a pathway she considered to be more stable than fine arts in terms of career outcomes.

Cha spent three semesters at a community college and three semesters at the City University of New York. However, due to family financial difficulties, Cha and her sister returned home to continue their college education.

Coming back to Korea as a transfer student was a huge challenge for Cha, as Korean universities only accept transfer students who enrolled for more than two years at a single institution. With her six semesters at two institutions, she was limited in options for continuing her undergraduate education.

At the point where she was about to give up on her college education, her pastor’s wife introduced her to Kelley Chung, Mason Korea’s associate dean for admissions and government affairs, who helped Cha see that she could continue her fine arts pursuits through the field of computer game design at a U.S. institution in Korea.

“While it was not as abstract as plain fine arts and had a clear career route, the thought of building something in the digital world that cannot be constructed in the real world sounded exciting,” Cha said.

Learning computer programming, design, and game modeling was challenging for Cha. “As the days of being a college student prolonged, the goal of graduating felt farther away the more I got close to it,” she said.

Cha found that computer game design faculty members wanted to see her succeed, showing flexibility on deadlines and even offering the chance to retake classes for a better grade. Her internship supervisor at Mason Korea’s Office of Development and Strategic Partnerships, Christina Cha, was her biggest supporter when she was on the brink of dropping out of college.

“Juyoung’s diligence and willingness to learn new skills was impressive to me and to all of us in the office,” her internship supervisor said. “She was also an active member of G-nonymous, Mason Korea’s student RSO for [computer graphic design] majors, quietly yet persistently honing her skills. I’m so happy that she rose above her own doubts and decided to complete her education journey at Mason and become our alumnus!”

Now Cha is just weeks away from reaching the finish line in Fairfax—earning her BFA in computer game design. In May she plans to walk proudly across the graduation stage in EagleBank Arena along with her younger sister, Subin Cha, who is a Mason Korea student in accounting.

“Being the first five students among Mason Korea’s first computer game design cohort and one of the few female students in my major’s graduating class from Mason Korea, to me being a Patriot symbolizes endurance and patience,” said Cha. “Studying abroad in the United States and coming back to an American college through Mason were both non-traditional routes that exposed me to different challenges that allowed me to see the value of a college degree.”

Mason Korea opened its doors to in 2014. As part of Mason Korea’s 10th anniversary, Mason will host events in Korea and on the Fairfax Campus. This is the first in a series of stories highlighting Mason Korea students.
Learn more about Mason Korea's anniversary >>

U.S. Student? Study at Mason Korea!

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College of Visual and Performing Arts

Mason Korea

Computer Game Design