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New Hazel–Peterson Scholarship will support undergraduate students in the Costello College of Business

Colleen Rich — Mon, 13 May 2024 18:41:34 +0000

New Hazel–Peterson Scholarship will support undergraduate students in the Costello College of Business Colleen Rich Mon, 05/13/2024 - 14:41

A new Hazel–Peterson Scholarship fund has been established in the name of the Hazel and Peterson families to support undergraduate students pursuing a minor in real estate development at the Costello College of Business of ��AV.

Jimmy Hazel, John T. "Til" Hazel Jr. and Milt Peterson at the ground-breaking in 2015 for an academic building that would be named Peterson Family Health Sciences Hall. Photo by Office of University Branding

“The best institutions in the future will be those that are well positioned to make education available to as many people as possible,” said George Mason President Gregory Washington. “Nicole and I want to help make this life-changing opportunity available to more young people. To do so not only benefits George Mason but the entire metropolitan region and the Commonwealth of Virginia.”

Washington and Presidential Partner Nicole Washington have donated $25,000 to seed the scholarship, which was matched 2 to 1 by S&P Global, the New York City-based capital market company, bringing the total of the scholarship fund to $75,000 by January 2024.

The ��AV Foundation manages the fund and hopes to grow it to at least $200,000 to provide lasting and perpetual support for scholarships in the Costello College of Business.

Three Hazel–Peterson Scholarships for $2,500 each are expected to be available this fall.

Recipients must be full- or part-time undergraduate students who graduated from a Northern Virginia high school located within 50 miles of the university’s Fairfax Campus and have a minimum 3.0 GPA. Funds will be awarded by a selection committee appointed by the dean of the Costello College of Business in coordination with the Office of Student Financial Aid. This scholarship is renewable.

This Hazel–Peterson Scholarship recognizes the longstanding dedication and commitment to the university and region by these two families.

Business partners for 20 years, late family patriarchs Milt Peterson and John “Til” Hazel Jr. set the stage for George Mason’s rise to prominence with a shared affinity for the university and a vision that has been passed on to their offspring.

“What Dad and Milt did over the years was something, and seeing the second generation carrying it to new levels has been kind of fun,” said Jimmy Hazel, a local businessman who grew up close to George Mason’s Fairfax Campus and has served on George Mason’s Board of Visitors for 16 years.

Jon Peterson said that his father and Til Hazel would be proud of George Mason’s upward trajectory.

“George Mason has always been such a big part of Northern Virginia,” Jon Peterson said. “As Northern Virginia has grown, so has Mason. It’s been great to see.”

A prominent Virginia lawyer and later developer, Til Hazel is considered one of the university’s founding fathers after acquiring land and lobbying for a school of law in Arlington. He was the recipient of the first Mason Medal in 1987, the university’s highest honorary award for those with a record of service to their community or nation. His brother William A. Hazel was one of Northern Virginia’s most influential builders and was also instrumental in the development and growth of the university, establishing the Eleanor and Bill Hazel Endowed Chair in Civil Infrastructure Engineering in the Volgenau School of Engineering in 2014.

Jimmy Hazel is a proud Scalia Law School graduate with decades of service to the university including the Board of Visitors, 12 years on the ��AV Foundation Board, and a stint as the Alumni Association president. Also a recipient of the Mason Medal in 2017, the former George Mason Alumnus of the Year chaired the successful Faster Farther comprehensive campaign that closed with more than $690 million. He and his wife, Sally, established the Hazel Scholars Endowment Fund in 2011, which is now valued at roughly $1.2 million.

The Peterson Family has also given generously to the university and the Northern Virginia community through the Peterson Family Foundation, which was established by Milt and Carolyn in 1997. Through the foundation, the family has supported multiple causes, including health care, education, youth development, and the United Methodist Church, contributing more than $100 million to charity.

In June 2016, the Peterson Family provided $10 million to support the new academic building for what is now the College of Public Health, as well as funding for the College of Visual and Performing Arts. Now a CEO of Peterson Companies and chairman of the company’s executive committee, Jon Peterson first served on George Mason’s Board of Visitors from 2014 to 2018, and will conclude his second four-year term this year.

“If you’re fortunate enough to be able to give back, you do,” Jon Peterson said.

The scholarship is now accepting applications in the Blackbaud Award Management scholarship portal.

The Hazel and Peterson families hope to see the scholarship grow so that it might provide more opportunities for students.

