Arlington

Building community and connections in Arlington

Lauren Reuscher — Wed, 08 Nov 2023 18:44:02 +0000

Building community and connections in Arlington Lauren Reuscher Wed, 11/08/2023 - 13:44

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Around Mason (E-Files)

The Movers and Shakers Mixer event returned to Mason Square in late September, connecting ��AV students with Arlington’s business, government, and community leaders.

The Movers and Shakers Mixer gave students the opportunity to connect with leaders in the local Arlington community. Photo by Ron Aira/Office of University Branding

Since its inception in 2019, the Movers and Shakers Mixer has become a highly anticipated networking event for the Mason Square community. This year, more than 150 students, faculty, staff, and community members participated.

Bryanna Buker, a graduate student pursuing a master’s degree in international security, aspires to work in transnational crime at an intelligence agency. As a new resident, Buker said the event was an ideal opportunity to engage with other community-focused Arlingtonians. Her future career prospects also motivated her to attend.

Photo by Ron Aira/Office of University Branding

“I wanted to meet people who could help shape my ideas of potential career opportunities post-graduation,” Buker said. “I’ve been debating going to law school after I finish my program. Meeting the recruitment team from the Antonin Scalia Law School allowed me to learn how to transition to law school.”

Photo by Ron Aira/Office of University Branding

Caroline Wesson, a doctoral candidate in political science, regularly attends Movers and Shakers. “I always leave with several business cards and excitement about ways I can get involved and engage my community through my research and skills,” Wesson said. “I was fortunate to speak with individuals from business and government who are passionate about economic growth and inclusion in our community, and those interested in how technology is transforming our society.”

Attendees had the opportunity to enter a raffle for one-on-one networking lunches with Arlington leaders. Amber Pittman, a graduate student in global commerce and policy, was one of the drawing winners. She recently connected with Jennifer Owens, president and CEO of Arlington Community Foundation, for their lunch meeting.

Owens expressed gratitude for the opportunity. “Thanks to the staff for creating events and opportunities, like Movers and Shakers, to foster connections between community members and students,” she said.

Supporting Restorative Justice in Arlington County and the City of Falls Church

Paul Snodgrass — Fri, 14 Jul 2023 00:15:41 +0000

Supporting Restorative Justice in Arlington County and the City of Falls Church Paul Snodgrass Thu, 07/13/2023 - 20:15

For Immediate Release:

The Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution and Restorative Arlington Sign Affiliation Agreement to Support Restorative Justice in Arlington County and the City of Falls Church

The Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution at ��AV and Restorative Arlington, a local 501(c)(3) non-profit that provides restorative justice services to the schools, legal system, and communities of Arlington County and the City of Falls Church, have signed an affiliation agreement that would facilitate collaboration between the two organizations and further cement the Carter School’s profile as a key resource in alternative dispute resolution in the DMV.

Similar to the agreement that the Carter School currently enjoys with Northern Virginia Mediation Services, this agreement will facilitate easier and increased applications for funding, expand internships and volunteer work, particularly with the Carter School’s Transitioning Justice Lab, and provide additional opportunities for collaboration on outreach and events.

Carter School students, faculty, staff, and alumni, led by Dr. Susan Hirsch, have been working with Restorative Arlington, a community-based, equity-focused organization, since their grassroots inception in late 2019. In May 2020, Carter School Dean Alpaslan Özerdem and the Arlington County manager Mark Schwartz signed a Letter of Intent between Carter School and Restorative Arlington to collaborate on research, internships, events and programming, and training. In May of 2022, the Carter School Faculty Board approved the plan to create an MOU setting out terms for an affiliation agreement with Restorative Arlington.

According to Carter School Dean Özerdem, “Restorative justice is one of the most effective ways of building sustainable peace and enable opportunities for reconciliation. It is through restorative justice that divided communities are empowered to become active agents of removing the barriers of the past and thinking about the future collectively. Therefore, we are immensely proud of our partnership with Restorative Arlington, and what our collaboration accomplishes with the communities of Arlington County and the City of Falls Church.”

Past collaborative projects include four Master’s courses focused on supporting Restorative Arlington activities; multiple training sessions in restorative approaches for the Restorative Arlington community as well as Carter School faculty, students, and alumni; several joint funding applications; and internships and volunteer work by members of Carter School’s Transitioning Justice Lab.

