Anne Reynolds, with Mason President Ángel Cabrera, is leaving Mason after eight years. She and her husband, Jim, will live in Smith Mountain Lake, Va.
Anne Reynolds has been a writer in George Mason University’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences (CHSS) for eight years, the past six as director of communications, where, as she said, “I get to take in the amazing work of our faculty students and alumni, and then tell the world about it.”
“Anne is truly the voice of the college,” said Robert Matz, CHSS’s interim dean, adding, “Anne not only does her job well but helps others with their jobs and creates an environment that facilitates jobs well done and enjoyed.”
With her husband, Jim, taking a position with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Virginia’s Western District, Reynolds will leave Mason in July and move to Smith Mountain Lake, about 30 miles southeast of Roanoke. She said she hopes to keep writing.
Reynolds leaves as Mason’s July Employee of the Month.
How I got here: Circuitously. After graduating from law school, I was a lawyer for the U.S. Postal Service, for which I worked of Freedom of Information Act cases, government ethics and postal rate changes, for about 10 years. Concurrent with the birth of our second child, I realized that the writing part of the job was a lot more appealing. Writing and editing led me to Mason.
Best day on the job: Our degree celebrations, every year. Our team puts in a lot of time and effort coordinating the college’s events, and it’s 100 percent worth it when you see the proud graduates and their families. You get to become part of the best day of someone’s life, and there is nothing like the energy and excitement of those ceremonies.
What I like best about working at Mason: Mason is a place that matters so much. You can feel that walking around campus when it’s full of students, or you see one of our faculty members earn recognition for their work or expertise, or you hear about the Green Machine or Fall for the Book or any of the other ways that the university touches the community. It makes you realize that you are part of a big, vibrant organization that’s doing a whole lot of good.
What I like to do when I’m not working: I’m really pretty bad at yoga, and I am an excruciatingly slow swimmer and biker, but I like to do all three of those things. Also, our kids will both be away at school next year, so I try to spend as much time as possible with them.