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The Montano Student Investment Fund provides experiential learning for student leaders

Greg Johnson — Thu, 21 Mar 2024 20:28:24 +0000

The Montano Student Investment Fund provides experiential learning for student leaders Greg Johnson Thu, 03/21/2024 - 16:28

Co-founded in 2018 by Trevor Montano, BS Accounting ’00, and Derek Horstmeyer, a professor of finance at the Costello College of Business at ��AV, the Montano Student Investment Fund (SMIF) is an all-equity investment fund administered by finance students at the Costello College of Business.

Montano Student Investment Fund Officers

Under the supervision of ��AV’s Endowment and Board of Trustees, students working on the fund engage in incredible experiences, like building the portfolio, presenting pitches to a committee, and expanding their overall financial expertise in an academic setting. Participants must first complete Finance 477, the student management investment fund course for students to practice pitching stock.

Students selected as officers have the responsibility of managing Mason’s endowment for their respective terms. “The student officers of the Montano SMIF have a huge amount of responsibility and they all take it seriously,” says Horstmeyer. “In addition to managing a segment of the GMU endowment, they help lead Costello Fellows on Wall Street, compete in a nationwide SMIF competition in Chicago each year, and run the Alpha Challenge.”

It was during the Finance 477 course that Christopher Lindholm discovered his passion. “I had been coming to school for marketing, but finance really scratched that itch,” he says. Lindholm became so interested in the subject matter that he was eager to get involved and is currently the president of the investment committee on the SMIF. In order to be an officer for the fund, students must apply and interview with Derek Horstmeyer. “The main thing that made me want to apply for this officer position was Dr. Horstmeyer, like the way he teaches and how he’s so invested in it,” says Clarita Orosco, vice president of the risk committee. “It made me excited to learn more.”

The SMIF has attracted the attention of some of the business school’s most ambitious finance students. “I thought this was a great way for me to get involved on campus, pursue my own interests, and learn more by talking to other finance students and hearing their ideas and different perspectives,” says Sriprajna Medicherla, president of the operations and finance committee. “In finance it’s all about perspective and figuring out what the best decision is given the information.” Medicherla and a few of her teammates got to hear even more perspectives when they went to Chicago for a competition with about fifty other student managed investment fund groups from other universities. “Meeting other SMIF officers from different universities was really interesting and so was hearing their ideas about what they implemented in the fund,” she says.

It is not required to be a finance concentration or even a business major to take part in the SMIF. Gabriel Curtis, president of the risk committee, who is majoring in computer science and minoring in finance, had been exploring ways in which he could make an impact in areas besides computer science. “In finance there’s a lot of opportunities to be a generalist, and that’s honestly what I care about a lot more,” he says.

Every year, the SMIF’s officers present the annual report to the Board of Trustees, showing what was in the portfolio and how everything performed. “You get real world experience with them that you probably wouldn’t find in a typical finance course,” says Lindholm. The ability to manage a real investment fund while receiving active feedback in a classroom setting is an experience that benefits all of the participants, regardless of their career ambitions. “I would say I was able to be more informed,” says Curtis. “I’ve gotten to talk to people who graduated and work in investment banking. That’s where I’m headed now because of the fund.” Orosco adds, “I didn’t realize how many opportunities there were and how many news things Dr. Horstmeyer wanted us to explore.”

The networking, knowledge, and confidence that these students have acquired through working on the Montano Student Investment Fund have given them the immersive student experience promised at the Costello College of Business. “This much responsibility shows through on their resumes – past officers of the SMIF have gone on to work at Goldman Sachs, JP Morgan, and private equity shops in New York City, Chicago, and Austin,” says Horstmeyer. Not only are the student leaders prepared for their careers but they are actively being recruited by employers.

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University remembers Mason champion 'Til' Hazel

Colleen Rich — Wed, 16 Mar 2022 20:42:00 +0000

University remembers Mason champion 'Til' Hazel Colleen Rich Wed, 03/16/2022 - 16:42

John Tilghman “Til” Hazel Jr. speaking at the inauguration of Ángel Cabrera as Mason's sixth president in 2013. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Creative Services

John Tilghman “Til” Hazel Jr., the visionary real estate lawyer and developer who recognized the impact ��AV could have as the anchor of a region he principally transformed from pasture to prominence, died March 15. He was 91.