Kimiko Lighty, RA’s Executive Director, shared “Restorative Arlington feels honored and joyful to formalize our ongoing partnership with ��AV’s Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. We are excited to be part of the GMU family and to work and learn closely with alumni, faculty, staff, and students.”

About the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution:

��AV’s Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution is a community of faculty, students, staff, alumni, and partners with a fundamental commitment to building peace. Through the development of cutting-edge theory, research, education, and practical work, we seek to identify and address the underlying causes of conflict and provide tools for ethical and just peacebuilding on the local, national, and global stages. Learn more at https://carterschool.gmu.edu.

About Restorative Arlington:

Restorative Arlington is a grassroots, community-based 501c3 non-profit dedicated to bringing restorative justice practices to Arlington County’s legal system, schools, and the community. We envision an equitable, empathetic community that honors the dignity and humanity of all people

and creates pathways for belonging, healing, accountability, and growth. Our goal is to build a stronger sense of safety, belonging and connection through restorative habits and practices so that we all live better, together. Learn how you can become part of the solution at https://www.restorativearlington.org/.

In This Story

Alpaslan Özerdem

Susan F. Hirsch

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Gateway Building - Arlington, Virginia Campus: Public Hearing Notice 247-18482-PPEA

Lauren Reuscher — Tue, 19 Oct 2021 16:36:47 +0000

Gateway Building - Arlington, Virginia Campus: Public Hearing Notice 247-18482-PPEA Lauren Reuscher Tue, 10/19/2021 - 12:36

Gateway Building
Arlington, Virginia Campus
Public Hearing Notice
247-18482-PPEA

��AV will hold a public hearing to receive comments from interested parties regarding a Public-Private Education Facilities and Infrastructure Act (PPEA) proposal received from Mason Innovation Partners, LLC (MIP). The proposal is regarding a ground lease to MIP for the purposes of developing the Gateway Building on land owned by the University on the Arlington, Virginia campus.

The public hearing will take place on October 29, 2021, at 7 p.m. in the Van Metre Hall Auditorium located at 3351 Fairfax Drive, Arlington, Virginia 22201. Written comments may be submitted by email on or before October 29, 2021, to the Construction Update Contact Form.

The PPEA proposals presented to the University by MIP are available prior to the hearing for public viewing at following links:

Conceptual Proposal Response

Detailed Proposal Response

Event participants must complete Mason COVID Health Check and receive a “green light” status on the day of the event. Event organizers must perform a spot check of roughly 20 percent of attendees to verify a green status during check-in.

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Campus Improvements (Construction)

Construction

Institute for Digital InnovAtion (IDIA)

Arlington

��AV Announces Exclusive Developer Finalist for Arlington Campus Expansion, Regional Technology Hub

Kelly Hansen — Thu, 25 Feb 2021 22:19:49 +0000

��AV Announces Exclusive Developer Finalist for Arlington Campus Expansion, Regional Technology Hub Kelly Hansen Thu, 02/25/2021 - 17:19

Board of Visitors approves negotiations with Mason Innovation Partners

��AV’s Board of Visitors has authorized the university to begin official negotiations with the newly formed Mason Innovation Partners as the potential development partner for the transformation of its Arlington Campus in the heart of the Rossyln-Ballston corridor.

The addition to Mason's Arlington campus will incorporate advanced cyberinfrastructure and design to support digital innovation, active learning, cutting-edge research and tech incubators. Concept rendering by Mason Innovation Partners / EYP

The expanded campus will feature up to 360,500 square feet of new space dedicated to producing the next generation of Northern Virginia’s technology workforce, both for the public and private sectors. The new building will be a mixed-use, multi-tenant space adjacent to Mason’s existing presence in Virginia Square, and it will house faculty from Mason’s Institute for Digital InnovAtion (IDIA) and the proposed new School of Computing.

“We are thrilled to move to the next stage in this process,” said ��AV President Gregory Washington. “Mason Innovation Partners has shown that they share our vision for what this building can be and what it can do for all of Northern Virginia.”

Mason Innovation Partners (MIP) is a consortium that includes Edgemoor Infrastructure & Real Estate as developer and investor and Harrison Street as a capital partner, as well as other project development team members.

The Arlington Campus expansion is made possible through a $84 million investment from the Virginia General Assembly. The university also will fund an additional $84 million through philanthropy, of which $21 million has already been raised.

