Students in the Community

Learning from life’s challenges, Mason senior strives to make a difference

Mariam Aburdeineh — Thu, 17 Dec 2020 18:11:00 +0000

Learning from life’s challenges, Mason senior strives to make a difference Mariam Aburdeineh Thu, 12/17/2020 - 13:11

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Members of Student Government, including Cassidy Whitehurst (second from right) and then interim Mason President Anne Holton (left) at the Virginia State Capitol during Mason Lobbies in Feb. 2020. Photo provided.

Cassidy Whitehurst didn’t know if or how life would ever get better. The ��AV senior from Chesapeake, Virginia, said she grew up with parents who were addicted to drugs and alcohol, and from fourth to eighth grade, she was living in hotels and cars.

“I was doing really bad in school and wasn’t involved,” Whitehurst said. “I kind of gave up because my home life was so stressful.”

But a moment of introspection inspired her to take control of the future.

Mason senior Cassidy Whitehurst. Photo provided.

“I moved in with my aunt in seventh grade, and around that time I started realizing that I didn’t want to live this lifestyle anymore,” the government and international politics major said. “It gave me a lot of hope thinking about the future and how I could change the situation.”

It also inspired her to want to go to college and become a lawyer.

“[In middle school] I saw my mom go to jail when she really just needed help,” said Whitehurst, who added that her parents have since been doing better. “I thought she was treated wrong and think addiction is treated wrong. That sparked me to be interested in criminal justice reform.”

Whitehurst said she decided to go to Mason after a campus tour that filled her with excitement for the campus experience. Now that she’s here, she’s been making the most of her education in classes, as the Speaker of the Student Senate, as a Mason Ambassador giving tours to prospective students, and as a Virtual Learning Community mentor.

“I love being involved with Student Government because I get to help people within the George Mason community,” Whitehurst said, adding that she also serves on the Student Advisory Committee for the State Council for Higher Education for Virginia.

“What impresses me most about Cassidy is her ability to be calm and confident in difficult and complex situations, which happen regularly in Student Senate,” said Student Government Advisor Ben Endres. “She is a natural leader and well respected by her peers as well as the professional staff.”

She also works hard to ensure her peers feel heard and accepted, Endres said, and she seeks opportunities for her own personal development.

Next semester, Whitehurst said she will be an undergraduate research assistant working with professors Robert McGrath and Lucas Núñez to create a database of legislation passed in the Virginia General Assembly.

The opportunities Mason has provided, along with the friends Whitehurst has made along the way, have been her favorite parts of her college experience, she said.

Professors like Laura Walker and Sharrell Hassell-Goodman have also been influential, Whitehurst said, citing their engaging teaching styles and how they encourage productive dialogue among students.

“Cassidy is humble, yet confident and extremely capable and talented,” Hassell-Goodman said. “I can’t wait to see what she decides to pursue in the future.”

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Focusing on families in need

Damian Cristodero — Thu, 10 Dec 2020 15:51:57 +0000

Focusing on families in need Damian Cristodero Thu, 12/10/2020 - 10:51

Andersen Guske says he is inspired by the idea of helping people struggling with mental health or other issues before they snowball out of control. Photo by Naomi Fort.

Andersen Guske has dedicated his time at ��AV to learning about human dynamics and helping children and families.

A member of Mason’s Honors College, Guske graduates in December with a degree in human development and family science and a minor in American Sign Language. He hopes to use his education and the skills he’s developed to help individuals and families in need.

“I want to help people who are struggling with mental health or other issues before they snowball out of control,” Guske said. “When I think about doing that, it inspires me.”

Guske has already had an impact on families with his internship at Formed Families Forward, a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting foster, kinship and adoptive families of children with disabilities and special needs.

Guske’s senior project involved developing tip sheets and family activities to help motor, cognitive, social and emotional growth during the pandemic. In addition, Guske helped create videos with advice for how families with students with special needs can engage their children’s schools during the pandemic.

“Andersen is a bright star, a leader among his peers, said Bethany Letiecq, associate professor of human development and family science in the College of Education and Human Development. “He is committed to valuing family diversity and advancing justice and human dignity in society.”

Guske has an identical twin sister and two older siblings.

“Growing up, I was the mediator between any struggles with my siblings,” Guske said. “I have practiced active listening skills my entire life.”

Guske almost ended up pursuing a career in music. In high school, he was in marching band, played a number of instruments and was part of a rock band. He originally went to Mason for music.

Said Guske: “I still care about music and sometimes write songs just for fun.”

In college, Guske came out as a transgender man. He said his family, and in particular his twin sister, has been very supportive.

“One day I was talking to her about how I was feeling, and she just said, ‘Well, do you want to be my brother?’” Guske said. “I just broke down and said yes. It was a defining moment.”

After graduation, Guske hopes to find employment with a nonprofit that works with marginalized groups, such as individuals with disabilities. He’s also “fairly certain” he will eventually pursue a graduate degree in social work.

“Social work seems like a good use of my skills and fulfilling work,” he said.

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Mason’s Carter School helps bring Restorative Justice to Arlington County

Mariam Aburdeineh — Tue, 13 Oct 2020 05:00:00 +0000

Mason’s Carter School helps bring Restorative Justice to Arlington County Mariam Aburdeineh Tue, 10/13/2020 - 01:00

There are times when studying peace and conflict resolution is theoretical. But at ��AV’s Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, students also put their knowledge into action to benefit the local community.

Susan Hirsch. Photo provided

Since January, the school has partnered with Restorative Arlington, a new initiative aimed at incorporating restorative justice practices into Arlington County’s public schools, legal system and community. The partnership was formalized in July when Carter School Dean Alpaslan Özerdem and Arlington County Manager Mark Schwartz signed a joint Letter of Intent.

“It really is an opportunity for students to be on the ground floor of how a major community-driven initiative is built,” said Carter School professor Susan Hirsch, who will teach a conflict course next semester where students can directly support the initiative. “It’s the best of experiential learning.”

Restorative justice is an alternative approach to punitive discipline. At its center is community building and repairing not only the harm done, but also relationships.

“The Carter School partnership offers engagement on multiple levels,” said Liane Rozzell, Restorative Arlington’s project coordinator. “We have students who help us grow the initiative while they’re learning themselves; there are faculty who are knowledgeable and excited, who can contribute their expertise to this process.”

Liane Rozzell. Photo provided

The support from Mason is multifaceted, Rozzell said. Some of those ways the school is and will continue to be involved include evaluating how the initiative is going, training teachers and community members on how to facilitate restorative justice practices, developing curriculum, organizing dialogues and conducting research.

“All of this is very needed and it gives us a tremendous boost that we couldn’t do on our own,” Rozzell said.

What would incorporating restorative justice look like in action?

“We would have way fewer, if any, students suspended,” Rozzell said. “We’d have way more connection and folks thriving in schools.”

Kimiko Lighty. Photo provided

“My hope is that a number of different cases that might have gone to the criminal legal system might find their way to be handled outside that system,” Hirsch said. “I would also hope that community members would [develop] a restorative ethic and feel empowered to resolve other conflicts using approaches that are restorative and not punitive.”

Kimiko Lighty, MA Interdisciplinary Studies ’10, is interim co-coordinator for Restorative Arlington. She is one of several Mason alumni contributing to the initiative. Most recently she helped create Restorative Arlington’s strategic plan and facilitated VCircles, virtual groups held over Zoom that focused on community building.

“The first time I heard about restorative justice was in a peace studies class at Mason,” said Lighty, who works as a restorative justice practitioner for Northern Virginia Mediation Services.

“I think we have a disposability crisis in our civilization, where we have so much disposable stuff that it leads us to start thinking about people as disposable,” she said. “Restorative justice honors the fact that we’re all connected—it gives us a way to see people as whole people that we live in relation with, and that does work in preventing harm before it even happens.”