Hazel cleared the way for the university’s emergence by working with George Mason College officials to secure 421 acres—more than 30 parcels of land—for the Fairfax Campus. He was also the driving force behind Mason acquiring a law school in the 1970s, one of the first moves that announced Mason as an institution with grand ambitions following its separation from the University of Virginia in 1972.

In service to the university almost since its inception in 1957, Hazel was an advisory board member, established and later chaired the ��AV Foundation, and was appointed by Gov. A. Linwood Holton to the inaugural Board of Visitors. He also served two stints as rector, and for decades was a chief philanthropist, patron, cheerleader and champion of the university from the boardrooms of Northern Virginia to the chambers of the General Assembly in Richmond.

Til Hazel with President George Johnson in 1987 when Hazel received the Mason Medal. Photo by ��AV

In 1987, the university awarded him the first Mason Medal, the institution’s highest honor.

“Til Hazel was a founding father of the world-class ��AV we know today,” Mason President Gregory Washington said. “It is impossible to overstate his influence on the ascent of this region and the profound effect his advocacy and service had on this young university. Til was a Patriot through and through.”

A buzzcut-sporting, straight-shooter Harvard graduate, equal parts folksy and firm, Hazel flaunted his Mason affiliation long before it was fashionable, sporting a “GMU” vanity plate on his Oldsmobile, the Washington Post reported almost three decades ago.

But Hazel’s most influential work on behalf of the university took place behind the scenes. He mobilized the Northern Virginia business community to support and work with the university, creating a symbiotic relationship between Mason and the region’s business interests that exists to this day.

Hazel, who early in his legal career worked to acquire land for what became the Capital Beltway, tapped into his vast resourcefulness for land acquisition, zoning law know-how and business horse sense to twist arms and win minds in Richmond to steer the growth and direction of a fledgling university. State lawmakers and education officials at first resisted the rise of Mason, which now has grown into the largest and most diverse university in the state.

In 2015, Jimmy Hazel, John T. "Til" Hazel, and Milt Peterson attend the ground-breaking for Peterson Hall on the Fairfax Campus. Photo by Creative Services

“We were suddenly an independent institution trying to figure out where we were going,” Hazel said in an interview in 2011 with the University Libraries’ Special Collections Research Center. “And that took a while to emerge, but it was pretty well obvious that we needed to create an institution of quality and commitment and broad-based to handle what we saw as the vision of Northern Virginia.”

Not everyone shared his vision. Hazel engaged in a years-long tussle in Richmond lobbying for the university to be permitted to create a law school. He believed that a law school would offer Mason instant credibility, at an affordable price, and serve the overflow of applicants at existing law schools in the Washington, D.C., area.

Continually rebuffed, Hazel ultimately brokered a deal between the university and the financially strapped International School of Law in Arlington—with Hazel co-signing the $3 million note that also netted real estate near the Metro in Arlington, laying the foundation in 1979 for what would become Mason’s Arlington Campus.

Since 2005, the law school—now the Antonin Scalia Law School—has resided in John T. Hazel Jr. Hall, named after the Arlington native and former Fairfax County general district court judge.

Hazel said in the oral history that it was important to him that everyone in Northern Virginia realize Mason was no longer a two-year school supporting the University of Virginia but a full-fledged university. He believed adding a professional school would help do that.

The momentum from the law school acquisition led to state approval for Mason to award doctoral degrees, another crucial step toward the university’s prominence.

Named by the Times-Community newspaper around the turn of the millennium one of three Fairfax County “Citizens of the Century,” Hazel not only supported Mason, he supported colleges and universities around the state. Calling education “the foundation of all that I ever did,” Hazel in the mid-90s founded the Virginia Business Higher Education Council to bring together the state’s business leaders and university presidents to oppose state budget cuts to higher education.

In the 2009 book “The Fight for Fairfax: A Struggle for a Great American County,” former Mason president Alan Merten said that the money Hazel gave to Mason “wasn’t nearly as massive as his influence or his willingness to lead and fight.”

“My father was so proud of ��AV from its modest beginnings to the status it enjoys today serving nearly 40,000 students,” said Mason rector Jimmy Hazel, Til Hazel’s son and Mason law school alum. “He had a grand vision for this university, but I think in 50 short years we’ve exceeded even what he thought possible.”

While many of his contemporaries favored slow growth, Hazel’s ambitions yielded, as he joked at a lecture at Mason’s Center for Real Estate Entrepreneurship in 2014, a strategy some considered “growth management through litigation.”

