George Mason University's leaders exemplify how people of various backgrounds can come together to build something greater than they could alone.
George Mason's leadership looks beyond the expected as they share responsibility and commitment to the success of students, faculty, and staff in their academic, personal, and professional goals, careers, communities, and whatever other endeavors they may choose to pursue.
Leadership Structure
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President Gregory Washington
University President
George Mason University President Gregory Washington leads Virginia’s largest and most diverse public university into its second half-century.
Since launching his Mason presidency in July 2020, Washington has created new academic and entrepreneurial pathways, opened or broken ground on academic facilities on all three Virginia campuses across the university’s 848 acres, and presided over the highest research expenditures and philanthropy in Mason history. In 2023, Washington announced “Mason Now: Power the Possible,” a one-billion-dollar comprehensive campaign to support student success, research, innovation, community, and sustainability.
- President Gregory Washington
Washington, the former engineering dean at Ohio State University (interim) and the University of California, Irvine, has strengthened Mason’s commitment to access and opportunity by creating the Mason Virginia Promise (MVP), a pathway to a Mason degree or help starting a business for any Virginian who aspires to either goal. MVP expands Mason’s national award-winning ADVANCE Program Partnership with Northern Virginia Community College to select community colleges throughout the state. The Mason Virginia Promise Grant helps provide opportunities to students from low-income backgrounds.
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University Leadership
Dr. James Antony
Provost and Executive Vice President
Dr. James Antony serves as the provost and executive vice president of George Mason University.
As provost and executive vice president, Antony oversees George Mason University’s academic mission, including supporting scholarly excellence among faculty and fostering academic success for over 40,000 students on all four campuses. He joined the university in 2024 and works in conjunction with President Gregory Washington to shape and execute the university’s strategic academic priorities.
Prior to his appointment as provost, Antony served at the University of California, San Diego where he was the dean of Graduate Education and Postdoctoral Affairs. Alongside his administrative duties, he was a professor of Education Studies with a secondary appointment at the Rady School of Management. Antony has also held notable academic leadership roles at Harvard, Yale, and the University of Washington.
He is a first-generation college student who received his baccalaureate degree in psychology, as well as his master’s degree and PhD in higher education and organizational change from UCLA.
Deb Dickenson
Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration
Deb Dickenson was appointed the Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration in December 2022, after serving as the Interim Senior Vice President for Administration and Finance. She joined Mason as the Vice President for Finance in August 2019. Dickenson assists the university's academic leadership, administrative management and board members in the efficient and effective monitoring, management, and control of the financial resources of the university, supporting innovation and strategic initiatives.
Prior to George Mason, Dickenson served for two years as Assistant Dean and Principal Business Officer for finance, planning and fiscal operations for the George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. Dickenson’s prior experience in administrative and financial management leadership positions includes several years at GW as AVP for Financial Management and serving as the GW Comptroller, and includes financial leadership positions at two large non-profit organizations, Marriott International, Inc., Price Waterhouse, LLP, and Arthur Andersen & Co.
Dickenson earned her MBA in finance from the University of Texas at Austin and her BBA in accounting from Southern Methodist University. She received her CPA from the Texas State Board of Public Accountancy and is a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, where she was granted a chartered global management accountant designation.
Kenneth Walsh
Executive Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and Chief of Staff
Ken Walsh currently serves as Executive Vice President for Strategic Initiatives and Chief of Staff in the President’s Office, a position he accepted in 2020. He served as interim Provost at Mason from November 2023 through June 2024.
Before coming to Mason, Dr. Walsh served as Senior Assistant Dean and Chief of Staff in the Samueli School of Engineering at the University of California, Irvine. In this capacity, he was responsible for the entire scope of planning, operations, and resource management for the School. From 2002 to 2018, Dr. Walsh served in a number of roles at San Diego State University. There he founded the J.R. Filanc Construction Engineering and Management program and later served as chair of the Department of Civil, Construction, and Environmental Engineering. He also served as the founding Dean for SDSU-Georgia. This innovative program was funded through the Millennium Challenge Corporation and the Government of Georgia to provide US-accredited science and engineering degrees in Tbilisi, Georgia, where he lived and worked for four years.
He started his academic career in the Del E. Webb School of Construction at Arizona State University, after several years in consulting engineering practice in the Phoenix area. Ken holds BSE, MS, and Ph.D. degrees in Civil Engineering from Arizona State University. With over $30 million in research activity, his research interests lie in production systems design in a construction setting, He has published over 100 papers in journals and conferences and served as editor of conferences sponsored by the International Group for Lean Construction and the American Society of Civil Engineers.