Browse Exhibits (18 total)

We are looking at the faculty diversity at George Mason University. Specifically, the diversity of staff when it comes to women vs. men. We were wanting to see when women started getting higher level positions rather than just being in assistant and secretarial roles. This project will cover as much of the university’s history as we can find information related to faculty and their roles. We are also covering some of the important women faculty who have worked at the University over the years, specifically Lorraine Brown, who was a Professor Emeritus of English who had worked at the university for 42 years, Eugenie Mielczarek who was George Mason’s first female physicist and was a founding member of the physics department and worked at the university for 35 years, and lastly Vanessa Blair-Lewis, who started working at the university in 2021, and helped to completely turn around the University’s women's basketball team, taking them from not winning a single game the year before she started, to in the 2024-2025 season winning a program record of 27 games and finished with a conference record of 14-4, for the Atlantic 10 conference. We will also cover some of the issues and gender disparity encountered by the staff of the University.

Spanning from 1939 to 1995, this exhibit explores the history of a renowned GMU professor and his passion project.

Welcome to the George Mason Statue Exhibit

This exhibit explores the rich history and evolving significance of the George Mason statue located at the heart of George Mason University’s Fairfax campus. More than just a campus landmark, the statue stands as a powerful symbol of the university’s identity, values, and traditions. From its creation in the 1990s to its role in present-day student life, the statue reflects not only the legacy of George Mason himself—a Founding Father and author of the Virginia Declaration of Rights—but also the changing ways in which communities remember and reinterpret history.

Through this digital exhibit, you will learn about the origins of the statue, the people behind its construction, and the many ways it has been embraced by students, faculty, and alumni over time. You will also engage with themes of public memory, civic commemoration, and the complexities of honoring historical figures in modern academic spaces.

By drawing on archival materials, photographs, historical documents, and university records, this project offers an in-depth look at how one statue can capture both the ideals and the contradictions of the past—and how it continues to shape the experience of life at George Mason University today.

Hello, my name is Sabeeh Sohail. While I originally considered focusing my presentation and research project on the Religious Studies department, I’ve decided to take a broader approach. This exhibit explores the overall history of George Mason University—starting from its founding and highlighting key milestones that have shaped its identity over the years.

George Mason University began as a modest extension of the University of Virginia, created to serve the educational needs of Northern Virginia’s rapidly growing population. From its humble beginnings in Bailey’s Crossroads to its transformation into a nationally recognized research institution, GMU’s history is one of vision, resilience, and dynamic growth.

This exhibit highlights the pivotal turning points in GMU’s evolution. Through a combination of archival photographs and other sources. It showcases how both individuals and institutional decisions contributed to the development of a vibrant, inclusive university community—one that now spans multiple campuses and continents.

More than a story of physical expansion, GMU’s journey reflects a deeper narrative of expanding access to education, fostering civic engagement, and continually adapting to meet the needs of the region it proudly serves.

This exhibit explores how George Mason’s 2006 NCAA Final Four appearance impacted the university's image. We sought out to discover what lasting impacts this monumental event had on Mason's legacy, potentially shaping student and faculty pride, bringing out shifts in enrollment and demographics, and bringing a little known "commuter-school" into the national spotlight.