The result was not just more subdivisions and shopping centers but a regional identity with a major university at its core. Joel Garreau, a former senior fellow in what is now Mason’s Schar School of Policy and Government, declared in his 1991 book, “Edge City: Life on the New Frontier” that Hazel did “more to shape the Washington area than any man since Pierre L’Enfant.”

"His imagination is what drove development,” former Mason president George Johnson, a close friend of Hazel’s, told Washingtonian magazine in 2001. “Not just land development but the cultural development of the region as well."

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Geo. Mason Wines raises a glass to student scholarships

Mariam Aburdeineh — Fri, 29 Jan 2021 20:58:45 +0000

Geo. Mason Wines raises a glass to student scholarships Mariam Aburdeineh Fri, 01/29/2021 - 15:58

Step into a local Total Wine or Whole Foods store and you may be surprised to find George Mason among the wine bottles on the shelves. Sporting a colonial hat with a modern pair of shades, he’s the face of ��AV’s private wine label.

Geo. Mason Wines is more than a classy addition to dinner. It’s also been generating scholarship funding for Mason students since 2018.

Here are 10 facts about its history:

1. It started with an alum…

Terri Cofer Beirne, BA Government and Politics ’88, knows a lot about wine. The chair of the ��AV Foundation Board of Trustees is a lawyer for the California wine industry and serves as Eastern Counsel for Wine Institute. When Foundation members were looking for additional revenue streams for student scholarships, she was inspired to create a Mason-branded beverage. So, she pulled together a group of volunteers from the Board of Trustees, the Board of Visitors, faculty and staff to get started.

Manu Gaiarin. Photo provided.

2. …with a little help from a former Mason soccer coach.

Manu Gaiarin, owner of Siema Wines and a former assistant coach for Mason’s men’s soccer team, partnered with the university as the supplier.

“I was happy to get involved due to my legacy to Mason,” said Gaiarin, who said he coached at Mason for six years in the 1990s and has a son who currently attends Mason. “We carefully selected the wine to be an exceptional good value for the price point, and we’re very proud that we had Mason students help us develop the final package.”

3. It’s student-centered.

“The best part of the whole process is that $3.50 from the sale of every bottle goes to student scholarships,” Beirne said.

Since 2018, Geo. Mason Wines has sold about 700 cases of wine and contributed approximately $29,000 to student scholarships.

And scholarships aren’t the only ways students have benefited.

4. It inspired some healthy competition.

After the name Geo. Mason was selected, a competition was held among teams of Mason art students to design the label, Beirne said.

“That was really fun to see how creative and clever these students were with their ideas,” she said, adding that some designs were contemporary and funky, while others were graceful and natural. “We settled on one hand drawn by a student with George in sunglasses, just to make him contemporary and reveal him as something different than expected.”

A second student group competed with their peers to help with the marketing plan. In addition to gaining experiential learning through the project, students from the design and marketing groups whose work was selected each received a $250 cash prize, Beirne said.

Mason students in Advertising Design worked on a branding campaign for Geo. Mason Wines. Photo by Alexa Rogers

5. What’s in a name?

Papers in colonial times often abbreviated names to save on ink, and “Geo.” hearkens back to this tradition. It also served as a way to avoid legal challenges that could have arisen with intellectual property protections of “George Mason” or “GMU,” Beirne said.

A bottle of Geo. Mason Chardonnay at the 50th Anniversary GMU Alumni Gala at Eagle Bank Arena in 2018. Photo Credit: John Boal Photography

6. Vino for all.

Unlike other universities with branded beverages priced upwards of $50, the Mason team wanted their brand to be high quality, but accessible. Mason’s two wines come in at about $20 a bottle.

7. From coast to coast.

The wine is sourced from California, despite a bubbling Virginia wine industry. Because Virginia wineries sell most of their wines in their tasting rooms, the team decided to go out-of-state to find a winery with the volume and experience of making private label brands, Beirne said.

8. It was years in the making.

“It took a good three years from throwing ideas around to actually getting wine in a bottle,” Beirne said. “It was a labor of love from a lot of people.”

The team agrees that the results were worth it, and they’re proud that the project is a way to give back.

9. What’s next for Geo. Mason?

“In the near future, we’re trying to increase the number of wines under the Geo. Mason brand,” Gaiarin said, adding that they currently have a Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon.