President's Council

As Deputy Vice President for University Branding team, Ms. Aaronson oversees the internal and external integrated communications, digital, content and distribution strategies – in collaboration with the University’s colleges, centers and institutes – to advance Mason’s story of growth, innovation, and impact. In addition, Ms. Aaronson is responsible for curating and creating high quality original and shared content for new and existing channels, and she serves as the number two to the Chief Brand Officer.

Before joining Mason, Ms. Aaronson was Senior Vice President, Engagement, at the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), where she led system-wide multiplatform content and engagement initiatives, and partnerships with business, schools, community partners, national leaders, and influencers, to enhance the impact of public media in building a strong civil society. Ms. Aaronson was also responsible for the strategic planning and management of public media’s largest collaboration, the “American Graduate,” initiative, which helped communities work together to improve the national high school graduation rate and youth access college and career programs. “American Graduate” was rolled out in 49 states with over 150 local media stations and 1800 local and national partnerships, resulting in over 2000 hours of broadcast and digital content and over $22 million in local philanthropic support. Ms. Aaronson joined CPB in 2012 as Vice President, Education and Community Impact.

Prior to CPB, she was Senior Director, Communications and Marketing, at PBS and PBS KIDS, overseeing corporate and crisis communications, media relations, program information, events, and viewers services. She also on the senior corporate strategy and operations leadership teams, and developed the PBS’ “Healthy Communities” initiative.

Earlier in her career, Ms. Aaronson held programming, production, communications and public affairs, business development and marketing positions at Citizen Jane Politics, Hallmark Channel, Lifetime Television, Discovery Communications (including Animal Planet and TLC), Rutledge Broadcasting/Court TV, and National Empowerment Television. She also served as co-chair the NIH Director's Council of Public Representatives Federal Advisory Board.  

A native of Washington, D.C., Ms. Aaronson holds a Bachelor of Arts in Communications and a certificate in Negotiation and Conflict Resolution from George Mason University, and studied politics at Georgetown University and non-profit strategic communications at American University.

Ann Ardis earned her Ph.D. from the University of Virginia (1988) and is known internationally for her scholarship on turn-of-the-century British literature and culture and modernist studies. She is also known for her work on the transformations of print media and the Anglo-American periodical press at the turn of the twentieth century. She is the author of New Women, New Novels: Feminism and Early Modernism (Rutgers UP, 1990) and Modernism and Cultural Conflict, 1880-1922 (Cambridge UP, 2002) as well as numerous articles and book chapters.

She is co-editor of three edited collections: Virginia Woolf Turning the Centuries (Pace, 2000), Women’s Experience of Modernity (Johns Hopkins UP, 2002), and Mediamorphosis: Print Culture and Transatlantic Public Sphere(s), 1880-1940 (Palgrave, 2008). She recently completed a term of service as co-editor of Modernism/modernity, the official journal of the Modernist Studies Association (Johns Hopkins UP). Ardis comes to Mason from the University of Delaware, where she served as senior vice provost for graduate and professional education.

Before that role, she was the deputy dean of Delaware’s College of Arts & Sciences and founding director of the Interdisciplinary Humanities Research Center, which supports collaborative multidisciplinary research, teaching, and creative activity anchored in the humanities.

Kenneth Ball became dean of the Volgenau School of Engineering in August 2012. Under his leadership, the school established a new Department of Mechanical Engineering in 2013, and he has overseen rapid growth in the school’s enrollment and the launch of new degree programs such as the MS in Data Analytics Engineering and the BS Cybersecurity Engineering. In 2021, the Volgenau School of Engineering was incorporated into the College of Engineering and Computing.

Before coming to Mason, Dr. Ball served as L.S. Randolph Professor and led the Department of Mechanical Engineering at Virginia Tech. He served for 15 years on the mechanical engineering faculty at The University of Texas at Austin, where he was the Temple Foundation Endowed Faculty Fellow in Engineering. He has earned degrees in mechanical engineering from Lehigh University and Drexel University and was a post-doctoral research associate in applied mathematics at Brown University.

Dr. Ball is recognized internationally for his research in computational fluid dynamics and heat transfer. He has chaired international conferences, is a past associate technical editor of the ASME Journal of Heat Transfer, and has served on several other engineering journal editorial boards. He has obtained externally sponsored funding (excluding high-performance computing grants) in excess of $20 million for projects and program development in mechanical engineering, including the thermal/fluid sciences and nuclear engineering. The estimated commercial value of his supercomputer grants is in excess of $10 million.

He is active in engineering program assessment and accreditation activities, both in the United States and internationally, particularly in the Middle East. He is an Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology program evaluator and has participated in numerous conferences and workshops related to engineering education and program accreditation.

Dr. Ball is a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and was elected to the leadership track of the Executive Committee of the Department Heads Forum, serving as Secretary and Vice-Chair elect. 

Laurence was appointed as Associate Provost for Graduate Education in March 2020, after joining the Office of the Provost as the Interim Associate Provost for Graduate Education in July 2019. Prior to her new role, she has overseen a wide range of departmental, school and university-wide educational and research activities as a faculty member and administrator in the Department of Bioengineering. Some recent activities have involved developing new innovative programs, creating student professional development support, leading program assessment and accreditation, and receiving internal and external funding for a variety of projects. 

Laurence is a mentor, a teacher, and a researcher with significant administrative experience. As the 2017 Mentorship Excellence Award winner and the 2018 Teacher of Distinction Recognition recipient, Laurence has been dedicated to student success inside and outside the classroom. In addition, she has received the 2017 Innovative Spirit Award demonstrating her work around innovation and new initiatives. Laurence has also published widely and presented nationally and internationally on topics related to the basic fundamentals of neuroscience using experimental, computational and behavioral approaches. 

