Our remarkable and resilient year

by Dean Fernando Miralles-Wilhelm

2020 was an unforgettable year. At a time when the entire world focused on the importance of and need for strong science, our many thousands of Mason Science students, staff, and faculty made the unimaginable pivot to virtual academic instruction and research, truly testing our innovative intellect, resilience, and scientific processes.

In retrospect, 2020 will be remembered as a highly productive, unprecedented year with an evolving curriculum, as our Mason Science community creatively, and quickly conceptualized and executed a multitude of initiatives to successfully transfer scientific knowledge and deliver transformative research results across our numerous domains.

It was also a year of change, with both our college and Mason undergoing leadership transitions at the highest levels. Navigating change is not easy in the most familiar of times, so imagine how it might occur during a global pandemic. That is what makes the items noted in this report so spectacular. From globally funded and recognized COVID-19 response, and our award-winning, innovative learning and research, to strengthening inclusive excellence efforts and growing (yes, I said growing) enrollment, take a moment to explore and celebrate these successes before we charge straight to our promising future.

Understand.

Researchers in the College of Science wasted no time participating in the world’s efforts towards understanding COVID-19, how to identify it, and how to stop it. Mason’s COVID-19 prevention efforts, including our professors’ development of a saliva-based test that boosted testing capabilities on campus, resulted in the university seeing some of the lowest COVID-19 cases among Virginia’s larger higher education institutions.

Despite the constraints of quarantine, our connections and need to share our science continued—making new discoveries that were out of this world, connecting students with industry partners remotely, and even adding new lab experiences to enrich students’ education when they return to campus.

Innovate.

In response to COVID-19, the university selected to host all classes and events virtually in order to protect the Mason community. This was no small feat for a college with numerous lab sessions, active research, and experiential coursework designed to prepare students for a career in the sciences. However, Mason Science faculty and staff stepped up to the plate, shifting coursework and hosting events online, maintaining its academic integrity and quality even in the face of a global pandemic.

Succeed.

There are many ways to define success. Our college strives to provide students the highest quality education for their post-graduation careers while also significantly impacting our community, our nation, and our world. We seek to meaningfully acknowledge the faculty and staff who go above and beyond their work each and every day to enhance the success of their students and departments. It is exciting to see Mason Science faculty receive national and international attention for their dedication to their field and research impact.