January 2005

• SPECIAL ALUMNI DISCOUNTS ARE AVAILABLE FOR THE FOLLOWING UPCOMING EVENTS:
  
  • Alumni Day Basketball Game vs. William & Mary - Saturday, Jan. 29: Advance tickets are only $6 for alumni! The Alumni Association will host a hospitality tent on the concourse during half-time.
  
  
  • Homecoming Basketball Game - Saturday, Feb. 19: Advance tickets are only $6 for alumni!
  
  Tickets can be purchased by phone at the Athletics Ticket Office: 703-993-3270. Mention that you are a Mason alumnus to receive the discounted price.
  Additionally, as part of homecoming weekend, alumni can receive a 25% discount for the performance of the Mark Morris Dance Group at the Center for the Arts on Friday, Feb. 18. Tickets can be ordered online at http://www.gmu.edu/cfa/tickets or by phone at 703-218-6500. Alumni should mention the promotion code "alum" to receive the discount.



• THE MLK CELEBRATION, THEMED "PATHWAYS TO THE DREAM: FROM CIVIL RIGHTS TO CIVIL ACTION," takes place on Thursday, Feb. 3, in Harris Theatre and includes performances by Mason's own gospel choir, Anointed Voices of Unity, and international operatic artist and professor of music, Patricia Miller. Zenobia Hikes, vice president of student affairs and dean of students at Spelman College, will be the keynote speaker. As always, alumni are encouraged to attend.
  --> Sponsored by the Office of Diversity Programs and Services...
• RAMOLA DHARMARAJ, MFA POETRY '91, AND ERIC PANKEY, PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH, have received 2005 Literature Fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). This is the second time Pankey has received a fellowship, which is a $20,000 award supporting the creation of new work.
  --> Read more...



• FOR 14 YEARS, ECONOMICS PROFESSOR TYLER COWEN, B.S. ECONOMICS `83, has eaten his way to local fame. Hidden among the nooks and crannies of the George Mason web server is his tasty treat-the most extensive ethnic restaurant guide in the metropolitan Washington, D.C., area. Cowen's 70-page ethnic food guide is updated every six months and covers more than 70 cuisines!
  --> Read more...
  --> Visit his restaurant guide...



• A NEW BOOK OF POEMS, SAY WHEN, BY THE LATE MARK CRAVER, has just been published. Craver, MA English '83, MFA Creative Writing '84, and adjunct English faculty member at George Mason for 18 years, died in January 2004, apparently of a heart attack, at the age of 47. At the time of his death, Craver had essentially completed work on Say When. Four of his friends familiar with his work reviewed the manuscript and earlier drafts of the poems and helped prepare them for publication.
  --> Read more...



• THIS YEAR, MASON'S HOMECOMING GROWS to a weekend filled with exciting events. In addition to the traditional Saturday activities, which include the homecoming block party, Patriot's basketball, and fireworks, a wine tasting event on Friday evening with Rappahannock Cellars has been added. Mark your calendar and visit the Homecoming web site for more information.
  --> Visit the Homecoming web site...

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UNIVERSITY NEWS

• UNIVERSITY PRESIDENT ALAN MERTEN WAS NAMED one of 17 Washingtonians of the Year by Washingtonian magazine. For the past 33 years, the magazine has honored people who "make the region a better place." Others recognized this year include newscaster Tim Russert; Washington, D.C., Mayor Anthony Williams; and University of Maryland men's basketball coach Gary Williams.
  --> Read more...
• IN DECEMBER, VIRGINIA GOV. MARK WARNER RELEASED HIS BUDGET AMENDMENTS for the coming fiscal year. While there was much about which we might be optimistic, solving the base budget adequacy problem for higher education remains as elusive as ever. The Governor outlined increased enrollment at public universities, additional funding for major building repairs, increases in financial aid, and pay increases for state employees.

--> Read more...



• THE INSTITUTE FOR CONFLICT ANALYSIS AND RESOLUTION (ICAR) is collaborating this semester with the Joint Military Intelligence College (JMIC) of the U.S. Department of Defense to present a course in the resolution of conflicts involving terrorism using military gaming simulations.
  --> Read more...
  --> Learn more about ICAR...
• MASON HAS BEEN RECOGNIZED BY HISPANIC OUTLOOK IN HIGHER EDUCATION MAGAZINE as the only Virginia-based school to be among its top 100 institutions "with a solid record of recruiting, enabling, and graduating Hispanic students." Of the 28,874 students currently enrolled at Mason, 1,678 are Hispanic.
  --> Read more...



• TWO FACULTY MEMBERS AND A STUDENT IN THE GEORGE MASON SCHOOL OF LAW have been appointed to prestigious positions in the U.S. government.
  --> Read more...
• HISTORY MATTERS, a free online resource center for U.S. history developed by the Center for History and New Media (CHNM) at George Mason, recently won the James Harvey Robinson Prize of the American Historical Association (AHA). The site is used by high school and college teachers around the world. The project was entitled, "The teaching aid that has made the most outstanding contribution to the teaching of history in any field."
  --> Read more...
  --> Visit the Center for History and New Media...
• MORE INFORMATION ABOUT UPCOMING EVENTS can be found on the "Today @ Mason" web site.
  --> Visit http://today.gmu.edu
  --> Visit the Alumni Association Activity site.

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PATRIOT SPORTS

• POST-SEASON ACCOLADES CONTINUE TO ROLL IN FOR GEORGE MASON'S WOMEN'S SOCCER, as freshman Jessica Paris, a civil engineering major (pictured right), and senior Sarah Coughlin, who is working on a master's in secondary education, were named to the Virginia Sports Information Directors Association (VaSID) 2004 University Division All-State team.
  --> Learn more...



• FRESHMAN WILL THOMAS (Baltimore, Md./Mount St. Joseph) garnered the Colonial Athletic Association men's basketball Rookie of the Week award, the association announced Monday, Jan. 17, for all games played from Monday, Jan. 10 through Sunday, Jan. 16. It is Thomas' first CAA honor, and it is the third weekly award for any Mason player this season.
  --> Read more...
• GEORGE MASON'S MEN'S VOLLEYBALL TEAM faced a tough 2004 season. Injuries to several key veterans forced some young players into the action before they were ready. There was a struggle to find the first win of the season. What a difference a year should make. With those young players now veterans, injured players healed and some impact student-athletes arriving, 2005 promises to be the type of season that will have people talking in Fairfax.
  --> Read more...



• THE MEN'S WRESTLING SQUAD FINISHED THIRD OVERALL with 72 points at the 2005 Virginia Intercollegiate State Wrestling Championships held at the University of Virginia's Memorial Gymnasium. Patriot sophomore Harry Zander (National Park, N.J./Gateway Regional) won the individual championship at 197 pounds, while sophomore David Emison (Stafford, Va./North Stafford) placed second at 133. Mason placed nine wrestlers overall among the 10 weight classes, the most of any school. Three other Patriot wrestlers finished third and four were fourth.
  --> Read more...
• Stay up-to-date with Mason Athletics news by clicking on http://www.gomason.com.

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To learn how to support George Mason University, visit the "Campaign for George Mason University" web site.

--> Click on http://www.gmu.edu/events/campaign

Update your online record ANYTIME, visit the MASONline Alumni Directory.

--> Click on http://alumni.gmu.edu

For lots more from George Mason University, visit the University web site.

--> Click on http://www.gmu.edu

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