Prior to joining Mason, she was a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering in the Brain Laboratory at the University of Nevada, where she earned her PhD in Biomedical and Electrical Engineering. She graduated with her MS and BS degrees in Bioengineering and Biological Sciences, respectively from Clemson University.

Gene Crouch is the AVP and Treasurer at George Mason University.  Before joining George Mason in January of 2022, Mr. Crouch spent 2 decades at the University of Virginia in a number of capacities ending in Director of Treasury.  At George Mason, Mr. Crouch leads all treasury management activities including: cash and investment management, debt planning and issuance, Internal Bank activity, Ecommerce, and PCI compliance. Mr. Crouch also serves on the George Mason Investment Committee that oversees investment options offered in its pension plan.

In addition to his work at George Mason, Mr. Crouch is an active participant and committee member of both the Treasury Symposium and SACUBO.  Mr. Crouch received his B.S. in Finance and Marketing from Ferrum College an MBA from Averett University.

Kimberly Jackson Davidson joined Mason in February of 2022 as the University Ombudsperson. Davidson’s primary role is to provide a neutral space where faculty can communicate about their issues, concerns or disputes in a confidential environment to support fair and consistent treatment in the university community. She develops the resources and tools to aid university constituents in fostering a culture of respect, collaboration and mediation. 

Davidson’s experience includes in-depth studies in multiple conflict transformation and interpersonal communication modalities. She employs theory, best practices, and practical and empirical knowledge from related fields of study. Her primary practices rest on the foundations of social justice mediation, conflict management coaching, reflective structured dialogue, and nonviolent communication, among other strategies, to assist visitors to her office with the work of transforming conflict. She is passionate about introducing awareness of the frameworks and practices for transforming conflict within the co-curricular context. Davidson believes this sort of outreach, education, and awareness-building nurtures the capacity of individuals to be better prepared to successfully navigate internal, interpersonal, and systemic conflict.   

Prior to joining Mason, Davidson served all campus constituencies as Ombudsperson at Oberlin College in Ohio during her final five and a half years there.  In conjunction with her role as Ombudsperson, Davidson directed the Yeworkwha Belachew Center for Dialogue (YBCD), providing mediation and dialogue support to the Oberlin community, developing a skilled cadre of Dialogue Center members trained in mediation, and developing conflict transformation programming offered to the Oberlin community.  In her two decades at Oberlin, Davidson previously held roles in the Office of the Dean of Students and as Visiting Lecturer in African American Studies providing a valuable depth and breadth of knowledge to campus constituents. 

Davidson earned a B.A. in English Literature from Spelman College in 1986 and an M.A. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in African Literature in 1991. She is active within the International Ombuds Association (IOA), the California Caucus of College and University Ombuds (CCCUO), and the Ombuds Section of the Association for Conflict Resolution (ACR).

Rick Davis, dean of the College of Visual and Performing Arts, since May 2015, joined Mason in 1991 as artistic director of Theater of the First Amendment (TFA) and a member of the theater faculty. The company, which presented its final programs in 2012, was nominated for 38 Helen Hayes Awards, winning 12, and originated numerous works that went on to other regional theaters, television, radio and publication.

From 2007-2011, Dr. Davis served as Mason's associate provost for Undergraduate Education, working primarily on issues of general and liberal education, international programs and student academic life. He has served as executive director of the Hylton Performing Arts Center since August 2011.

Prior to coming to Mason, Rick was Resident Dramaturg and Associate Artistic Director of Baltimore's Center Stage (1986-91), Associate Director and co-founder of the American Ibsen Theater in Pittsburgh (1983-85) and taught drama at Washington College.

Rick has directed a broad range of professional theater and opera productions (more than forty to date) in venues from upstate New York to Boise, Idaho and many places in between, including Baltimore Center Stage, the Kennedy Center, the IN Series and more.  He also has worked as dramaturg on more than thirty professional productions, and has directed dozens of plays, musicals, and operas for college and university programs, including the Mason Players.

He was a winner of the George Mason Teaching Excellence Award (1997) and an Alumni Association Distinguished Faculty Member of the Year (2006). His four books include translations and studies of Calderón de la Barca and, with Brian Johnston, Henrik Ibsen; and a college textbook on writing about theater (with Christopher Thaiss).

Rick was educated at Lawrence University (BA) and the Yale School of Drama (MFA, DFA). He teaches courses in directing, dramatic literature, theater history, and arts management.

For more on the College of Visual and Performing Arts go here.

Edward Dittmeier is the Vice President and Chief Audit and Compliance Officer.  He serves as the University Auditor, reporting functionally to the Audit, Risk, and Compliance Committee of the Board of Visitors and administratively to the President.  In addition to leading Mason’s internal audit function which evaluates the adequacy and effectiveness of the university’s governance, risk management, control, and compliance processes, Ed also facilitates, coordinates, and oversees the university’s enterprise institutional compliance and ethics programs.

Ed has over thirty years of executive internal audit experience in the financial services industry.  Prior to joining Mason in 2015, he was senior vice president and associate general auditor for BB&T Corporation for three years where he developed, enhanced, and implemented internal audit processes to align with Federal Reserve Board large bank supervisory expectations.  Prior to that, he served in multiple senior-level internal audit roles for American Express Company providing assurance related to the credit card, travel related services, and international banking businesses as well as corporate activities.  In these roles, he drove improvements in corporate governance processes related to Audit Committee oversight, focused executive attention on worldwide systemic process issues, and served as the chief audit executive for a $2 billion Canadian subsidiary bank.  Mr. Dittmeier earned bachelor's degrees in business administration (accounting) and statistics from the State University of New York at Buffalo.  He is a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Internal Auditor.

Dr. Gesele Durham joined George Mason University in 2019 as Associate Provost for Institutional Effectiveness and Planning.  By deploying her research, statistical, and strategic planning skills, Gesele’s work focuses on the production and use of analytics, providing meaningful assessment and planning, and enabling data-informed decision-making that advances Mason’s strategic goals.

Prior to joining Mason, Gesele was the Vice Provost for Institutional Effectiveness at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.  While there, she created the Office of Institutional Research and Assessment, initiated campus-wide discussions regarding data governance and resource development, implemented innovative campus tools aimed at strategic initiatives such as persistence and completion, access to strategic data for planning, and assessment of student learning and program outcomes. 

A frequent contributor to national conversations on the advancement of analytics and strategic planning, she currently serves as the secretary on the executive board for the APLU’s Commission on Measurement, Information and Analysis.  In the past she also served on the APLU’s board for the Voluntary System of Accountability, Product Advisory Councils for the EAB for both the Navigate/Student Success Collaborative as well as the Academic Performance Solutions tools, and as a member of the Peer Review Corp and mentor for the Persistence and Completion Academy for the Higher Learning Commission. 

With a doctoral degree in Political Science from Binghamton University, she began her academic career at the University of Minnesota Morris as faculty before relocating to Wisconsin.  After serving as the assistant director for the multi-disciplinary International Studies program at UW-Madison, she transitioned to the newly created role of enrollment data manager within the UW-Madison Graduate School.  She also served one year with the General Accounting Office in Washington. D.C. evaluating international environmental agreements.  Originally from central Illinois, she attended Illinois State University for her bachelor’s and master’s degrees, both in Political Science.  

Dr. Kim Eby joined the Mason community in 1996. A community psychologist by training, she has been a faculty member in the School of Integrative Studies, Women and Gender Studies, and Psychology. Her professional and scholarly interests include issues surrounding violence and gender, leadership, organizational development and change, and collaboration and community building across a variety of contexts. She has presented at national meetings and consulted with individual institutions on topics such as leading institutional change; learning space design; interdisciplinary collaboration; working with student and faculty diversity, equity, and inclusion; and other issues related to faculty, teaching and learning, and leadership development. Currently, Kim is the Chair-Elect for the Committee on Faculty Affairs, which is part of the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities’ (APLU) Council of Academic Affairs.

In 2002, Kim was awarded the George Mason University Teaching Excellence Award for her design, use, and assessment of innovative and high-impact teaching and learning practices. She subsequently served for nine years as the Director of the Center for Teaching and Faculty Excellence (CTFE, now Stearns Center for Teaching and Learning) and Associate Provost for Faculty Development where she provided programming, consultations, and professional development support to Mason faculty and graduate students, with an emphasis on teaching and learning.

In her current position of Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs and Development, Kim is responsible for all matters pertaining to Mason faculty’s professional well-being, development, and success, including providing support for faculty career development, recognizing faculty excellence, cultivating academic leadership, and implementing policies and practices that support faculty at Mason. She has collaborated with campus leaders on multiple institution-wide strategic, DEI, curricular, and faculty and leadership investments, such as the COACHE Faculty Engagement initiative, the Anti-Racism and Inclusive Excellence (ARIE) initiative, Mason’s award-winning Students as Scholars program, the Leadership Legacy Program, and the Learning Environments Group (LEG).

Kim earned her M.A. and Ph.D. in Community Psychology from Michigan State University and her undergraduate degree in Psychology from Indiana University at Bloomington.

Cody Edwards currently serves as the Interim Dean for the College of Science, previously serving as the Associate Provost for a Sustainable Earth at George Mason University. Prior to this appointment, Dr. Edwards served as the Associate Provost for Graduate Education, and previously as founding director of the College of Science’s STEM Accelerator Program. Dr. Edwards is also an Associate Professor in the Department of Environmental Science and Policy. Prior to coming to Mason, he was an Assistant Professor and Curator of Mammals at Stephen F. Austin State University.

Since arriving at George Mason University in the fall of 2004, Dr. Edwards has taught 8 different undergraduate and graduate courses and has served on numerous departmental, college, and university committees including the Student Value and Affordability Visioning Group. He also served on the Faculty Senate (2011-13). Outside of Mason, he has served on 7 international/national professional society committees and served as the Associate Editor for The Southwestern Naturalist, a nationally distributed journal published by the Southwestern Association of Naturalists (SWAN). In addition, Dr. Edwards has served as advisor or committee member for 32 graduate (Ph.D. and M.S.) and 13 undergraduate students.

Dr. Edwards’ research philosophy encompasses the full multiplicity of conservation and evolutionary biology. For example, his research activities have ranged from impacts of military training on small and medium sized mammal communities, the ecological and conservation impacts of introduced rodents on endemic Galápagos Islands rodents, to population and conservation genetics of leaf litter frogs (Costa Rica and Panama), swans (Alaska and Virginia), rodents (Canada, Central and South America, Mexico, United States), black rhinoceros (South Africa; collaboration with Dr. Elizabeth Freeman, New Century College), and black howler monkeys (Belize; collaboration with Dr. Sylvia Vitazkova, New Century College). Recent research efforts have focused on development and assessment of innovative pedagogical strategies. His research program provides high school, undergraduate, and graduate students the opportunity to gain knowledge and engage in research in a multidisciplinary environment that fosters independent thought and encourages the formation of their own research projects and/or the progression of an existing one. His scholarly contributions are illustrated by numerous publications, conference and invited presentations, and research funding in excess of $1.6 million dollars.

Dr. Edwards received a B.S. and M.S. in Biology from Angelo State University and a Ph.D. in Zoology from Texas Tech University. He is committed to student success, training, and excellence, and in educating the next generation of global citizens/leaders.

