November 2013
Email to Student Body Reveals Plans for Mason Inn
|On Monday afternoon, students received an email from President Cabrera about the decision to transform the Mason Inn, currently a luxury hotel located on campus, to a residential, dining, and instructional facility.
Since it’s opening in fall 2010, the Mason Inn has lost roughly $11 million. Based on the losses, President Cabrera formed a Mason Inn Task Force at the beginning of the semester to propose new business models that would make the hotel more profitable. After the official proposal was written for President Cabrera’s review, the task force and the President agreed that converting the hotel into a facility that would serve the student body and faculty directly would yield the best results.
Board of Visitors motions to alleviate military student issues
|As class registration season is in full swing, a motion recently passed by the university board of visitors has a new effect on registration for those in the military. The motion, which began with spring 2014 registration, gives priority class registration to all active duty military members, veterans, reservists and the Virginia National Guard. Mason’s Board of Visitors passed this motion in response to code 23-9.2:3-7 C, established by the Virginia General Assembly, which called for accommodations to be made for military service members due to the scheduling difficulties they face.
[PREVIEW] George Mason vs. Towson -- Women's Basketball
|The Mason women’s basketball team will take on Towson at 4:30 p.m. at the Patriot Center.
Coming off of an 82-64 win over Utah Valley in the team’s home opener, the Patriots (2-1) will look to keep a two-game winning streak alive against the Tigers (1-2).
Senior Janaa Pickard set a new Patriot Center record against Utah Valley, recording 21 points and 21 rebounds in her first double-double of the season. Sophomore Taylor Brown is currently leading the Patriots with 17 points per game, while Pickard is averaging 15 points and 11 rebounds per game.
Irish-American student returns to Ireland to film his senior project
|Senior Paul O’Halloran, a film and video studies major, is headed to Ireland this Christmas to shoot his senior film, “Ard Laoch na hÉireann,” which is dedicated to his great-grandfather. O’Halloran, who is Irish, said he hopes the film will show a different side of Ireland. O’Halloran answered some questions about his film for Fourth Estate.
What is the film about?
[PREVIEW] George Mason vs. St. Francis (PA) -- Men's Basketball
|The Mason men’s basketball team takes on St. Francis (PA) at 7 p.m. at the Patriot Center.
After a 76-70 win over Northern Iowa, the Patriots (3-0) look to keep their winning streak alive as the Red Flash (1-3) visit Fairfax.
Marko Gujanicic recorded his second double-double in as many games as a starter against UNI on Saturday and is projected to get the starting spot in tonight’s matchup. Sherrod Wright leads Mason in scoring, averaging 16.3 points per game, while Gujanicic leads the team in rebounding, averaging 8.3 per game.
World Blues Tour sets toes tapping at Center for the Arts concert
|The World Blues Tour stops at Mason’s CFA with world-renowned performers in a night dedicated to American and international blues music.
On Nov. 15, the iconic Taj Mahal Trio and international artists Vusi Mahlasela of South Africa and Fredericks Brown, originally from New Zealand, performed in the World Blues Tour at the Center for the Arts.
OPINION: Student conduct policies are archaic, dangerous
|It is a real shame when a university that prides itself on innovative thinking refuses to follow policy recommendations that can and will save student lives. As you can read in Ellen Glickman’s article, Mason’s own expert on public health has recommended that the university adopt a Good Samaritan policy.
New integrative research facility to house CHHS
|The College of Health and Human Services will soon be housed in a new comprehensive building. The building, whose construction is set to begin in September 2014 on the Fairfax campus, will provide the foundations for a new health research facility that will contain classrooms, research labs and a community clinic.
Partnership with INTO may double international student population, increase revenue
|Mason’s international student population may soon double thanks to a new partnership with INTO University Partnerships.
The for-profit, British organization assists universities in boosting the number of inter- national students they enroll, as well as working to improve the quality of education for international students. Currently, INTO has partnerships with five universities in the United States.
Despite growing support for amnesty clause, student conduct policy remains unchanged
|Across the nation, some 240 universities implement a version of the Good Samaritan policy.
Mason, however, does not.
A Good Samaritan policy states a person shall be immune from punishment if they call 911 for someone else while they are intoxicated or high on an illegal substance.
“Amnesty policies can mean different things for many schools,” said Dr. David Anderson, director of the Center for the Advancement of Public Health at the university. “[But] a lot of campuses spend time developing this...The point is to avoid injury.”