Shayla Brown

George Mason University is preparing students to transform setbacks into stepping stones with a “Fail-a-Thon," a hackathon event where failing forward is the goal. The event, hosted by the College of Engineering and Computing, encouraged students to explore bold ideas under two themes: artificial intelligence (AI) for everyday challenges and tech for well-being and creativity.

George Mason University film and video studies students are working with Entertainment 2 Affect Change (E2AC), an organization that provides creative students and individuals the opportunity to use storytelling to share the mission and impact of local nonprofits.

George Mason University's Debate Team won the prestigious West Point Sword at the United States Military Academy’s 60th annual National Debate Tournament in West Point, New York. 

This fall, George Mason University’s dance studios buzzed with excitement as School of Dance students prepared for and performed José Limón’s 1958 original composition Missa Brevis, alongside professional dancers from the Center for the Arts artists in residence Limón Dance Company.

Communication PhD student Rania Zaied has won first-place at the annual Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition. She will advance to the 2026 regional competition in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, hosted by the Council of Southern Graduate Schools. 

Students in Tawnya Azar’s HNRS 260 Society and Community Engagement course are focused creating awareness campaigns around hunger and food scarcity. The class aims to empower students through writing and collaborative efforts, fostering a critical examination of the challenges surrounding food access and inspiring tangible solutions. 

George Mason University alumnus and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Christopher Michael “Mike” Johnson, MAIS ’11, was recently appointed University of West Georgia’s ninth president. He stepped into his new role on August 1.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of George Mason University’s Veterans and the Arts Initiative—an important example of George Mason’s long-standing commitment to assisting military-connected learners as they embark on new paths following their service.

Keeping his nose to the grindstone is not just how Andrew Hutsell approaches his academic career in engineering—it's how he cut a small slice of fame.  The George Mason University alumnus recently put his engineering skills to the test on national television, competing in an episode of the History Channel’s Forged in Fire, a competition show that challenges bladesmiths to create weapons under tight deadlines.

George Mason professor Sungsoo Ray Hong has always been a huge fan of cartoons, comics, and animations. By combining his passion with his research area of human-computer interaction, he has created a new tool for cartoonists, ShadowMagic.