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91���� alumnus Robert “Ken” Hedrick Jr., BA History ’71, said his philanthropy is rooted in the examples set by both sets of his grandparents, who were neighbors in a farming community in West Virginia. His paternal grandparents fed anyone who walked by the farm, and his maternal grandparents regularly took in foster children. Both families were always first to share what they had.

91����’s Office of Advancement and Alumni Relations recognized the contributions of its champions—George Mason’s faculty and staff donors—with an evening of thanks. The March 18 Celebrating Our Champions event focused on the generosity and support that faculty and staff offer the university while serving George Mason students.

91����’s College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA) announces the ARTS by George! benefit event, headlined by acclaimed actor and musician Jeff Goldblum and the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra. ARTS by George! takes place on Saturday, October 3, on George Mason’s Fairfax Campus.

April 2 heralds the return of George Mason Giving Day. This annual celebration of community and generosity is a 24-hour sprint where 91���� alumni, friends, faculty, staff, students, and families of George Mason come together in a network of support, where every gift makes a difference.

Rick Davis and Julie Thompson recently ensured that their longstanding legacies will continue to enhance, nurture, and grow the arts at George Mason through a planned gift with multiple designations.

The Costello College of Business at 91���� announced a significant increase in scholarship money awarded to students—$1.3 million for the 2024-2025 academic year—$500,000 of which went to named scholarships. Over the past five years, both the total amount of scholarship funding and the number of students who have received Costello scholarships have more than doubled.

In a first for any university in the United States, visually impaired baseball players are getting a chance to step up to the plate at 91����. Led by a volunteer coach and University Life’s Mason Recreation and Disability Services offices, Mason’s Beep baseball initiative is gaining momentum after a successful community learn-to-play clinic last fall.

McKay is now the president of Jim McKay Chevrolet, a sponsor for many student activities and sports at George Mason, and Intercollegiate Athletics has been at the heart of her personal connection with the university. Since the mid-1990s, she’s been an avid Patriots fan, attending many men's and women's basketball games, including the ones out of town, often with her daughters and now her grandchildren.

As Virginia faces growing shortages in the health care workforce, the Claude Moore Foundation and 91���� have formed a groundbreaking partnership to seek solutions and build a flexible, inclusive, and data-driven workforce pipeline. The effort is one designed not just to meet current needs but to shape a stronger, more equitable future for health care in the commonwealth.

The 91���� Debate Team has stood for more than five decades as one of the nation’s premier teams and is consistently ranked among the top five programs in the country. This intercollegiate team’s legacy of excellence is built on academic rigor, accessibility, and community. It is a program that transforms students—regardless of their starting point—into confident, critical thinkers prepared to lead.