Mason Core Committee Members 2024-2025
| Mason Core Co-chair | Keith Renshaw | Associate Provost, Undergraduate Education | krenshaw@gmu.edu |
| Mason Core Director | Laura Poms | Undergraduate Education; Global and Community Health | lpoms@gmu.edu |
| College of Education and Human Development | Abena Aidoo Hewton (Senate) | School of Recreation and Tourism Management | aaidoo@gmu.edu |
| College of Humanities and Social Sciences | Courtney Adams Wooten (Senate) | Writing and Rhetoric | cwooten3@gmu.edu |
| College of Humanities and Social Sciences | Lauren Cattaneo (Provost Appointee) | Psychology | lcattane@gmu.edu |
| College of Humanities and Social Science | Jamie Clark (Senate) | Sociology and Anthropology | jclark68@gmu.edu |
| College of Science | Megan Erb (Provost Appointee) | Chemistry and Biochemistry | msikowit@gmu.edu |
| Schar School of Policy and Government | Michael Hunzeker (Senate) | International Relations and Security | mhunzeke@gmu.edu |
| College of Visual and Performing Arts | William Lake (Senate) | Concert Bands | wlake@gmu.edu |
| College of Humanities and Social Sciences | Samaine Lockwood (Senate) | English | jlockwo3@gmu.edu |
| College of Public Health | Ana Stoehr (Senate) | Nursing | astoehr@gmu.edu |
| College of Education and Human Development | Deb Stroiney (Senate) | Kinesiology | dstroine@gmu.edu |
| College of Engineering and Computing | Liz White (Provost Appointee) | Computer Science | white@gmu.edu |
| Costello College of Business | Shun Ye (Provost Appointee) | Information Systems and Operations Management | sye2@gmu.edu |
| Student Representative | TBD | Student Government | TBD |
| Ex Officio | Chris Lee | Office of Institutional Planning and Effectiveness | cleen@gmu.edu |
| Ex Officio | Tom Polk | Writing Across the Curriculum | tpolk2@gmu.edu |
| Ex Officio | Shelley Reid | Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning | ereid1@gmu.edu |
Proposal Help
The Mason Core members are available to answer questions related to proposal creation and submission. Contact information is listed above.
Mason Core Committee
(Charge as revised and approved by the Faculty Senate – April 1, 2009, composition of membership amended September 7, 2011. Revisions including new name: Mason Core Committee approved by the Faculty Senate Dec. 4, 2013. Revisions approved by the Faculty Senate February 3, 2021. Revisions including the Mason Core Director approved by the Faculty Senate April 26, 2023.)
Charge
The Committee will work in cooperation with the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education on all matters concerning the Mason Core (formerly general education). For all foundation, exploration, and integration Mason Core requirements, the Committee will approve courses to fulfill these requirements.
The Committee will develop procedures for assessing, reviewing, and recertifying courses that carry a Mason Core attribute. Utilizing Mason Core assessment data, the committee will review and revise, as necessary, the overall structure and outcomes of the Mason Core. The Committee will review and approve procedures used to substitute or waive Mason Core requirements. The Committee will confer with the Faculty Senate Committee on Academic Policies when changes to Mason Core requirements impact the entire university and/or would be a substantive change to the university catalog. The Committee will provide an annual report to the Faculty Senate. The report shall include a) The courses approved for inclusion in or removed from the Mason Core, and b) Changes in the criteria for the Mason Core. More frequent reports to the Faculty Senate might take place as adjustments to the Mason Core program may warrant.
Composition: The membership of the Committee comprises 14 voting members:
A. Eight faculty elected by the Faculty Senate for staggered three-year terms ensuring that at least 6 academic units are represented, at least one should be a senator;
B. Four faculty appointed by the Provost;
C. The Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education;
D. One student elected by the Student Senate.
Ex-officio members are invited to provide input into the work of the committee and consist of the following:
A. The Mason Core Director
B. A representative from the Stearns Center
C. A representative from the Office of Institutional Effectiveness and Planning and
D. One representative from the Writing Across the Curriculum Committee
Meetings: Meetings will be held monthly during the academic year. View the meeting schedule for exact dates and times.
*Please note, that as this is a Faculty Senate appointed committee, proxy votes are not permitted*
Please contact us at masoncor@gmu.edu with any questions or concerns.