Anne Gentry is University Counsel at George Mason and a senior assistant attorney general. Ms. Gentry began her service at Mason as an assistant attorney general/associate university counsel in September 2006 and was appointed Interim University Counsel in January 2022. In that role she serves as the Office of University’s Counsel primary liaison with the University President, senior staff, and members of the Board of Visitors on a variety of legal issues. Her work also includes matters related to contracts, procurement, real estate, employment and legislative and regulatory review. Prior to her service at Mason, she was in private practice.  A life-long Virginian, Ms. Gentry holds a Bachelor of Arts in Government from the College of William & Mary and a Juris Doctor from George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School.

Dr. Ingrid Guerra-López is Dean of the College of Education and Human Development, and Professor of Learning Design and Technology.  Dr. Guerra-López is an internationally recognized expert in human performance systems with a focus on needs assessment and planning, monitoring and evaluation, and the strategic alignment of talent development and performance improvement innovations.  Her work is characterized by a systems approach, multistakeholder engagement, and cross-collaboration.

She has generated nearly 100 publications, including 8 books, and over $13 million in external funding from agencies such as the National Science Foundation (NSF), The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), the Skillman Foundation, General Motors, and Daimler-Chrysler among other agencies.  She has served in various interdisciplinary leadership teams to launch innovative programs including Transformative Research in Urban Sustainability Training (T-RUST), an NSF funded transdisciplinary graduate training program designed to prepare students to solve complex societal problems in urban settings.  She is also a member of the leadership team of the Center for Leadership in Environmental Awareness and Research (CLEAR), a NIEHS funded research center that supports collaborations across multiple investigators, disciplines, colleges, institutions and community partners to understand and mitigate serious environmental health problems and disparities. As Co-PI, Dr. Guerra-López leads the Research Experience and Training Coordination Core to support the center in cultivating a diverse cohort of leaders through a systems approach to the recruitment and preparation of graduate students to become transdisciplinary, team-scientists that integrate multiple disciplinary perspectives, stakeholders, and experiential learning opportunities.

Dr. Guerra-Lopez has extensive experience collaborating with stakeholders across a variety of international development institutions, sectors, disciplines, and cultures on the planning, development, implementation, and evaluation of human, institutional, and international training and talent development programs. She has led major educational and institutional effectiveness initiatives that include strategic planning efforts, educational and workforce needs assessments, program planning and implementation, and development of monitoring, evaluation, and learning (MEL) systems in partnership with international development agencies such as the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the World Bank, The United Kingdom Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (formerly DFID), and in coordination with government, education, and industry. In this capacity, she led and mentored diverse groups of students, work teams, and institutional leaders in over 40 countries.

In addition to prior academic leadership positions as Interim Dean of the College of Education, and Interim Dean of the Graduate School at Wayne State University, she has held key leadership positions in prominent professional organizations in the field, including the International Society for Performance Improvement (ISPI) Board of Directors and Editor-In-Chief of its research journal, Performance Improvement Quarterly. In 2017, Dr. Guerra-López was awarded the ISPI Distinguished Service Award, one of ISPI’s most significant honors in recognition for her many contributions to ISPI and the field.

Dr. Guerra-López earned her Ph.D. and Masters in Instructional and Performance Systems from the Florida State University (FSU). She has been recognized by FSU's Instructional Systems and Learning Technologies program, the top-ranked program in the field, for her scholarly contributions and received the distinguished Gagne/Briggs Outstanding Alumnus award in 2014.

For more on College of Education and Human Development, go here.

Renate Guilford is Vice Provost of Provost Office Administration at George Mason University. She plays a major role in the overall performance of the Office of the Provost, leading the financial and personnel management support structure for academic and administrative units. She has extensive expertise in all aspects of the academic operation and drives critical analysis and planning for several of the university’s strategic initiatives.

A 27-year veteran of Mason, Ms. Guilford has extensive experience leading organizational change, planning for growth, personnel management and resource allocation. Her most recent work focuses on supporting the development of new academic programs, restructuring of administrative functions within key enrollment services operations, creating international branch campuses and building international partnerships. Ms. Guilford leads and supports new academic enterprises, research administration, and multiple other efforts within and across Mason’s schools and colleges and central support units

Ms. Guilford earned two degrees from George Mason University: an undergraduate and a master’s degree in Public Administration.

Sharon L. Heinle is the Vice President of Finance for George Mason University.  Reporting to the Executive Vice President for Finance and Administration, Ms. Heinle leads the Fiscal Services division including treasury, purchasing, accounts payable, fiscal training, financial reporting and analysis, accounting, and student fiscal services.  The division also manages projects to support the university’s strategic priorities, primarily in the areas of automation and streamlining administrative processes while maintaining strong internal controls over financial data and assets.  Ms. Heinle joined GMU in January 2020 is the Associate Vice President & Controller.  Prior to joining GMU, she spent 12 years in progressive roles at the George Washington University in Washington, DC.

Prior to joining the higher education industry in 2007, Ms. Heinle worked for a national NFP entity and also spent time as an auditor with Coopers & Lybrand (now PwC). Ms. Heinle is a CPA licensed in DC, holds a BSBA degree with a concentration in Accounting from Georgetown University, and holds the CGMA designation from the AICPA.  Ms. Heinle served on and is past-chair of NACUBO’s Accounting Principles Council and represented the higher education industry on the AICPA's Not For Profit Expert Panel.  She was awarded NACUBO’s 2021 Daniel D. Robinson Accounting Award in recognition of leadership and continuous commitment to the advancement of college and university accounting and reporting.

André Kinney is George Mason University’s Director of Real Estate. In this capacity, he leads efforts to align the University’s real estate assets with mission and strategic intent and participates in the collective efforts associated with the University’s Master Plan work. In addition, he drives real estate operational activities both on and off campus.  

