Editing George Mason University (section)

==History==

===20th century===
In 1949, the [[University of Virginia]] created an extension center to serve  mid-career working [[professional]]s and [[Nontraditional student|non-traditional students]] near urban centers in the [[Northern Virginia]] suburbs of [[Washington, D.C.]]<ref>{{Citation |last=Steele |first=Clarence A. |title=Clarence A. Steele to Colgate W. Darden, Jr., April 4, 1949 |date=April 4, 1949}}</ref><ref name="Finley" /> The extension center offered both for credit and non-credit informal classes in the evenings at various pre-existing venues.<ref name="Finley" />{{rp|5}} The first for credit classes offered were: "Government in the Far East, Introduction to International Politics, English Composition, Principles of Economics, Mathematical Analysis, Introduction to Mathematical Statistics, and Principles of Lip Reading."<ref name="Finley" /> By the end of 1952, enrollment was 1,192 students.<ref name="Finley" />

[[File:George Mason.jpg|thumb|left|170px|[[George Mason]], a [[Founding Fathers of the United States|Founding Father of the United States]] and the university's namesake]]
A resolution of the [[Virginia General Assembly]] in January 1956 changed the extension center into University College, the [[Northern Virginia]] branch of the [[University of Virginia]].<ref name="autogenerated1919">{{Cite book |publisher=Lulu.com |isbn=978-1-329-31719-2 |last=Anderson |first=Keith |title=The Los Angeles State Normal School, UCLA's Forgotten Past: 1881–1919 |date=August 29, 2015}}{{rp|158}}{{self-published source|date=February 2020}}</ref>{{self-published inline|date=February 2020}} John Norville Gibson Finley served as director.<ref>{{Citation |last=Teachman |first=A. Ellis |title=Photograph: J.N.G. Finley |date=September 6, 2007 |url=http://mars.gmu.edu/handle/1920/2712 |access-date=December 10, 2015 |archive-date=March 5, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305073730/http://mars.gmu.edu/handle/1920/2712 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Seventeen freshmen students attended classes at University College in a small renovated elementary school building in [[Bailey's Crossroads]] starting in September 1957.<ref name="Cristian2009">{{Cite thesis |publisher=Catholic University of America |last=Cristian |first=Viviana |title=Who are We?: Cultural Identity Among Latino College Students in Northern Virginia |location=Washington, DC |date=2009 |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/304858005/FC4D3905D50541C5PQ/ |via=[[Proquest]]}}{{rp|24}}</ref> In 1958 University College became George Mason College.<ref name="autogenerated1919" />

The [[Fairfax, Virginia|City of Fairfax]] purchased and donated {{convert|150|acre|ha|abbr=off|round=5}} of land just south of the city limits to the University of Virginia for the college's new site, which is now referred to as the [[George Mason University Fairfax Campus|Fairfax Campus]]. In 1959, the [[Board of Visitors]] of the University of Virginia selected a permanent name for the college: George Mason College of the University of Virginia. The Fairfax campus construction planning that began in early 1960 showed visible results when the development of the first {{convert|40|acre|ha|abbr=off}} of Fairfax Campus began in 1962. In the Fall of 1964 the new campus welcomed 356 students.<ref>{{Cite book |publisher=Lulu.com |isbn=978-1-329-31719-2 |last=Anderson |first=Keith |title=The Los Angeles State Normal School, UCLA's Forgotten Past: 1881–1919 |date=August 29, 2015}}{{rp|185}}{{self-published source|date=February 2020}}</ref>{{self-published inline|date=February 2020}}

In 1966, in the [[Virginia General Assembly]], [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]] delegate [[James M. Thomson (Virginia politician)|James M. Thomson]], with the backing of the University of Virginia, introduced a bill in the General Assembly to make George Mason College a four-year institution under the University of Virginia's direction. The measure, known as H 33,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ahistoryofmason.gmu.edu/items/show/98 |title=A History of George Mason University – Acts of Assembly, Chapter 68 [H33] Article 8. George Mason College, March 1, 1966. |work=gmu.edu|date=March 1966 }}</ref> passed the Assembly easily and was approved on March 1, 1966, making George Mason College a degree-granting institution. During that same year, the local jurisdictions of [[Fairfax County, Virginia|Fairfax County]], [[Arlington County, Virginia|Arlington County]], and the cities of [[Alexandria, Virginia|Alexandria]] and [[Falls Church, Virginia|Falls Church]] agreed to appropriate $3 million to purchase land adjacent to Mason to provide for a {{convert|600|acre|ha|abbr=off|adj=on}} Fairfax Campus with the intention that the institution would expand into a regional university of major proportions, including the granting of graduate degrees.{{Citation needed|date=October 2022}}