Mason’s John Mitchell Jr. Program is putting activism in action

Mariam Aburdeineh — Fri, 04 Sep 2020 05:00:00 +0000

Mason’s John Mitchell Jr. Program is putting activism in action Mariam Aburdeineh Fri, 09/04/2020 - 01:00

What does social justice look like during a pandemic and a time of racial turmoil?

��AV’s John Mitchell Jr. Program for History, Justice and Race (JMJP) has been busy answering that question.

“We started off trying to figure out a way to promote racial healing,” said JMJP founder and Carter School professor Charles Chavis. “Our work is twofold: promoting narrative change and social transformation.”

Members of Mason's John Mitchell, Jr. Program attended the 57th anniversary of the March on Washington on August 28, 2020. From left to right: Jordan Mrvos (Carter School MS graduate ‘20), Ajanet Rountree (Carter School PhD student), Charles L. Chavis, Jr. (Carter School assistant professor and JMJP founding director), Audrey Williams (Carter School MS student), Chinyere Erondu (Carter School MS student). Photo provided.

A theme of their work has been having conversations about systemic racism. Ideally, these discussions would be held face-to-face, Chavis said, but that wasn’t possible due to COVID-19.

The virtual efforts have been surging with support.

In the summer, JMJP hosted “Mondays in June,” a virtual series with Andy Shallal, owner of the D.C. restaurant chain Busboys and Poets, to discuss race. The combined events had more than 15,000 views and led to a partnership with Washington, D.C., radio station WPFW.

“We were granted the opportunity to take our online Facebook show to the radio world,” Chavis said, adding that the first show will air on September 14. “We’re extremely excited.”

Members of JMJP post "Let us take courage," a quote from John Mitchell, Jr. on persevering in the struggle for civil rights, with signage at the March on Washington 2020. Photo provided.

Founded in 2019, JMJP is named after John Mitchell Jr., an anti-lynching advocate, journalist, and Virginia politician who lived at the turn of the 20th century. With a focus on activism on the local level, all at Mason and in the community are invited to get involved.

“Anti-racism is not the problem of people of color, but our problem as a country,” Chavis said. “The program represents a space where everyone who wants to be about social justice and peace can do that, not only through attending events, but doing work around nearing change, curriculum development and public humanities.”

For students, participation means experiential learning.

“The program gives us a platform to call out injustice and point to places in history where those injustices originated,” said Ajanet Rountree, JMJP program coordinator and Carter School PhD student. “That allows us to question what we’re going to do about it, how we can change the trajectory of our lives as individuals, Americans, and global citizens.”

Beyond discussions, JMJP took their activism to the streets and marched in the 57th anniversary of the March on Washington held at the National Mall in August.

March on Washington 2020. Photo provided.

“We can’t say we are committed to conflict resolution if we are unwilling to be in the streets and be where the people are who are facing conflict,” Rountree said.

Jonathan Prinz, son of civil rights leader Rabbi Joachim Prinz, attended the original March on Washington with his father. He was also a guest speaker with Susannah Heschel, daughter of civil rights leader Rabbi Abraham Joshua Heschel, for JMJP’s fall inaugural event.

Prinz said he notices a difference in the movements of the 1960s versus today.

“There’s something very spontaneous about [the Black Lives Matter movement] and something leader-less about it,” Prinz said. “A lot of it has to do with a wonderful generation of young people who are engaged.”

Students in JMJP are one example of that.

“The heart of what we want to be is a beacon not only that promotes peace, but also provides students with opportunities to step outside the box and really connect what they’re doing to social justice,” Chavis said.

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After the Beirut explosions, the grandma of this Mason grad brought hope through the piano

Mariam Aburdeineh — Mon, 31 Aug 2020 00:10:17 +0000

After the Beirut explosions, the grandma of this Mason grad brought hope through the piano Mariam Aburdeineh Sun, 08/30/2020 - 20:10

Amy Melki. Photo provided.

