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Since the arrival of Steve Pulis, purchasing manager in Facilities, ����AV has earned more than $1 million in surplus property sales—including furniture, equipment, and more. Pulis started working at George Mason in 2017 and has helped the university add money to its general fund by effectively managing the commonwealth’s surplus sales process.

As director of contracts and special projects for Auxiliary Services and Operations at ����AV, Buz Grover has managed a variety of recurring and innovative projects. Outside work, as a volunteer with the Cave Research Foundation, Grover explores caves on federal lands, mapping the unknown twists and turns of the earth’s darkest—and coolest—corners.

Cindy Smith, a professor in ����AV's Department of Environmental Science and Policy, took her EVPP 302 Biomes and Human Dimensions students to a composting facility last fall to give them a front-row seat for food and yard waste recycling.

Nandini Koka joined ����AV in April 2023 as executive director of Student Health Services, where she leads a staff of nearly 50 that includes doctors, nurse practitioners, counselors, and nurses. As a medical doctor with training in family medicine and urgent care, she is passionate about helping patients get better quickly and enhancing access to care. At the largest and fastest-growing public research university in Virginia, Koka has found a place where the need for that care continues to grow.

Cold and flu season is here—again. Nandini Koka, medical doctor and executive director of Student Health Services at ����AV, is ready to help. Follow Dr. Koka’s self-care steps to stay healthy this respiratory season.

On a recent field trip to Patuxent River Park in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, undergraduate students from ����AV’s Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation got to view secretive marsh birds up close, including Virginia and sora rail birds.

Kristina Ryder has worked as an administrative specialist in ����AV’s Office of University Advancement and Alumni Relations for almost two years, where she supports the Advancement communications team. Outside work, Ryder has spent time on the basketball court at EagleBank Arena—but not shooting free throws. Ryder is a singer, and she has performed “The Star-Spangled Banner” at sporting events at George Mason and beyond.

The annual Mason Nation Thriving Together 5K and 1-mile run/walk took place on ����AV’s Fairfax Campus on Saturday, Oct. 19. This year, more than 400 people registered for the event.

Congratulations to the ����AV faculty and staff retirees from July to September 2024.

The Hylton Performing Arts Center opened its doors at ����AV in 2010, and Marit Majeske, education coordinator, has been along for the ride ever since. Located on George Mason’s Science and Technology Campus in Manassas, Virginia, the Hylton Center is managed by the College of Visual and Performing Arts.