André joins the University with more than 30 years of real estate experience including strategy, development, transactions and management. He previously served as COO and Director of Asset Management for Real Estate Capital Partners, a firm specializing in serving offshore institutional clients investing in US real estate.  As COO, he was responsible for driving corporate and investment strategy and operations.  In his asset management role, he led the team responsible for all facets of strategy and oversight of a nationwide $7 billion US real estate portfolio.

André has been a professor in the GMU MRED program, as well as guest real estate lecturer at Georgetown University and the University of Wisconsin.  He holds a BS in Finance and an Executive MBA from George Mason University. 

Teresa Klock-Taube is Associate Vice President of Finance and Controller for George Mason University, a role she assumed in May 2023.  Ms. Taube leads the Controller’s office, which is responsible for financial reporting and analysis, accounting, student fiscal services, and payroll.  Her team manages projects to support the university’s strategic priorities, primarily automation and streamlining administrative processes while maintaining strong internal controls over financial data and assets. She has served in higher education since 2009, including for 12 years at the George Washington University. Prior to this she held roles of increasing responsibility at Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and MCI Telecommunications, among others.

Ms. Taube is a CPA licensed in Maryland, holds a BS degree with a concentration in Accounting from the University of Maryland, College Park and earned an MS degree with a concentration in Information and Telecommunications Systems from Johns Hopkins University.

Janette Kenner Muir is the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs at George Mason University. Prior to this position, she served for five years as the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education. Currently her primary responsibilities include: overseeing the Registrar’s Office, the Office of Accreditation and Program Integrity, and Robison Professors. She manages external relations with the Northern Virginia Community College system and the State Council for Higher Education, and she serves as the chief academic liaison to Mason Korea.

Dr. Muir’s academic life focuses in the areas of political communication, civic engagement and the study of the presidency (from campaigns to spouses). For the last few presidential elections she has taken a class to New Hampshire to observe, first hand, the primary process in action. Working with University Life, she has helped lead efforts engaging students in political participation on campus. She is an editor of the volume Readings in Political Communication, and was featured in a Harvard International Review symposium, writing about media, politics and citizen participation. She edited a volume honoring the life of Jane Blankenship, a leading rhetorical critic of the 20th century, published in the political communication series of Lexington Books. Her recent work focuses on Hillary Clinton in A Companion to First Ladies, published by Wiley Blackwell.

Committed to teaching excellence, Dr. Muir has been nationally recognized for the quality of her teaching, winning the Donald Eckroyd and Caroline Drummond Eckroyd Distinguished Teaching Award, and the George Mason University Teaching Excellence Award. She was named a Teaching Fellow for the Eastern Communication Association, and awarded a C-SPAN Fellow for her educational involvement with the cable network. She has been named a Centennial Scholar in the Communication discipline. She is past president of the Eastern Communication Association, and past editor of Communication Quarterly, a top-tier journal in the Communication discipline. Dr. Muir served on Mason’s Faculty Senate for five years in the position of Academic Policies Chair, and she served as an elected faculty representative to the Board of Visitors for four years.

Dr. Muir’s Ph.D. is from the University of Massachusetts in the area of rhetoric and political communication. She also has degrees from Wake Forest University (MA, Communication) and Palm Beach Atlantic University (BS, Double major in Behavioral Science and Communication Arts). Her husband, Star Muir, is an associate professor at Mason in the Communication Department. 

Anne Osterman is currently serving as Interim Dean of Libraries and University Librarian.  Anne joined Mason in 2012 as Associate Director of VIVA and served as VIVA Director since 2015 through her current interim appointment.  As Virginia’s academic library consortium, VIVA builds an equitable, accessible, and robust infrastructure of library resources and services for Virginia higher education students and faculty.  Together, VIVA’s 71 member institutions seek to create permanent, lasting benefit for the Commonwealth by building sustainable infrastructure for library cooperation; amplifying the Virginia academic library voice; and serving as a catalyst for improved and innovative library services and technologies.

Prior to joining Mason, Anne worked in a variety of roles at the libraries of American University, the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, and Western Piedmont Community College, including Director of Information Delivery Services and Research Data Librarian.  Anne received her Master’s Degree in Statistics at American University, Master’s Degree in Library Science at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and Bachelor’s Degree at Florida State University.  Her scholarship focuses on collaborative collection development and the resource management workflows and systems that support this work.

Whitney Owen, PMP is the Executive Director of University Business Consulting, an internal team of trusted advisors focused on innovation, turning data into insights, and improving operational efficiencies, all in pursuit of the university’s strategic goals. She is currently overseeing the implementation of Mason’s FY23-FY27 Strategic Plan in addition to facilitating other university-wide initiatives. Ms. Owen was the lead project manager for Mason’s Safe Return to Campus effort during the COVID-19 crisis, ensuring that critical voices across Mason came together to plan for public health and operational needs on tight timelines. Prior to joining George Mason, Ms. Owen was the Director of the Health & Human Services Market at LMI, where she led a $40M annual portfolio and a 150-person team supporting healthcare clients across the federal government. She holds a Master of Public Administration from The George Washington University and a B.S. in International Affairs with a Minor in Public Policy from Georgia Tech. Ms. Owen is a certified Project Management Professional (PMP) and ScrumMaster, and she is certified in Leadership Coaching for Organizational Well-Being through George Mason University. In her free time, she enjoys watching her boys play baseball, volunteering with local organizations, and playing with her family’s black lab, Peyton. 

Alpaslan Özerdem is the Dean of the Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution and professor of peace and conflict studies. Prior to his appointment as Dean in August 2019, Dr Özerdem was Associate Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research at Coventry University in the UK.