Mason’s Arlington initiative is critical to the Commonwealth of Virginia’s Tech Talent Investment Program (TTIP), a 20-year program designed to produce 25,000 additional graduates in computer science, computer engineering and software engineering. Initiated in part by Amazon’s decision to locate its new headquarters in Arlington, the state launched TTIP to build and sustain a diverse tech talent pipeline. Mason’s leadership role in TTIP reflects its standing as Virginia’s largest and most diverse public university and the largest producer of technology talent in the state.

“The Commonwealth of Virginia has been proactive in identifying the skills needed by tomorrow’s workforce, and has combined that with real action,” said Jimmy Hazel, rector of Mason’s Board of Visitors. “As more and more technology companies land and grow in Virginia, ��AV will be the key source of employee talent.”

The building itself is anticipated as the university’s first LEED platinum building and will incorporate advanced cyberinfrastructure and design to support digital innovation, active learning, cutting-edge research and tech incubators. There also will be collaboration and convening spaces to support public programming for the Arlington community, ground-floor retail, a below-grade parking garage and a public plaza. This facility will offer an ecosystem for commercial tenants as well, providing proximity to Mason students and faculty, high-tech talent, and collision space.

“All of us at Mason are excited to be moving forward on this tremendous project with MIP to realize this significant expansion of our Arlington Campus,” said Carol Dillon Kissal, Mason’s senior vice president for administration and finance. “Everything about this project is innovative, from being Mason’s anticipated first LEED platinum building to the ground-breaking, collaborative work that it will facilitate and inspire when it opens in 2025. The Arlington Campus will help transform the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor and establish it as the top tech-talent pipeline in the Commonwealth.”

The expanded campus will be a digital innovation research hub for learners, educators, entrepreneurs, innovators and industry partners to Mason’s Arlington Campus. Mason’s footprint in Arlington—home to the Antonin Scalia School of Law, the Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution, the Schar School for Policy and Government and the Arts Management and the School of Business graduate programs —provides a unique ecosystem for cross-discipline collaboration and a foundation for a future innovation district in the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor.

Demolition soon will begin on the original building at the site, with completion in fall 2021. A comprehensive agreement will be finalized and executed by December 2021. Construction is slated to begin in spring 2022, and the building is scheduled to open in summer 2025.

Media Contact:
Robin Rose Parker
rparkera@gmu.edu
703.993.6220

About ��AV
��AV is Virginia’s largest public research university. Located near Washington, D.C., Mason enrolls 38,000 students from 130 countries and all 50 states. Mason has grown rapidly over the last half-century and is recognized for its innovation and entrepreneurship, remarkable diversity and commitment to accessibility. Learn more at GMU.edu.

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Campus News

Board of Visitors

Arlington

Institute for Digital InnovAtion (IDIA)

Tech Talent Investment Pipeline (TTIP)

Serving those who serve: Partnership with American Legion lets M-VETS expand veterans support and student learning

Mariam Aburdeineh — Tue, 09 Feb 2021 20:33:21 +0000

Serving those who serve: Partnership with American Legion lets M-VETS expand veterans support and student learning Mariam Aburdeineh Tue, 02/09/2021 - 15:33

Tim MacArthur

It was post 9/11 when the family of a ��AV student deployed overseas found themselves facing a landlord-tenant issue. The wife came to the law school, asking for legal support and Mason stepped in pro bono. Realizing a need existed to help veterans and their families in similar situations, leaders at the law school established the Mason Veterans and Servicemembers Legal Clinic (M-VETS) in 2004.

Since then, the clinic has represented more than 300 clients and provided Mason law students with thousands of hours of litigation experience. A new partnership with American Legion Post 139, which will be standing up a new building in Arlington, will allow the clinic to further increase its impact.

“We’re very appreciative of American Legion,” said M-VETS Director Tim MacArthur, who has also served in the U.S. Army Judge Advocate General’s Corps. “It’s an exciting opportunity to expand the types of legal services we can provide to the community and our students.”

“What we want to do is put a full-time employee at the M-VETS office at American Legion who will practice in areas that [we currently] don’t practice,” MacArthur said, adding that this would increase the number of students and clients the clinic could take on, as well as give students opportunities to practice more diverse areas of law.

Leigh Winstead

M-VETS Deputy Director Leigh Winstead supervises students with MacArthur. She said a recent survey highlighted two areas of legal need where the clinic could grow: criminal law and employment matters.

“Our biggest areas of practice are domestic relations matters, divorces, step-parent adoptions, and landlord-tenant matters,” Winstead said. “On the military side, our bread and butter are discharge upgrades and Virginia disability benefit appeals.”

