INTO Mason

Building a Bridge

Colleen Rich — Thu, 29 Aug 2024 19:48:47 +0000

Building a Bridge Colleen Rich Thu, 08/29/2024 - 15:48

Since 2014, INTO ��AV has offered classes to more than 3,000 international students from 70 countries, including China, Saudi Arabia, Thailand, Azerbaijan, and Turkey.

INTO students at move in. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding

A collaboration between George Mason and INTO University Partnerships, INTO Mason offers both undergraduate and graduate pathway programs for international students who want to study at George Mason.

“Our programs are designed to help students improve their English skills, understand the U.S. academic world, and provide them with wrap-around support so they succeed once they are fully immersed in their academic studies at George Mason,” says Todd Rose, executive director of INTO Mason.

Students who have gone through the INTO Mason programs are typically successful in their chosen studies, says Aimee Weinstein, DA Higher Education ’06, INTO Mason term assistant professor. For example, 82 percent of students who start in an INTO Mason graduate pathway program go on to graduate with a master’s degree.

“At INTO Mason, everyone—from professors to enrollment specialists—is really focused on student success,” says Weinstein. “That translates into students who feel confident that they can succeed and are encouraged every step of the way.”

Learn more about INTO Mason

Hispanic and Latinx Patriots share their cultural touchstones for Hispanic Heritage Month

Sarah Holland — Wed, 11 Oct 2023 22:50:26 +0000

Hispanic and Latinx Patriots share their cultural touchstones for Hispanic Heritage Month Sarah Holland Wed, 10/11/2023 - 18:50

National Hispanic Heritage Month, celebrated from September 15 through October 15 each year, recognizes the contributions and influence of Hispanic and Latinx Americans to United States history, culture, and achievements.

Mason enrolls and graduates the Mid-Atlantic region’s largest population of Hispanic and Latinx students, and we celebrate the varied and diverse contributions of our students every day through our 90% acceptance rate, an above-average graduation rate, and more than 400 student organizations.

Meet some of our students, faculty, and staff who represent the varied experience of Hispanic and Latinx Americans.

View an accessible PDF version

Conoce la Universidad George Mason

Stories from our Hispanic and Latinx community

Hispanic and Latinx Patriots share their cultural touchstones for Hispanic Heritage Month
October 11, 2023
New Mason summer program shows high school students the value of a STEM degree
August 15, 2023
Film festival explores ‘the way of life’ in various Spanish-speaking countries
September 7, 2022
Mason teams with Dominion Energy, HACU for Summer Bridge Program
July 27, 2022
Hispanic Heritage Month: Faculty Spotlight
October 12, 2021

Topics

Hispanic Heritage Month

Students

Campus News

Costello College of Business

College of Humanities and Social Science

Joint program with INTO Mason and Mason Korea creates cross-cultural learning opportunities for South Korean government officials

Colleen Rich — Wed, 07 Jun 2023 20:49:48 +0000

Joint program with INTO Mason and Mason Korea creates cross-cultural learning opportunities for South Korean government officials Colleen Rich Wed, 06/07/2023 - 16:49

INTO Mason and Mason Korea partnered with the South Korea’s Local Government Officials Institute (LOGODI) to offer a joint program for 25 South Korean local government officials from May 15 to June 2. In this inaugural program, participants studied Business English, visited sites in South Korea and the greater Washington, D.C. region, and learned from Mason faculty and staff.

Korean government officials on Fairfax Campus tour. Photo by Jing Chen/INTO Mason

Participants received global business instruction, including in Business English, made several site visits, and heard from Mason guest speakers.

“This is an example of the unique opportunity Mason has to share the skills people need to be world-class leaders,” said Tasha M. Troy, the INTO Mason instructor who led the program in Fairfax. “It shows what Mason can do when different departments, schools, and campuses collaborate to create a highly engaging and relevant training program.”

Participants began with a week in Mason Korea focused on Business English instruction. In Fairfax, the group heard from Jonathan L. Gifford, director of the Center for Transportation Public-Private Partnership Policy and Schar School professor; Greg Farley, director of sustainability for Facilities; Jerry McGinn, executive director of the Greg and Camille Baroni Center for Government Contracting, School of Business; Ellen Harpel, PhD Public Policy ’06, founder of Smart Incentives; and Mahesh Joshi, associate professor of global strategy and entrepreneurship, School of Business.

