Mason Nation gathered Sept. 27 for the annual Happy Heart Walk as part of Healthy Campus Week. Photo by Evan Cantwell.
One of the best things about Healthy Campus Week is that it is not limited to one big event, Wendi Carroll said.
“There was something for everyone,” said Carroll, a life/work connections specialist in George Mason University’s office of Human Resources/Payroll. “It was a chance to shake things up a bit and ask ourselves what we want to change in our lives.”
The initiative, in association with Partners for a Healthier America, ran from Sept. 25-29 and included things such as sessions on brain health, tours of Mason’s gardens, and the centerpiece Happy Heart Walk, which, in its ninth year, is a special edition of the regular Who’s Walking Wednesday, a weekly on-campus walking initiative.
More than 100 faculty and staff from all Mason’s campuses participated in the Happy Heart Walk, Carroll said, with the SciTech Campus having the largest participation and the Arlington Campus showing the most new participants.
“The initiative is good for everyone on campus,” said Beth Baroody, reward and recognition coordinator, Human Resources/Payroll. “It gives everyone a chance to participate in something mindful and healthy.”
It also dovetails nicely into National Work and Family Month in October, which Carroll called a time for faculty and staff to be reminded of the programs always available to them at Mason to help them successfully integrate work and life responsibilities, such as flex work opportunities and financial and physical well-being resources and family support initiatives.
There also are virtual events such as the Move to Improve Challenge and sharing of well-being stories with Mason’s Center for the Advancement of Well-Being.
“These virtual events allow faculty, staff, and students to participate in ways that work with their schedule,” Baroody said.
“It’s all part of our ongoing commitment to enhance the health and well-being of our faculty and staff,” Carroll said. “We’re committed to helping employees build meaningful social connections at work and to providing opportunities for personal and professional growth.”