May Abboud Melki’s home was in shambles following the massive August 4 explosion in Beirut, Lebanon. Glass shards from blasted windows and debris filled her home, and nearly everything she owned had been damaged. That is, except for her piano.

Thanks to Melki’s granddaughters, including Amy Melki, a 2020 graduate of ��AV, beauty and resilience were seen amidst the chaos, as a video they shared on social media of their grandmother playing “Auld Lang Syne” on the piano surrounded by rubble went viral and made international headlines.

“It’s her form of therapy,” said Melki, who received the video via text from her mother in Beirut. “[During the Lebanese Civil War, my grandmother] found something in her music and often reverted to playing the piano as a way of coping with the material loss and the human loss.”

The piano has sentimental value too, Melki said, as her grandmother was gifted it 60 years ago on her honeymoon.

Comments on the video have spoken to how Melki’s grandmother embodies the Lebanese spirit.

“The symbol of true Lebanese resilience isn’t just found in [my grandmother]; it’s found in our nation,” said Melki, who graduated with a master’s in global affairs. “I’m just so proud that she was the one to carry that message and remind people that even in your darkest, most desperate times, we will be able to rebuild.”

Resilience has been part of the Melki family story. Amy Melki’s grandparents survived the 1975-1990 civil war while raising four kids, she said; and her parents, who were refugees escaping war, founded an NGO in Lebanon that works with Syrian refugees and underprivileged communities.

Melki is proud of that history, she said.

“Lebanon for me is the country that molded me, the country that made me who I am,” said Melki, who was born in the United States and grew up in Lebanon. “Wherever I go, I hope I can in some way give back.”

May Abboud Melki assesses the damage to her home after the Beirut explosions. Photo provided.

Melki said she hopes to one day work for the World Bank or an international relief organization.

Right now, she is making an international impact working at Mason. In July, Melki joined the Schar School of Policy and Government’s Global Terrorist Trends and Analysis Center (GTTAC), where she analyzes incidents of global terrorism for a congressionally mandated database.

“I really love it,” Melki said. “It’s such a learning experience and everyone working on it, like Dr. Judy [Deane] and Dr. Mahmut [Cengiz], genuinely care to help you learn and become a better researcher.”

“This tragedy [in Lebanon] took place during the second week of training for our new cohort,” said Deane, deputy director of Mason’s Terrorism, Transnational Crime and Corruption Center (TraCCC). “It must have affected Amy’s ability to concentrate, but it didn’t show in her work.”

“Like Amy, many of our GTTAC staff have had their lives impacted by violence and terrorism, and they understand why it is so important for our project to provide accurate information about these issues to the world,” Deane said. “We feel lucky to have Amy working with us and will benefit from her understanding of the complexities of violence in the Middle East.”

Melki said she wishes such complexities weren’t the reality in Lebanon, but her faith gives her hope. It’s divine intervention, she said, that her grandparents weren’t home during the explosion.

“Although we don’t have all the answers to all of our questions, although we wonder why did this happen, [my grandmother] felt at peace because she was reminded that God is always by her side,” Melki said. “I feel incredibly blessed and grateful that God protected my family.”

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Mason faculty and students honored with Jack Wood town-gown relations awards

Colleen Rich — Wed, 20 May 2020 20:00:17 +0000

Mason faculty and students honored with Jack Wood town-gown relations awards Colleen Rich Wed, 05/20/2020 - 16:00

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For kids stuck at home, Mason student is royalty

Colleen Rich — Wed, 22 Apr 2020 13:23:28 +0000

For kids stuck at home, Mason student is royalty Colleen Rich Wed, 04/22/2020 - 09:23

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Student leaders at the MIX create facial protection for medical community to help combat COVID-19

Mariam Aburdeineh — Mon, 06 Apr 2020 09:55:01 +0000

Student leaders at the MIX create facial protection for medical community to help combat COVID-19 Mariam Aburdeineh Mon, 04/06/2020 - 05:55

Facial shields made by the Mason team are being put to good use. The first set was delivered to medical professionals at Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, New York. Photo provided by Eric Bubar.