The new American Legion building and M-VETS’ expansion into the space is scheduled for 2022. Until then, M-VETS continues to serve those who serve

“It’s the least we can do for the sacrifices veterans have made for our country,” Winstead said. “Two very rewarding benefits from it are teaching the students and preparing them for practice, and being able to give back to the military community.”

M-VETS students handle three to five cases and applicants at a time, and 12 students are enrolled to work in the clinic this spring, MacArthur said.

What’s an average day like?

“We have [students] be the first chair of the case, meaning they’re the ones contacting the client, researching, preparing documents, and making sure their supervisor is up to date on the case,” MacArthur said.

Samantha Lewis

“Tim and Leigh are really great about giving us a lot of autonomy, which is awesome because that’s what it’s going to be like in the real world,” said Samantha Lewis, a third-year law student entering her second semester with M-VETS. “It’s a really unique opportunity for me as a young lawyer.”

Lewis said making an impact in others’ lives has been her favorite part of law school. The clinic has also helped her gain confidence and put classroom learnings into practice.

“[Defending a client in court] was a really proud moment for me because that was my first time standing up in front of a real judge, making real arguments, and acting like a real attorney,” she said. “We’re getting all this great legal experience, and [veterans] often wouldn’t be able to get good legal services if this clinic didn’t exist.”

Topics

Military Veterans and Families Initiative (MVFI)

Military

Antonin Scalia Law School

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.”

Alumni share memories of Original Building, as innovation escalates on Arlington Campus

Mariam Aburdeineh — Thu, 27 Feb 2020 05:00:00 +0000

Alumni share memories of Original Building, as innovation escalates on Arlington Campus Mariam Aburdeineh Thu, 02/27/2020 - 00:00

Law students ride the escalator in the original building, 1983. Photo from "By-George," ��AV Yearbook.

Many people are familiar with ��AV’s Arlington Campus, but fewer know its unique history, including how it became the only law school with an escalator when the university moved into the old Kann’s department store in the early 1970s.

The Original Building will soon be coming down to make way for an innovative new space. Students will still rise to new levels—sans the physical escalator—at Mason’s new School of Computing and Institute for Digital InnovAtion. Mason already produces the most tech talent of any university in Virginia, and with the commonwealth’s recent commitment to Mason of $235 million as part of the Tech Talent Investment Program, the number of graduates in computer-related fields who will support the region’s digital economy will only grow stronger.

Before saying hello to the highly anticipated space, we asked alumni to take us on a stroll down memory lane and share their memories of the Original Building:

Students study in the library in Arlington in 1981. Photo from ��AV yearbook.

Law & Love

“I grew up in Arlington so I remember shopping at Kann’s with my mother and being excited to ride the escalator. My husband (William Brewer) and I met during law school when we worked on the ‘Urge to Merge’ campaign to convert the International School of Law into a state school as part of ��AV. We were part of an active group of students lobbying the Virginia legislature and working closely with Til Hazel to make the dream come true. One evening when Bill and I were taking a study break in an open area on the second floor of the building, he asked me to marry him. We were married during our third year of law school. We graduated from GMU School of Law in 1980, having taken all our courses in the old Kann’s department store building. After graduation, we moved to Morgantown, West Virginia, where we have had successful and active law practices and raised our family. Little did I know when I started law school that the Kann’s building would help chart out the rest of my life for me!”

— Susan (Slenker) Brewer, JD ’80

John T. “Til” Hazel and students in front of the ��AV School of Law, July 31, 1987.

Bright Futures

“As a 1990 graduate of the law school and someone who has the opportunity to visit the existing structure from time to time, I know that the expansion will only serve to stamp the Arlington Campus as a go-to spot for future lawyers, innovators and public policy wonks.”

“It was definitely interesting and memorable to have attended law school over four years at night in the old department store.

“Truth be told, you kind of forgot what the physical plant was once you had to opportunity to interact and learn from incredible legal minds, both as professors and fellow classmates. I am definitely proud of my degree from the Scalia Law School, nee ��AV School of Law, and am excited about the direction the school has taken since my graduation and wouldn’t trade those years for anything.”

—Jeff Kramer, JD ’90

Students study in the law school library in 1981. Photo from ��AV yearbook.

Shadow of Segregation

“As one who would later go on to practice civil rights law, I distinctly remember on the bottom floor there being two men’s and two women’s rooms, all right next to one another; a constant reminder of how far we had come as a nation, and the gravity of the endeavor we had undertaken.”