In 1972, Virginia separated George Mason College from the [[University of Virginia]] in [[Charlottesville, Virginia|Charlottesville]] and renamed it George Mason University.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ahistoryofmason.gmu.edu/exhibits/show/independence/contents/independence |title=A History of George Mason University – 1972–1978: Independence : Independence, April 7, 1972 |work=gmu.edu |access-date=April 6, 2015 |archive-date=February 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160208155536/http://ahistoryofmason.gmu.edu/exhibits/show/independence/contents/independence |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1978, [[George W. Johnson (academic)|George W. Johnson]] was appointed to serve as the fourth president.<ref name="Johnson Obit" /> Under his eighteen-year tenure, the university expanded both its physical size and program offerings at a tremendous rate.<ref name="Johnson Obit">{{cite news |first=T. Rees |last=Shapiro |title=George W. Johnson, college president who transformed GMU, dies at 88 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/george-w-johnson-college-president-who-transformed-gmu-dies-at-88/2017/06/03/473a9fe2-4875-11e7-bcde-624ad94170ab_story.html |newspaper=[[Washington Post]] |date=June 3, 2017 |access-date=June 24, 2017}}</ref><ref name="gmupres">{{cite news |title=Office of the President: Mason's Presidents |url=https://president.gmu.edu/masons-presidents/ |work=George Mason University |access-date=June 24, 2017 |archive-date=July 23, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170723053655/http://president.gmu.edu/masons-presidents/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> Shortly before Johnson's inauguration in April 1979, Mason acquired the [[George Mason University School of Law|School of Law]] and the new Arlington Campus. The university also became a doctoral institution.<ref name="Johnson Obit" /> Toward the end of Johnson's term, Mason would be deep in planning for a third campus in [[Prince William County, Virginia|Prince William County]] at [[Manassas, VA|Manassas]]. Major campus facilities, such as Student Union Building II, [[EagleBank Arena]], Center for the Arts, and the Johnson Learning Center, were all constructed over the course of Johnson's eighteen years as University President. Enrollment once again more than doubled from 10,767 during the fall of 1978 to 24,368 in the spring of 1996.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ahistoryofmason.gmu.edu/exhibits/show/prominence/contents/introduction |title=A History of George Mason University – 1978–1996: Emergence : Introduction |work=gmu.edu |access-date=April 6, 2015 |archive-date=February 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160208155642/http://ahistoryofmason.gmu.edu/exhibits/show/prominence/contents/introduction |url-status=dead }}</ref>

In 1996, [[Alan Merten]], dean of the [[Samuel Curtis Johnson Graduate School of Management]] at [[Cornell University]] was appointed the university's president. He believed that the university's location made it responsible for both contributing to and drawing from its surrounding communities—local, national, and global. George Mason was becoming recognized and acclaimed in all of these spheres. During Merten's tenure, the university hosted the [[World Congress on Information Technology (2019)|World Congress of Information Technology]] in 1998,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://wcit2014.org/history/ |title=History |work=WCIT |access-date=August 5, 2015}}</ref> celebrated a second [[Nobel Memorial Prize]]-winning faculty member in 2002, and cheered the [[George Mason Patriots#Men's Basketball|Men's basketball]] team in their [[National Collegiate Athletic Association|NCAA]] [[Final Four (college basketball)|Final Four]] appearance in 2006. Enrollment increased from just over 24,000 students in 1996 to approximately 33,000 during the spring semester of 2012, making Mason Virginia's largest public university.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ahistoryofmason.gmu.edu/exhibits/show/presence/contents/introduction |title=A History of George Mason University – 1996–2012: Prominence : Introduction |work=gmu.edu |access-date=April 6, 2015 |archive-date=February 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160208162350/http://ahistoryofmason.gmu.edu/exhibits/show/presence/contents/introduction |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===21st century===
Following Merten's retirement in 2012, [[Ángel Cabrera (academic)|Ángel Cabrera]] was appointed the university's sixth president on July 1, 2012.