In response to COVID-19, a group of ��AV students had planned to create 3D printed personal protective equipment (PPE), such as face shields and masks for health care professionals and their patients. When the announcement came on March 22 that Mason campuses were closing, they knew they had to move fast.

“We moved our equipment [from the MIX] off campus,” said Amanda Jarvis, MIX innovations program manager who is coordinating the team’s effort.

Senior Denys Kuratchenko runs a 24/7 "print farm" from his apartment to 3D print the face shield frames. He inspects the print quality of the frames before sanitizing and shipping them.

Senior Denys Kuratchenko said he retrieved his personal 3D printer from the space, and received permission from Jarvis to take another three from the MIX. He’s now running a 24/7 “print farm” from his apartment in Triangle, Virginia, he said, and has ordered a fifth printer to increase production capacity.

It takes about four hours to print each frame for the face shield, Kuratchenko said, and, so far, he has made more than 65 that were part of a shipment delivered to Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, New York.

“I’m not only helping other doctors, but also keeping their loved ones safe, and [giving them peace of mind in] knowing that their loved ones who are doctors are more protected,” said Kuratchenko, an information systems and operations management major.

After the face shield frames are printed, Kuratchenko sends them to Eric Bubar, associate professor of physics at Marymount University, who matches the 3D-printed parts with laser-cut shields and makes the deliveries to health care providers who have indicated a need.

It takes four hours to 3D print each face shield frame.

“I applaud the collaborative efforts of our team who have come together to protect medical professionals on the front lines,” said Karen Livingston, associate director for entrepreneurship programs, who leads the MIX. “We are fortunate to have such outstanding students and partners joining together to make a difference.”

The Mason student’s efforts are part of a larger movement in the Northern Virginia maker community to address the shortage of PPE during the pandemic, Bubar said. Mason, Northern Virginia Community College, Marymount, Arlington Public Schools, and eNABLE DC are all part of the network.

“None of this would be possible without GMU’s excellent contributions to the efforts and their collaborative spirit,” Bubar said. “To quote the doctor who received them, ‘these are like gold.’”

A medical professional from Elmhurst Hospital in Queens, NY wears a face shield made by the Mason team. Photo provided by Eric Bubar.

In addition to student efforts, Livingston and Jarvis said they are working to lead administrators and professors across campus around 3D-printing efforts and ventilator prototyping in response to COVID-19.

With the supply of disposable face masks declining, patients are also in need, and the Mason team has mobilized here as well.

This week, Jarvis is sourcing materials to distribute to makers in the MIX community who will be sewing masks to fulfill incoming requests, including for a local cancer ward.

It takes about 15 to 20 minutes to sew a fabric mask, and Jarvis said she is experimenting in her home studio with how to streamline the process, possibly through laser cutting the fabric.

“It’s a good use of the MIX team skills,” said Jarvis, “It’s our time to respond.”

Bradford Webb, a computer engineering senior, isn’t printing or sewing, but is still vital to operation.

He ensures the products the Mason team creates are the best and most usable they can be. He said he spends his time outside of class evaluating open source PPE prototypes, looking at research on which materials work best, and seeing which ones will be accepted at different medical locations.

Bradford Webb. Photo provided.

“It’s very helpful in making sure the prototypes we’re developing are effective for local health care providers, especially because the info we’re getting changes as the understanding of the virus improves,” Webb said.

Amanda Jarvis. Photo provided.

Staying home has been a challenge, the team agreed, but the project gives them purpose.

“To feel like I can contribute and help out, and also seeing the rest of the maker community responding this way, gives me a lot of hope for the future,” Jarvis said.

In addition to helping flatten the curve by getting PPE to the right people at the right time, their effort shows what’s possible, Webb said.

“You don’t necessarily have to be part of a very large group to help out in times of need,” Webb said. “Collaborate with the right people and it’s possible to make it work.”

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