In This Story
Hosted by the College of Engineering and Computing’s Office of Diversity, Outreach, and Inclusive Learning (DOIL), BLAST Off Week 2023 included events promoting belonging, leadership, access, success, and trailblazing, one on each day of the week, from September 11 – 15. CEC students networked with university resource groups, student organizations, as well as representatives from the Department of Energy and CACI.
Belonging
The week began with the Dean's Annual Ice Cream Social in the Nguyen building atrium and Griffith's Plaza. Students ate ice cream and popcorn as they met with representatives from student organizations and university resource groups.
Leadership
On Tuesday, students gathered in the Johnson Center Cinema to hear from Department of Energy (DOE) representatives, who described internships and research opportunities available and gave advice about optimizing resumes and applications. The speakers discussed the department’s paid 10-week summer research internship for undergraduate and graduate students in STEM majors as well as its Industrial Demonstrations Program.
Access
To improve student access to senior leadership in the college, Wednesday’s event featured the CEC Leadership Panel, where students met the college’s associate deans and some departmental chairs. The event was aimed at closing the gap between administration, faculty, and students; and to answering students questions related to their academic, professional, and social progress. Notable participants on the panel were the College of Engineering and Computing Divisional Deans, Ariela Sofer and Gurdip Singh, respectively, as well as the mechanical engineering and computer science departmental chairs, Leigh McCue and David Rosenblum, respectively.
“Students were encouraged to ask questions relevant to them, which ranged from how they could be better served by academic and faculty advisors to what pathways they should take to their desired industry,” said Christi Wilcox, director of DOIL and the organizer of BLAST-Off Week.
Success
The Career Prep Lab on Thursday evening offered students makeup and barber services alongside resume reviews and mock interviews with professionals from CACI International Inc. Students learned about building resumes, applying to jobs online and developing their elevator pitches.
“We had over one hundred and fifty students show up to participate in this event, which is great! Our aim is to create opportunities for CEC diverse students to get internships that will give them a competitive advantage,” said Wilcox. “CACI has proven to be an excellent partner in helping us move the needle forward toward this outcome. The Diversity Team was very intentional about having the company’s Employee Resource Groups (groups who join in their workplace based on shared characteristics) participate in the resume reviews and mock interviews during Success Day. We did this so CEC students could see versions of themselves established in industry positions and connect with those versions of themselves.” She added, “Our intention may already be paying off. Since our success day, CACI has connected with our student group, The Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers (SHPE), whose members took part in the Career Prep Lab, to facilitate student professional development at this year’s Annual SHPE Conference.”
Trailblazing
BLAST Off Week 2023 came to a close with the second Inclusive Excellence Trailblazer Awards ceremony, which recognized standout Mason professionals dedicated to advancing diversity and inclusion at the university. This year’s recipients included:
Faculty: Mihai Boicu, Rochelle Jones
Staff: Kristi Donahue (DiLiberto), Amir Hasan
Students: Ashish H., Nasrin Ali
University Partners: Kyle Warfield, Rachel Yoho.
Industry Partners: Corning Incorporated Foundation (Vernicia Dawson), Micron Foundation (Robert Simmons III, Amy Henecke)
“Each of this year’s trailblazers showed up for The Office of Diversity, Outreach, and Inclusive Learning so they could help stand up George Mason’s College of Engineering students. Some trailblazers were Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion exemplars through their acts of service, some were exemplars through their research and pedagogy, while others demonstrated their commitment to CEC diverse students through their administrative and funding support,” said Wilcox. “We are thankful to our trailblazing community for their clear dedication to the programing and initiatives being produced by our office and aim to have an equally impactful 2024 Blast-Off Week.”