As the co-founder and co-director of the Coventry University’s Centre for Trust, Peace and Social Relations, which is the largest peace studies centre in the UK, Dr Özerdem specializes in conflict resolution, peacebuilding and post-conflict reconstruction. With over 20 year field research experience in Afghanistan, Bosnia-Herzegovina, El Salvador, Kosovo, Lebanon, Liberia, Nigeria, Philippines, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Tajikistan and Turkey, Dr Özerdem has undertaken numerous research projects that were funded by the UK’s Economic & Social Research Council (ESRC) (faith-based conflict prevention); British Academy (youth and peacebuilding); US Institute of Peace (reintegration of ex-combatants); and various European Union funding schemes (conflict transformation and leadership).

Dr Özerdem has published extensively (14 books and numerous journal articles, book chapters and op-eds) and amongst others, is author of Post-war Recovery: Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (2008); co-author of Managing Emergencies and Crises (2011); co-editor of Child Soldiers: From Recruitment to Reintegration (2011); co-author of Peace in Turkey 2023: The Question of Human Security and Conflict Transformation (2013); co-editor of Human Security in Turkey (2013); co-author of Youth in Conflict and Peacebuilding: Mobilization, Reintegration and Reconciliation (2015); co-editor of Local Ownership in International Peacebuilding (2015); co-author of Peacebuilding: An Introduction (2015); co-editor of Conflict Transformation and the Palestinians: The Dynamics of Peace and Justice under Occupation (2016); co-editor of Routledge Handbook of Turkish Politics (2019), and co-editor of Comparing Peace Processes (2019).

Dr Özerdem has also taken an active role in the initiation and management of several advisory and applied research projects for a wide range of national and international organizations such as the United Nations and international NGOs. He also runs tailor-made and in-country professional training programs for a wide range of audiences from humanitarian aid practitioners to civil servants and policy makers. Dr Özerdem is a frequent speaker and workshop leader for events organized by the private sector, higher education institutions, international organizations and governmental authorities. He is a member of the Anna Lindh Foundation Scientific Committee, and received his Professor Extraordinary in Politics title by Stellenbosch University in 2017 and visiting professorship to the Jiangsu University and Coventry University in 2019.

Pam Patterson is Associate Vice President for University Life at George Mason University. Prior to coming to George Mason, Dr. Patterson served in student affairs leadership positions at Montana State University, the University of Wisconsin - LaCrosse, and the University of Georgia. She is a graduate of Georgetown University’s Leadership Coaching Program and is an executive leadership coach certified through the International Coaching Federation with the credential of Professional Certified Coach (PCC). Her interests include the science and application of well-being, leader development, and coaching. Dr. Patterson is also licensed and certified by the Institute of HeartMath as a Resilience Advantage Trainer.

At George Mason, she was a member of a team that created and implemented a leadership development curriculum for executive education and a separate program for faculty and staff. Dr. Patterson is a co-founder and co-chair of MasonLeads, the Leadership Legacy Program, and serves as co-director of the Advanced Coaching Program in Leadership & Well-Being and co-director of the Strengths Academy. Dr. Patterson received her undergraduate and graduate degrees from Eastern Illinois University and earned her doctorate in higher education from George Mason University.

Pascal Petter joined the Operations & Business Services leadership team as the Executive Director of Auxiliary Services and Operations in March 2021. In his role, Mr. Petter manages all outsourced dining contracts at Mason’s three Northern Virginia campuses, including lease agreements with national franchises. In addition, he oversees the Technology Services department, the Mason Card Office, and manages contracts for the bookstore, vending, and the pouring rights agreement for the university.

Mr. Petter provides oversight of a portfolio of management contracts valued at over $43M annually and is responsible for the vision and execution of strategic plans, manages capital renovations, and leads operations, finance, and service delivery initiatives.

A career higher education auxiliary services professional, Mr. Petter has led large university auxiliary services departments at various higher education institutions for the past 13 years, including Carnegie Mellon University, The University of Pittsburgh, Duquesne University, and brings more than 20 years of hospitality experience to George Mason.

Professional organizations and affiliations include the National Association of College Auxiliary Services (NACAS) and the National Association of College & University Food Services (NACUFS).

Mr. Petter holds two international bachelor’s degrees in hotel and hospitality management and a Master of Public Management degree from Carnegie Mellon University.

Lauren Posey is the Director of State Government Relations working in the Richmond office. Prior to joining George Mason University’s Government and Community Relations team as the Associate Director in 2022, Lauren was the Director of Advocacy for the American Chemical Society, leading the Society’s federal policy advocacy supporting Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) Education in K-12, acquiring research funding for higher education, investments in career and technical workforce programs, and a robust global scientific research enterprise.

Lauren served as the Chair of the Board of Directors for the STEM Education Coalition, representing over 600 business, academic and nonprofit partners working to advance federal and state STEM legislation. Lauren currently chairs the education program committee on the Board of Trustees of the Chesterfield Education Foundation, supporting student, teacher and school programming in Chesterfield County, Virginia.

Lauren is a seasoned education policy expert and is committed to working with state partners to support the University’s outstanding and groundbreaking programs, partnerships, and community.

Lauren holds a B.A. in Political Science from Virginia Tech.

Ken Randall is the Allison and Dorothy Rouse Dean and GMU Foundation Professor of Law at the Antonin Scalia Law School.  He joined the Scalia Law faculty, and began his deanship, in December 2020.

Dr. Randall started his legal career with the New York law firm Simpson Thacher & Bartlett. His academic career began in 1985 when he joined University of Alabama School of Law's faculty. Eight years later, he became dean of Alabama Law, a role he held for two decades. Dr. Randall’s tenure at Alabama was a period of significant transformation as he established the first online LLM delivered by an ABA-accredited law school and propelled Alabama’s U.S. News ranking from 96 to 21, then the greatest jump in the history of the U.S. News law school rankings. He was named as one of the last decade’s “Transformative Deans.”