In a resolution on August 17, 2012, the board asked Cabrera to create a new strategic vision that would help Mason remain relevant and competitive in the future. The drafting of the Vision for Mason, from conception to official outline, created a new [[mission statement]] that defines the university.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://vision.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MasonVision.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150919025551/http://vision.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/MasonVision.pdf |archive-date=September 19, 2015 |url-status=live |title=Mason Vision |website=vision.gmu.edu}}</ref>

On March 25, 2013, Cabrera held a press conference to announce the university's decision to leave the [[Colonial Athletic Association]] to join the [[Atlantic 10 Conference]] (A-10). The announcement came just days after the Board of Visitors' approval of the university's vision document that Cabrera had overseen. Mason began competition in the A-10 during the 2013–2014 academic year.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://ahistoryofmason.gmu.edu/exhibits/show/vision/contents/a10 |title=A History of George Mason University – 2012–present: Vision : Mason Moves from the Colonial Athletic Association to the Atlantic 10 Conference |work=gmu.edu}}</ref> ''[[The Chronicle of Higher Education]]'' listed Mason as one of the "Great Colleges to Work For" from 2010 to 2014.<ref name="GreatColleges">{{cite web |title=Great Colleges to Work For |publisher=The Chronicle of Higher Education |url=http://chroniclegreatcolleges.com/dev/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-Colleges-Recognized-by-Enrollment-Size-and-Category.pdf |website=chroniclegreatcolleges.com |access-date=April 24, 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150709034100/http://chroniclegreatcolleges.com/dev/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/2014-Colleges-Recognized-by-Enrollment-Size-and-Category.pdf|archive-date=July 9, 2015|url-status=dead}}</ref> ''[[The Washington Post]]'' listed Mason as one of the "Top Workplaces" in 2014.<ref>{{cite news |title=Top Workplaces 2014 |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-tran/capital-business/top-workplaces |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140621193429/http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-tran/capital-business/top-workplaces |url-status=dead |archive-date=June 21, 2014 |newspaper=Washington Post |access-date=April 24, 2015}}</ref>

[[File:George Mason College, decal, ca. 1970.jpg|thumb|Decal of George Mason College]]The WorldatWork Alliance for Work-Life Progress awarded Mason the Seal of Distinction in 2015.<ref>{{cite web |title=WorldatWork |url=http://www.worldatwork.org/waw/adimLink?id=78343 |website=www.worldatwork.org |access-date=April 24, 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20150318180954/http://www.worldatwork.org/waw/adimLink?id=78343|archive-date = March 18, 2015|url-status = dead }}</ref> The [[AARP]] listed Mason as one of the Best Employers for Workers Over 50 in 2013.<ref>{{cite web |title=Employers – George Mason University, Life Planning Seminars for 50-plus Workers |url=http://www.aarp.org/work/2013-aarp-best-employers/george-mason-university-aarp-best-employers/ |access-date=April 24, 2015 |publisher=AARP}}</ref> [[Phi Beta Kappa]] established a chapter at the university in 2013.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Phi Beta Kappa, Here We Come! {{!}} George Mason|url=https://www2.gmu.edu/news/1093|access-date=October 27, 2020|website=www2.gmu.edu}}</ref>

In 2018, a [[Freedom of Information Act (United States)|Freedom of Information Act]] lawsuit revealed that conservative donors, including the [[Charles Koch Foundation]] and [[Federalist Society]], were given direct influence over faculty hiring decisions at the university's law and economics schools. GMU President Ángel Cabrera acknowledged that the revelations raised questions about the university's academic integrity and pledged to prohibit donors from sitting on faculty selection committees in the future.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/05/us/koch-donors-george-mason.html |title=What Charles Koch and Other Donors to George Mason University Got for Their Money |first1=Erica L. |last1=Green |first2=Stephanie |last2=Saul |work=The New York Times |date=May 5, 2018 |via=NYTimes.com}}</ref>