—Mark D. Dix, JD ’98

Metro escalator, 1981. Photo from ��AV yearbook.

Monkeying Around

“All of my classes were in the Original Building, the former Kann’s department store. It was full circle for me.

“I grew up near Merrifield and my mom used to take me to Kann’s on a regular basis to buy two things, which apparently were only available at Kann’s. The first was Cub Scout uniforms. The second was Stride Rite shoes. So why does that third-grader remember this 49 years later? Because the Kann’s shoe department was unique. The second floor shoe department (yes, up the same escalator) boasted a large glass window cage/display with live spider monkeys. Whenever I’d complain about making the trek, I’d be reminded of the opportunity to see the monkeys.

“Little did I know that 25 years later I’d be back at Kann’s for a different purpose.”

— Steve Andersen, ’97

Securing a Law School

“I understood at the time, circa 1982, that the Kann building was leased, with an option to buy. Dean Ralph Norvell reached out to his former student Joseph Allbritton to sign and guarantee the note that purchased the Kann Building, whose property included the space upon which the later and current law school was built. The deal with Virginia provided that the state would get ownership of the Kann building property for one dollar, and in turn, Virginia would finance the yearly operation of the law school.

“During law school I got acquainted with an administrative clerk at the Supreme Court of the United States. He worked a second job at the library. On his own initiative, he invited me to visit him at the Supreme Court. … [I also remember] that the then-sitting Justice Lewis F. Powell Jr. came to the law school for a ceremony that started a Phi Delta Phi fraternity chapter in his name.”

—James R. Becker, JD ’82

Dean Ralph Novell stands at the north side of the ��AV School of Law shortly after the building was acquired by the university in the late 1970s. Photo by ��AV.

A Strange But Compelling Link

“I have many vivid memories of the old Kann’s department store, having been a small child growing up in the ‘60s in the Clarendon section of Arlington County. I used to ride my wagon, and then bike, all around the parking lots of the Virginia Square Shopping Center. There was a Woolworth’s 5 & 10 right across the green from Kann’s, and a People’s Drug Store on the corner. These were magical places for an eight-year-old, especially at Christmas time! I remember being so surprised when Kann’s became a law school for a local university, and even more surprised when I graduated from that same university several years later. The law school building is a strange but compelling link to different periods of my life, and one I will always remember with great fondness.”

—Bill Pittman, BS Business Administration ’80

Mason law classroom in 1980. Photo from ��AV yearbook.

Floored With Memories

“I was a student at the law school from 1980 to 1983 in the old Kann’s Department Store. My first year the school only occupied two floors of the building. We did not realize there was a third floor to the building until they ripped down the wall board around the escalator going up there in the spring of that year. The paging system of the department store was still in use when I was a student to page the maintenance staff when needed.

“My graduation in 1983 was held in the large open area of the second floor of the building.”

—Judy Drazen Schretter, JD ’83

Antonin Scalia Law School

Institute for Digital InnovAtion (IDIA)

School of Computing

Campus News

A conversation with Amazon at Mason

Melanie Balog — Fri, 22 Feb 2019 15:40:09 +0000

A conversation with Amazon at Mason Melanie Balog Fri, 02/22/2019 - 10:40

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HQ2

Arlington

Campus News

Arlington

Building community and connections in Arlington

More about Mason Square

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Supporting Restorative Justice in Arlington County and the City of Falls Church

The Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution and Restorative Arlington Sign Affiliation Agreement to Support Restorative Justice in Arlington County and the City of Falls Church

In This Story

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Gateway Building - Arlington, Virginia Campus: Public Hearing Notice 247-18482-PPEA

Gateway BuildingArlington, Virginia CampusPublic Hearing Notice247-18482-PPEA

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����AV Announces Exclusive Developer Finalist for Arlington Campus Expansion, Regional Technology Hub

Topics

Serving those who serve: Partnership with American Legion lets M-VETS expand veterans support and student learning

Topics

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

Read more about the Carter School

Alumni share memories of Original Building, as innovation escalates on Arlington Campus

Law & Love

Bright Futures

Shadow of Segregation

Monkeying Around

Securing a Law School

A Strange But Compelling Link

Floored With Memories

A conversation with Amazon at Mason

Topics

Gateway Building
Arlington, Virginia Campus
Public Hearing Notice
247-18482-PPEA

��AV Announces Exclusive Developer Finalist for Arlington Campus Expansion, Regional Technology Hub