Dr. Randall received a JD from Hofstra, where he was Editor-in-Chief of the Law Review and Outstanding Law Graduate; an LLM from Yale; and an LLM and JSD from Columbia. His original subject area was International Law; his research and writing has appeared in the Columbia, Texas, Minnesota, Washington University (St. Louis), Ohio State, and N.Y.U. International law reviews, and Duke University Press published his International Law book. Dr. Randall later moved into teaching business-related courses; mid-career he took executive education courses at Harvard Business School and the Columbia Business School. The Alabama law students voted Dr. Randall the Outstanding Professor in his second year of teaching, while BLSA twice chose Dr. Randall as its Professor of the Year. He has served the American Bar Association as an inspector for the re-accreditation of more than a dozen law schools throughout the nation. He chaired the ABA committee from which legal education’s distance education rules originated.

In addition to his academic accomplishments, Dr. Randall has also excelled as an entrepreneur. In 2013, he founded iLaw Distance Education, which became the market leader in distance education. In 2017, iLaw was acquired by BARBRI Holdings, through Leeds Capital (NY), and Randall continued to lead the company until he accepted the Scalia Law deanship. He has served on the boards of several non-profit organizations and privately held businesses. Dr. Randall maintains active bar licenses (NY and AL).  

Keith Renshaw is the Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education. Prior to beginning this role in August 2023, he served as department chair of psychology in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences from 2017–2023. Dr. Renshaw was an active member of George Mason’s Faculty Senate from 2013 to 2023, serving on the Executive Committee for many years and as Faculty Senate Chair from 2016-2019. In 2020, Dr. Renshaw led the formation and launch of the Military, Veterans, & Families Initiative at Mason, an ongoing effort to leverage the many strengths of Mason in service of the military and veteran community. 

As a professor of psychology, Dr. Renshaw specializes in anxiety, stress/trauma, and interpersonal relationships. With over 100 publications, 150 conference presentations, and $3 million in extramural funding, much of his work has focused on the experiences of service members/veterans and their families, with a recent shift in focus on scalable, culturally responsive, evidence-based mental health care.  

Dr. Renshaw has been recognized both at Mason and nationally for his teaching and mentorship, receiving Mason’s Teaching Excellence Award in 2015 and the American Psychological Association's Division of Military Psychology’s Distinguished Mentor Award in 2021. More recently, he was honored by Mason’s Alumni Association as the Faculty Member of the Year for 2023. 

Learn more about Dr. Keith Renshaw‘s research and publications by visiting his faculty profile.

Carl Rowan Jr. possesses a unique combination of legal and law enforcement experience that is particularly well suited for sophisticated law enforcement and security policy development and problem solving. He was presented the “2013 Golden Best Award for Safety and Security” by the Golden Triangle Business Improvement District in Washington, DC, which is comprised of Washington’s major business leaders. He is a subject matter expert on active shooter matters and lectures extensively on that, and other, emergency preparedness issues.

He began his law enforcement career as a Deputy US Marshal in Washington, DC, where he handled diverse matters such as fugitive investigations, witness and judicial protection. He later left the Marshal’s Service to attend the Georgetown University Law Center where he graduated in 1978 with a Juris Doctor degree and gained entry to the DC Bar Association.

He then joined the Federal Bureau of Investigation as a Special Agent in the metro Washington area where he specialized in violent crime investigations, undercover assignments, and SWAT operations. He later became a supervisor in the FBI Legal Counsel Division at FBI Headquarters and handled a wide range of civil claims against the agency and also provided investigatory legal support to agents in the field.

Upon leaving the FBI, Mr. Rowan entered the private practice of law specializing in administrative, regulatory, and legislative matters, as well as white collar crime counseling and internal investigations. He became a partner in a major national law firm, but also maintained a corporate security consulting firm with a former US Secret Service agent and a former member of the US intelligence service. The company focused on investigations, due diligence inquiries, and protection matters for corporations and government clients.

In 2000, he was named the Vice President for Global Security at a multi-billion dollar software company based in San Mateo, California with 130 offices in 34 counties. He managed a staff of 40, including investigators, an executive protection team, and a contract security element. His security department also worked closely with the Silicon Valley High Tech Crimes Task Force, the US Secret Service, and the FBI on cases involving theft of identity, corporate espionage, and Russian organized crime.

He returned to the Washington, DC area in 2002 as a Chief of Police to lead the law enforcement functions of a highly specialized rail and transportation company, created post 9/11, to support security agencies of the federal government on a global basis. The company’s security division was certified as a law enforcement agency by the Commonwealth of Virginia. 

Mark J. Rozell, the Dean of the Schar School of Policy and Government, is a renowned scholar of American government and politics. He is the author or co-author of thirteen books, and editor or co-editor of 23 books, and numerous journal articles and contributions to edited compendia on the presidency, religion and politics, media and politics, and interest groups in elections, among other topics. His latest books include the co-written volumes African American Statewide Candidates in the New South (2022), The South and the Transformation of US Politics (2018), both with Oxford University Press; The Unitary Executive Theory: A Danger to Constitutional Government (2020), and Executive Privilege (2020), both with University Press of Kansas
 
Dean Rozell has testified before Congress on several occasions on executive privilege issues and has lectured extensively in the U.S. and abroad. In recent years, he has lectured in Austria, China, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Great Britain, India, Italy, Japan, Poland, Sweden, Turkey, and Vietnam. He is a contributing columnist for the Washington Post Local Opinions. He is often asked to comment on his areas of expertise for the state, national, and international media.

Prior to joining the Mason faculty in 2004 as professor of public policy, he was Ordinary Professor and chair of the department of politics at The Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C. He earned both his PhD in American Government and Masters' of Public Administration from the University of Virginia and his BA in political science from Eisenhower College.