Cabrera resigned his position on July 31, 2019, to become president of [[Georgia Tech]].<ref>{{Cite web|last=Stirgus|first=Eric|date=June 13, 2019|title=Ga. Board of Regents hires Ángel Cabrera to lead Georgia Tech|url=https://www.ajc.com/news/local-education/just-board-regents-hires-angel-cabrera-lead-georgia-tech/FXemE23fUu1j2mpH3MNPPO/|access-date=June 26, 2020|website=The Atlanta Journal-Constitution|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite news|last=Anderson|first=Nick|date=June 20, 2019|title=Anne Holton named George Mason U. interim president|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2019/06/20/anne-holton-named-george-mason-u-interim-president/|newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> Following Cabrera's resignation, [[Anne Holton|Anne B. Holton]] served as interim president until June 30, 2020.<ref name=":0" />

On February 24, 2020, the Board of Visitors appointed [[Gregory Washington]] as the university's eighth president, and he assumed that role on July 1, 2020. Washington is the university's first African-American president.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www2.gmu.edu/news/583236|title=Gregory Washington named George Mason University's eighth president &#124; George Mason|website=www2.gmu.edu}}</ref>

On March 23, 2020, George Mason shifted to exclusively online instruction during the [[COVID-19 pandemic in Virginia|COVID-19 pandemic]]. Hybrid instruction occurred during the Fall 2020, Spring 2021, and Fall 2021 semesters during which the university offered a combination of online and in-person instruction.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www2.gmu.edu/coronavirus|title=Are Classes being held?|access-date=August 1, 2020}}</ref>

Mild unrest occurred on George Mason's campus in the aftermath of the [[October 7, 2023 attack]] of [[Hamas]] on [[Israel]] and the resulting [[Gaza war|war]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=14 November 2023 |title=Message about Tuesday event on campus |url=https://president.gmu.edu/news/2023-11/message-about-tuesday-event-campus |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240723031351/https://president.gmu.edu/news/2023-11/message-about-tuesday-event-campus |archive-date=23 July 2024 |access-date=2024-12-09 |website=Office of the President |publisher=George Mason University |language=en}}</ref> Statements denouncing [[antisemitism]] and [[Islamophobia]] were made by the Office of the President.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2 November 2023 |title=Statement on President's Patriot Plan for Community Safety and Well-Being |url=https://president.gmu.edu/news/2023-11/statement-presidents-patriot-plan-community-safety-and-well-being |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20231105223144/https://president.gmu.edu/news/2023-11/statement-presidents-patriot-plan-community-safety-and-well-being |archive-date=5 November 2023 |access-date=2024-12-09 |website=Office of the President |publisher=George Mason University |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=28 November 2023 |title=Denouncing Islamophobia |url=https://president.gmu.edu/news/2023-11/denouncing-islamophobia |archive-url=http://web.archive.org/web/20240220220310/https://president.gmu.edu/news/2023-11/denouncing-islamophobia |archive-date=20 February 2024 |access-date=2024-12-09 |website=Office of the President |publisher=George Mason University |language=en}}</ref> An encampment on nearby [[George Washington University]]'s campus was organized in part by George Mason students.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Rosenzweig-Ziff |first=Dan |date=8 December 2024 |title=Campus ban for two pro-Palestinian activists sparks outcry at George Mason |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2024/12/08/george-mason-university-pro-palestinian-activists/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241209144322/https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/2024/12/08/george-mason-university-pro-palestinian-activists/ |archive-date=9 December 2024 |access-date=9 December 2024 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |quote="George Mason was one of many campuses that experienced a wave of protests after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Hamas on Israel and the resulting war. Three people were detained but not arrested in November 2023 after an altercation at a protest. In the spring demonstrations — which brought some schools across the country to a halt and led to the arrest of thousands of students — some pro-Palestinian students from George Mason helped organize a regional encampment at George Washington University to call for that school to cut ties with Israel. This fall, messages voicing support for Hamas have intensified on some campuses."}}</ref>