I stand
with mason
Outside political groups are targeting our president, Dr. Gregory Washington, for removal. The goal is always the same: Create a problem that doesn’t exist, force an investigation that threatens the loss of hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding, take out the president to weaken the university, and undermine its academic independence.
Mason is already one of the most ideologically diverse universities in the country – from the Carter School for Peace to the Scalia School of Law. That’s part of what makes this attack so dangerous. If allowed to succeed at Mason, it will do untold damage to the university and destabilize the regional economy, to say nothing of undermining one of the most successful presidents of any American university today.
Our alma mater and its president need us. This is not about politics – it’s about protecting what works for students, the region, and the Commonwealth.
We’re alumni, students, faculty, business leaders, and community members who care deeply about Mason – and we’re speaking up. This is our university, and we won’t stay silent while outside political pressure threatens its leadership and future. Stand With Mason is a people-powered movement to defend what’s working and protect Mason’s future.
We welcome support from everyone who values strong leadership, academic freedom, and the future of Mason. Please help us oppose this attack and stand behind President Washington.
We the undersigned alumni and allies of George Mason University stand with our alma mater and President Gregory Washington against false allegations of discrimination and antisemitism. Whether we call Mason our alma mater, our current school, our employer, or just a university we admire and support, we do this with the recognition that Mason has quickly become one of America’s top public universities. It serves its students and our entire region exactly the way it should, most notably so under the recent leadership of President Washington. Despite a relentless succession of challenges including political unrest, the Covid pandemic, and the recession and historic cycle of inflation that followed, he has moved Mason forward in many ways and achieved unprecedented success.
Within the past five years, Mason has become the country’s #30 public university (Wall Street Journal) and Virginia’s top-ranked university for innovation, upward mobility, inclusivity, and a growing list of academic programs. It is one of just 16 universities in America to be categorized as both a top research university and a top university for accessible higher education.
All charges against the university are of no substance. If pursued, they threaten to destabilize this great institution and harm both the Northern Virginia and Metro DC economies. There may be universities and presidents in America that would benefit from deeper examination of their processes and practices, but George Mason University and President Washington are not among them. They have our unanimous support, while these attacks have our strongest condemnation.
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