Teresa M. Donnellan

More than 500 students, nine sponsors, and 50 volunteers gathered on George Mason University’s Fairfax Campus for the fifth annual PatriotHacks hackathon from October 6-8. After working for 36 hours straight, student teams presented 70 projects to a panel of judges from the tech industry. 

The Office of Diversity, Outreach, and Inclusive Learning (DOIL) hosted BLAST Off Week 2023 from September 11 – 15, during which CEC students networked with university resource groups, student organizations, and representatives from the Department of Energy and CACI.

A postdoc program for health researchers interested in statistics and data science, run jointly by George Mason’s statistics and global and community health departments, with mentors from Mason and Inova Health, has developed from the ongoing partnership between Inova Health and George Mason’s Statistics Collaboration Core. Mohamad Bahij Moumneh, MD, and Jason F. Goldberg, MD, are the program’s standing inaugural members.

At the 2023 Joint Statistics Meeting, one of the largest statistics events in the world, George Mason’s statistics department teamed up with Georgetown’s data science department and George Washington’s statistics department to co-host the first Georges Reception. Students, alumni, faculty, and friends gathered to network with fellow DC area locals.

Professor of statistics Lily Wang is leading a multi-institutional, interdisciplinary team to find biomarkers for aging-related diseases from the latest biomedical imaging techniques. A program run by the NSF and NIH has awarded Wang’s team $1,199,772 for the study.

New students heard from accomplished speakers, practiced skills in workshops, and connected with both academic advisors and peer mentors at the Your Path to Tech event on August 18. Event organizers aimed to welcome women interested in tech and set them up for success in coming years.

The Mason Nation’s strength was undeniable at several hackathons in spring 2023. Computer science, cybersecurity engineering, information technology, and mechanical engineering students won challenges on March 25 at the University of Virginia, on April 7-9 at the University of Maryland, and on April 29-30 at Drexel University.

A senior design team guided by Qiliang Li and sponsored by the Army Strategic Program for Innovation, Research, and Employment developed a lightweight, low power radar system to detect buried landmines.

Seniors created an automated vehicle model as part of the Army Strategic Program for Innovation, Research, and Employment (ASPIRE).

After helping to develop the Systems Engineering and Cyber Security Engineering programs at George Mason, Professor Peggy Brouse has received the 2023 David J. King Award.