Korean government officials taking Business English class at INTO Mason. Photo by Jing Chen/INTO Mason

Off-campus, they visited the State Capitol Building in Richmond; the Unisphere net-zero building in Silver Spring, Maryland; the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority; and the World Bank headquarters in Washington, D.C. They also attended a Memorial Day festival in Vienna, Virginia, and other activities off-site.

From the beginning of the program at Mason Korea through the two weeks at the Fairfax Campus, participants were highly engaged and enjoyed the range of activities. “It was amazing to watch their confidence grow, even over such a short period of time,” Troy said. “Clearly, the participants gained a lot from the program.”

Seo Hee Kyung, a team leader in the Health Promotion Division of the city government of Seoul, was impressed by the "organized curriculum" put together by INTO Mason adjunct instructor Tasha M. Troy and the "very helpful" field trips.

Kwon Ja Eun, a senior officer in the Local Autonomy Administration division at Seoul's city hall, was particularly happy to hear the "passion" from the various Mason professors and speakers.

Finally, Hyun Sang Wuk, a trainee with LOGODI, "loved having the opportunity to get the insights from the people from various fields."

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INTO Mason students learn about the significance of Juneteenth, the Civil War and local history

Colleen Rich — Wed, 22 Jun 2022 17:10:28 +0000

INTO Mason students learn about the significance of Juneteenth, the Civil War and local history Colleen Rich Wed, 06/22/2022 - 13:10

INTO Mason students went on a guided tour of the Enslaved People of George Mason Memorial. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Creative Services

Students participating in INTO ��AV’s summer English program learned about the significance of Juneteenth and went on a guided tour Tuesday of the Enslaved People of George Mason Memorial and the Civil War redoubt located on the university’s Fairfax Campus.

Steven A. Harris-Scott, INTO Mason’s interim associate academic director for faculty affairs and strategic initiatives, led a crowd of about 60 students on the tour, discussing George Mason IV, his history as both a founder and slave owner, the Civil War and the ways that racism still exists in the United States.

INTO Mason students, who come from all over the world to learn English and American academic customs, often arrive in the U.S. with little understanding of how race has affected this country, said Harris-Scott.

“International students aren’t necessarily aware of the history of racism in this country, yet they experience aspects of racism when they get here,” said Harris-Scott. “It’s part of our mission to engage our international students in American culture, and that includes our history of racism. I thought Juneteenth and our historical landmarks provided us with a way to broach a conversation about American history and racism.”

Han Pham, an INTO Mason student from Vietnam, said she appreciated the tour and the explanation about the country’s history of slavery.

“I like that I had the chance to learn more about the history of the U.S.” Pham said.

INTO Mason students also learned about the U.S. Civil War when visiting the redoubt preserved on the Fairfax Campus. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Creative Services

About 60 INTO Mason students attend the intensive 10-week English language program offered in the summer. The students come to learn English, often with the intention to pursue further higher education in the United States. INTO Mason is a partnership between INTO University Partnerships and Mason. The program supports international students from application to graduation, and offers a variety of ways to help foreign students achieve success in the United States.

The tour and discussion, said Harris-Scott, was a way to get the students “out of the building to experience something physical and tangible” and also teach them about Juneteenth.

Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, Emancipation Day, or Jubilee Day, commemorates June 19, 1865, the day that news of the Emancipation Proclamation finally reached Galveston, Texas, more than two years late. Juneteenth is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States.

Juneteenth has long been a day of remembrance and an opportunity for Black people in the United States to honor their history and emphasize their citizenship.

Tomaya Itami, an INTO Mason student from Japan, said that learning about the U.S.’s past, including its history of slavery and racism, was “necessary” for him to know.

“I had no idea that George Mason used to have slaves, and I learned about how they were treated,” Itami said. “It’s important to know.”

Harris-Scott first took the students to the Civil War redoubt located in the woods behind the western edge of Parking Lot K. The redoubt is a circular earthen fortification constructed and used during the Civil War. A number of different Union and Confederate military forces occupied the fort during the war, including a brigade led by Stonewall Jackson.

Harris-Scott then took the students to both the George Mason statue and the Enslaved People of George Mason Memorial, the centerpiece of Wilkins Plaza, spanning roughly 300 feet, to remember the history of the people enslaved by George Mason at Gunston Hall.

Wendi Manuel-Scott, a professor within the School of Integrative Studies, the Department of History and Art History, and one of the faculty members on the project, has said its goal is to “focus on expanding our community’s understanding of Mason, and to focus on the people he owned and what they thought about freedom.”

Munib Abdullah, an INTO Mason student from Saudi Arabia, said he was glad to have gone on the tour and to have learned about Juneteenth, but also that he was surprised that Mason owned slaves.

“It’s good to know about the good and the bad things about the past in order to help us with the present and the future,” Abdullah said.

Topics

INTO Mason

Juneteenth

Wilkins Plaza

Enslaved People of George Mason Memorial

Students

Anna Sophia Habib

Wasiq Muhammad Muhammad Ali — Wed, 01 Dec 2021 20:06:19 +0000

Anna Sophia Habib Wasiq Muhammad… Wed, 12/01/2021 - 15:06

Term Professor

Contact Information

Email: ahabib@gmu.edu
Phone: 703.993.4660
Mail Stop: Honors College, MSN 1F4
Campus: Fairfax
Office: Horizon Hall 3142

Biography

Anna S. Habib serves as Associate Director of Composition, managing the undergraduate composition courses designated for multilingual students at Mason's home campus and branch campus in Songdo, Korea. She is also the English department liaison to INTO Mason, coordinating and teaching the writing courses for the international undergraduate and graduate pathway programs. Anna is recipient of the 2020 University Teaching Excellence Award. She also serves as Associate Editor for the WAC Clearinghouse's International Exchanges on the Study of Writing book series and lead Editor for Connecting Writing Centers across Borders, a blog of WLN: a Journal of Writing Center Scholarship.

Selected Publications

Mallett, J. Haan & A. Habib (June 2016). Developing Disciplinary Expertise, Bilinguality, Peer Mentorship, and Language Policy: Four Pedagogical Innovations in the Context of a Graduate Pathway Program. In S. Simpson, N. Caplan, M. Cox, T. Phillips (Eds.). Supporting Graduate Student Writers: Research, Curriculum and Program Design. Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.

Habib, A., Mallett, K. & Haan, J. (Feb 2015). The Development of Disciplinary Expertise: An EAP and RGS-informed Approach to the Teaching and Learning of Genre at ��AV. Composition Forum (31). Association of Teachers of Advanced Composition: Penn State University.

Zawacki, T. & Habib, A. (2014). “Internationalization, English L2 Writers, and the Writing Classroom: Implications for Teaching and Learning.” College Composition and Communication 65:4. 654-662. Print.

Zawacki, T. & Habib, A. (2014). Negotiating “Errors” in L2 Writing: Faculty Dispositions and Language Difference. In M. Cox & T. Zawacki (eds.) WAC and Second Language Writers: Research towards Linguistically and Culturally Inclusive Programs and Practices. Parlor Press. Perspectives on Writing Series. Web.

Education

B.A. English, concentration in Cultural Studies, ��AV
MFA, Creative Nonfiction, ��AV
PhD Candidate, Writing & Rhetoric, ��AV

Aimee Weinstein

Wasiq Muhammad Muhammad Ali — Mon, 29 Nov 2021 15:49:53 +0000

Aimee Weinstein Wasiq Muhammad… Mon, 11/29/2021 - 10:49

Instructional Assistant Professor, Honors College
Faculty Fellow, Stearns Center For Teaching and Learning

Contact Information

Email: aweinste@gmu.edu
Phone: 703.993.5938
Mail Stop: Honors College, MSN 1F4
Campus: Fairfax
Office: Buchanan Hall

Biography

Aimee Ledewitz Weinstein, D.A., is an Instructional Assistant Professor with the Honors College where she teaches research writing, creative nonfiction writing/reading and works with the community based learning team to guide college essay mentors for the Early Identification Program. Dr. Weinstein is also affiliate faculty with INTO Mason, where she works with International Graduate students on their research writing, transition management and other assorted aspects that characterize a move to a new culture and American university life. In addition, Dr. Weinstein is a faculty fellow with the Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning where she works with the Anti-Racist and Inclusive Teaching (ARIT) team to help professors be more overtly inclusive in their classrooms. When it is safer to travel, she plans to lead a summer study abroad course on Japanese Arts and Well-being. She received her doctorate from the Department of Higher Education at ��AV where she focused on teaching writing to second language learners via a hybrid classroom. Before moving to Northern Virginia in 2015, Dr. Weinstein lived for more than ten years in Tokyo, Japan where she taught first year writing and research writing at Temple University, Japan. In addition to traveling throughout Asia, she advocated for women’s education via the Japan Support Committee of the Asian University for Women in Bangladesh. Dr. Weinstein’s publications include a College Essay handbook, a study guide for the ACT essay, a fiction piece in an anthology about the concept of time, and a small book on humorous English translations of Japanese signs. Her other, varied publications are mostly out of Japan and include English-language travel and food journals as well as both print and online news sources.

Education

DA, Higher Education, ��AV (2006)
MA, English/Composition, ��AV (1996)
BA, English, The University of Connecticut (1992)

INTO Mason helps international students acclimate to American academics, learn English

Colleen Rich — Wed, 23 Jun 2021 12:54:39 +0000

INTO Mason helps international students acclimate to American academics, learn English Colleen Rich Wed, 06/23/2021 - 08:54

INTO Mason students on the Fairfax Campus in Fall 2019. File photo by Evan Cantwell

When Patcharaporn Adchariyavivit moved to Virginia from Thailand to study data analytics at ��AV, she had no experience being a college student in the United States. So she decided to attend INTO ��AV (INTO Mason) first, which helped her hone her English skills and get acclimated to American culture and university expectations.

“The classes helped me so much,” said Adchariyavivit, who attended both virtual and hybrid classes. “They taught me the way you write a paper here and things about American culture I did not know.”

INTO Mason offers both undergraduate and graduate pathway programs for international students who want to study at Mason. A partnership between Mason and INTO University Partnerships, INTO Mason supports a diverse group of students, according to its website, “from application to graduation.”

“Our programs are designed to help students improve their English skills, understand the U.S. academic world, and provide them with wrap-around support so they succeed once they are fully immersed in their academic studies at Mason,” said Todd Rose, executive director of INTO Mason.

Since 2014, INTO Mason has offered classes to more than 3,000 students from 70 different countries, such as China, Saudi Arabia, India, Thailand, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Russia, Kenya, and Turkey.

Enrollment numbers were steadily growing before COVID-19 and for the 2019-20 academic year, the undergraduate programs boasted 117 students, and the graduate programs had 143 students.

The pandemic, along with Trump administration limits on student travel, presented some challenges for INTO Mason programs in the few past years. However, even during the pandemic, INTO Mason was still able to offer online classes for students staying in their home countries and online, hybrid and in-person classes for students who had traveled to the area.

INTO Mason administrators anticipate this coming year for enrollment to grow slightly from the 2020-21 low point with the hope that 2022-23 sees a return to pre-pandemic enrollment levels.

Students who have gone through the INTO Mason programs are typically successful in their chosen studies, said Aimee Weinstein, INTO Mason term assistant professor. For example, 82% of students who start in an INTO Mason graduate pathway program go on to graduate with a master’s degree.

“The people who work at INTO Mason, from professors to enrollment specialists, are really focused on student success,” said Weinstein. “That translates into students who feel confident that they can succeed and are encouraged every step of the way.”

Qiusen Lin, who traveled from China to Fairfax to pursue a master’s degree in industrial-organizational psychology at Mason, recommends the program to other international students interested in attending an American university. Lin said that even through the pandemic, he was able to learn what he needed to learn through online classes.

“The academic training was useful,” said Lin. “I also am glad I chose Mason because of its high rankings, reputation and location near Washington, D.C.”

