Category Archives: Graduate Students

Libraries announces new Graduate Student Fellowship program – now accepting applications

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The Libraries is pleased to announce a new program designed to support the pursuit of excellent graduate research at George Mason University – the Mason Libraries Graduate Student Fellow Program. This program is made possible by the generosity of many donors (including alumni, friends, and university faculty and staff) who contributed to the creation of the Libraries’ new Student Research Endowment, with the initial challenge gift coming from the members of the Libraries Advisory Board.

The Graduate Student Fellowship will be awarded annually to a graduate student currently pursuing their master or doctoral degree at George Mason University and conducting research for their Thesis or Dissertation. One fellowship of $2,500 may be awarded for the 2022-23 academic year. In addition to award funds, the student fellow will be assigned a dedicated graduate study carrel in Fenwick Library for their use during the academic year in which they receive the award. The fellowship is for one academic year, and is not renewable.

Awarded funds may be used for expenditures related to conference attendance and/or travel for research related to the student’s research project; may be applied to student’s account for academic expenses; or may be designated towards acquisition of library research materials and/or digital infrastructure and tools needed for the student’s specific research project.

Criteria and Eligibility

  • Current master or doctoral degree student at George Mason University in any formally advanced field of study conducting Thesis or Dissertation level research.
  • In good academic standing with a minimum G.P.A. of 3.5.
  • Demonstrate exemplary research skills and proposed utilization of the Libraries’ services, resources, and expertise for master or doctoral level research project.

Application Requirements

  • Thesis Proposal or Dissertation Abstract.
  • Statement of interest (minimum 750 words) addressing the role of the Libraries resources in the applicant’s research plans; proposed use of funding (i.e. travel for research or conference plans; research materials or tools to be acquired; etc.); and expected outcomes.
  • Brief curriculum vita.
  • Academic Transcript (unofficial accepted).
  • Letter of Support from George Mason University department chair or graduate coordinator in the applicant’s field of study (submitted separately via e-mail to library@gmu.edu).

Application Deadline

Applications must be submitted via e-mail to library@gmu.edu by 11:59 p.m., Monday, June 27, 2022. Late applications will not be accepted.

Selection Process

Graduate student fellowship applications will be reviewed by a selection committee appointed by the Dean of Libraries and University Librarian. The selected recipient will be notified prior to the start of the fall semester.

Requirements of the Fellow

All library research materials and/or digital tools acquired on behalf of the Graduate Student Fellow will remain the property of the University Libraries. At the conclusion of their fellowship year, the recipient will submit a brief report of their accomplishments during the fellowship, including how the funding supported their research.

New exhibition in Fenwick Gallery,“Conjuring Presence,” featuring Mason students, faculty, alumni

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Fenwick Gallery at George Mason University is pleased to host “Conjuring Presence,” an exhibition of visual art and poetry featuring Mason students, faculty, and alumni. The exhibition will run in Fenwick Gallery and online from October 20 through December 11, with a literary reading and an artists’ panel to be announced at a later date.

Curated by Mason faculty member and artist Jessica Kallista, “Conjuring Presence” asks both artists and audience to think critically and examine many manifestations of presence: What does it mean to join our creativity as we co-sense and conspire together for the sake of enlivening our imaginations and our communities? What does it mean to become mindful of the need to work against erasure when we understand who is not present and why? Who decides whether some people are or are not allowed to be present to occupy spaces in the arts and academia? How do we acknowledge the past, work for a just future, and still ground ourselves in the present? How might we work to conjure presence? 

The artists and poets featured in “Conjuring Presence” were paired and asked to consider these questions throughout the collaborative process. In doing the work of considering, questioning, and challenging the status quo with radical honesty and presence of mind, together they embrace the power to envision, freedom dream, and co-create otherwise worlds into existence.

This exhibition is co-curated by Heather Green (Asst. Professor, School of Art) and Stephanie Grimm (Art and Art History Librarian and Fenwick Gallery Manager), with exhibit support from Chen Bi (Fenwick Gallery Graduate Assistant). Exhibition support is generously provided by the University Libraries, School of Art, and Creative Writing Program at Mason.

“Conjuring Presence” will be on display in Fenwick Gallery and online. Fenwick Gallery is located in Fenwick Library on Mason’s Fairfax campus. The gallery is open during Library business hours; see the Library’s website at http://library.gmu.edu for the most accurate and up-to-date information.

For more information on this exhibition at Fenwick Gallery, contact Stephanie Grimm, Art and Art History Librarian, at sgrimm4@gmu.edu.

Graduate Research Connections – workshops for grad students 10/28 & 10/29

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Build your productivity, research, and writing skills at GRADReCon: Graduate Research Connections! A smorgasbord of workshops on topics essential to your success at Mason, GRADReCon is a partnership of Graduate Student Life, University Libraries and other key university programs and services for graduate students. Join us online, Thursday, October 28 and Friday, October 29. Registration, schedule, and more available at https://infoguides.gmu.edu/gradrecon.

Center for Mason Legacies releases “Black Lives Next Door” preliminary findings

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The Center for Mason Legacies (CML) invites you to explore their newly created digital project, Black Lives Next Door: George Mason and Northern Virginia in an Age of Disparity and Opportunity (BLND). Building on work that began in 2020, BLND is presenting its first set of findings and inviting our community to take a journey through our “pasts next door” and related stories. Read the full announcement here.

About the Center for Mason Legacies: CML is an interdisciplinary and collaborative research center established by the University Libraries and the College of Humanities and Social Sciences. CML’s mission is to preserve and examine the legacy of George Mason IV (1725-1792), his ancestors and heirs, and the people he enslaved. Learn more about the center here and their various research projects here.

Congratulations, Mason graduates!

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George Mason University will conduct its 54th Spring Commencement virtually at 2 p.m. on Friday, May 14, 2021, with First Lady Jill Biden as the featured speaker. The university-wide commencement ceremony will be live-streamed. Mason will also hold in-person graduation recognition events throughout the week leading up to Friday’s ceremony.