Topics

INTO Mason

Campus News

international students

2020 Curriculum Impact Grant recipients announced

Colleen Rich — Thu, 16 Jul 2020 09:00:19 +0000

2020 Curriculum Impact Grant recipients announced Colleen Rich Thu, 07/16/2020 - 05:00

Topics

Office of the Provost

minors

Curriculum Impact Grants

College of Visual and Performing Arts

College of Science

College of Humanities and Social Sciences

Volgenau School of Engineering

Schar School of Policy and Government

College of Health and Human Services

Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution

University Libraries

Costello College of Business

INTO Mason

Campus News

Dialogue & Difference shows religion and politics aren’t off the table

Melanie Balog — Tue, 22 Jan 2019 06:23:44 +0000

Dialogue & Difference shows religion and politics aren’t off the table Melanie Balog Tue, 01/22/2019 - 01:23

There’s a familiar rule at most family gatherings: Don’t talk about religion or politics.

But for the past 10 years, the Dialogue & Difference class and project at ��AV have been turning that rule on its head.

“It’s not easy to convince people that on those topics it’s actually possible to have a conversation,” said Mara Schoeny, associate professor at Mason’s top-rated School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution (S-CAR). The course equips students with the skills to have challenging yet considerate conversations and learn from one another, she said.

The Dialogue and Difference Project has hosted 74 events since 2008, allowing 42 interns to facilitate dialogues. Photo by Michael P. Smith.

More than 500 students have taken this course that brings together international and American students to discuss controversial issues. The collaboration makes the class powerful, said adjunct professor Leila Peterson, who runs the course with Michael Smith, an English language instructor from INTO Mason.

“Multilingual students are a rich resource for promoting cultural understanding, but domestic students don't often have opportunities to interact with people from different cultural backgrounds on a deep level,” Smith said. “[This] class creates such opportunities.”

This fall students discussed gun control, immigration, gender equality, the Muslim world in the West and freedom of speech. Each semester the topics change, but the structure remains the same.

The first part of the semester is about relationship building and learning how to create a safe space, said Peterson. Next, students facilitate difficult conversations with their peers using the skills they’ve learned. The final part of the semester is learning how to apply what they’ve learned in their everyday lives.

Key parts of that include learning how to listen, how to speak up about individual views and ultimately arriving at conversations with a desire to learn instead of debate or win an argument.

“The one thing I really like about this class is that there’s no problem that’s too complex,” said S-CAR senior Kyle Ferris. “If you set up the right conditions and approach it the right way, then you can really have a conversation about things that most people would think are unresolvable.”

Students also learn more about themselves in the process.

“I thought I was a really open-minded person, but in hindsight, I thought so one-sidedly and not dynamically [about the cultures and topics we discussed],” said Nora Malatinszky, a junior at S-CAR. She said learning how to communicate effectively and in a streamlined way is one of her main takeaways from the course.

International students benefit in similar ways, with the added bonus of gaining a stronger mastery of American culture and the English language by taking a course with native English speakers.

For those who want to be part of the conversations but can’t attend the class, a series of dialogues is open to the wider campus community: the Dialogue & Difference Project, which promotes cultural, political, and social understanding much the same as the course does. The project, led by associate professor Patricia Maulden, has organized 74 events since 2008 and has given 42 interns, like 2018 graduate Amadu Koroma, opportunities to facilitate dialogues.

Knowing people can have these difficult conversations in a productive way is a great thing, said Ferris. “It gives you optimism for how to approach conflicts in the future.”

School for Conflict Analysis and Resolution students join INTO Mason students from around the world to discuss race, religion and the U.S. election. File photo by Evan Cantwell.

INTO Mason

Building a Bridge

Learn more about INTO Mason

Related News

More from Mason Spirit Magazine

Hispanic and Latinx Patriots share their cultural touchstones for Hispanic Heritage Month

View an accessible PDF version

Conoce la Universidad George Mason

Stories from our Hispanic and Latinx community

Topics

Joint program with INTO Mason and Mason Korea creates cross-cultural learning opportunities for South Korean government officials

Topics

INTO Mason students learn about the significance of Juneteenth, the Civil War and local history

Topics

Anna Sophia Habib

Contact Information

Biography

Selected Publications

Education

Aimee Weinstein

Contact Information

Biography

Education

INTO Mason helps international students acclimate to American academics, learn English

Topics

2020 Curriculum Impact Grant recipients announced

Topics

Dialogue & Difference shows religion and politics aren’t off the table