Solon Simmons is full professor and the director of The Narrative Transformation Lab (TNT Lab) at George Mason University’s Carter School for Peace and Conflict Resolution. A sociologist by training, he is the author many books and articles on narrative and storytelling in peace and politics, including Conflict Resolution after the Pandemic Building Peace, Pursuing Justice (2021), Root Narrative Theory and Conflict Resolution; Power, Justice and Values (2020),  and The Eclipse of Equality: Arguing America on Meet the Press (2013), and most recently, Narrating Peace: How to Tell a Conflict Story (2024) and The Handbook of Social and Political Conflict (coming 2025). At The Narrative Transformation Lab, Solon is leading efforts to develop cutting-edge narrative tools for use in practical applications in both adversarial struggles for justice and collaborative journeys toward peace. Solon served as interim dean for the Carter School in 2013, and Vice President for Global Strategy for George Mason from 2014-2017, and is current President of the Faculty Senate. He teaches classes on the craft of peace writing, conflict theory, narrative, media, discourse and conflict, human rights, quantitative and qualitative methodology, global conflict, and critical theory.

Jacquelyn Sims is the current Assistant Registrar for Operations for the Office of the University Registrar and the Chair of the Staff Senate. In her current role, she is an integral part of the Registrar’s Office enhancement of student services and cultivating comprehensive partnerships. As an assistant registrar, she serves as the steward of academic information where she implements her 20 plus years of business management, strategic development and administrative support.

As a member of the Staff Senate, she advocates for staff interest and promotes transformative leadership. Passionate about fostering an inclusive environment, she joined the Staff Senate in 2019 and later returned in 2023 to continue her commitment to advocating for staff needs and promoting transparent communication. Her diverse perspective, as a previous a public ally (Public Allies 01’), she brings a distinct view that “Everyone Leads”.

In addition to her work at George Mason, she remains an active member of the Southern Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (SACRAO) where she Chairs the Scholarship committee. She is also an engaged member of AACRAO, where she has previously collaborated with Congressional leaders as a Hill Day Advocate during AACRAO’s 2023 Congressional Hill Day.

Mr. Strike has more than 30 years of experience in project management, contracting, design, facilities operations and management. He has a proven record of achievement serving as a senior executive developing and leading high performing, highly complex organizations.  He has managed the full range of facilities engineering, project management, environmental, transportation, contracting, and public works services to include associated financial, acquisition, and real property management supporting port and airfield operations, research, education and training, administrative, industrial, and community support facilities.

Mr. Strike currently holds the position of Director of Project Management and Construction at George Mason University where he is responsible for developing, managing, and executing a capital and non-capital design and construction program in excess of $100 million.  He also held the position of Director of Facilities Management at George Mason University where he was responsible for energy management, infrastructure and records, facility condition and assessment programs, and for the maintenance of over 8.5 million square feet of buildings. Mr. Strike has been the Vice President for Facilities since January 2018.

Prior to joining Mason Mr. Strike was the Business Director for the Naval Facilities Engineering Command in Norfolk, VA where he was responsible for 13,000 employees and a business volume exceeding $12 billion annually.  In addition, he served as the Executive Director of the Navy Region Mid-Atlantic; Business Manager and Utilities Department Head at Navy Public Works Center, Norfolk, and the Deputy Public Works Officer at Naval Weapons Station, Yorktown. 

Mr. Strike holds several degrees including a Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering from Bucknell University, a Master of Engineering from Old Dominion University, and a Master of Business Administration from the College of William and Mary. He is also a Registered Professional Engineer in Virginia.

Mr. Strike lives in Fairfax, Virginia with his wife Estrella and they have two daughters.

Dr. Ajay Vinzé began his tenure as Dean for the Donald G. Costello College of Business at Mason on July 1^st, 2022.   

Dr. Vinzé came to George Mason from the University of Missouri where he was Dean of the Trulaske College of Business from January 2017.  Prior to his work at Mizzou, he was the Earl and Gladys Davis Distinguished Professor of Business in the Department of Information Systems at the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. In addition to a stellar research record, his 18-year career at Arizona State includes assignments as Associate Dean for International Programs, Associate Vice Provost for Graduate Education, Director of the Executive MBA Program and the Management Information Doctoral Program, as well as the Founding Director of the Technology Research Center. Before joining the faculty at Arizona State, he spent 10 years at Texas A & M University as both an Assistant and Associate Professor (with tenure).

During his time as dean at the Trulaske College of Business, he focused on situating the college among leading business schools nationally and internationally by significantly enhancing the research profile of the college and offering innovative programs that were market responsive and delivered both in traditional settings and in online or hybrid formats. Dr. Vinzé is credited with a number of forward-thinking innovations in the eLearning space and has innovated with experiential learning, micro-credentialing and stackable certificates. He raised over $30M in philanthropic giving during his time with the college.

Dr. Vinzé is a Fulbright Senior Specialist and a global citizen, having lived, worked, or traveled through more than 70 countries over the past three decades. 

Dr. Vinzé maintains an active research agenda, and his work ranges from artificial intelligence (AI) applications for business problem solving and collaborative computing to emergency preparedness and response and disruptive influences of ICT investments. His research is widely recognized for technology innovation and organizational relevance conducted in active collaboration with public and private sector organizations, including the Arizona Government IT Agency, Arizona Department of Health Services, U.S. Army ISEC, Avnet, CHW, Cisco, IBM and Intel.

Dr. Vinzé’s publications have appeared in leading scholarly journals including Information Systems Research, MIS Quarterly, Decision Sciences, Decision Support Systems, Health Affairs and various IEEE and ACM Transactions. His research contributions were recognized at Arizona State University with a Faculty Excellence Award for contributions over a 10-year period.

Tobi Walsh is the University’s Assistant Vice President of Capital Strategy and Planning. Before joining Mason in July 2020, Ms. Walsh served as Principal Educational Facility Planner at the University of California, Irvine, where she implemented planning process improvements for the department and managed strategic priority projects for the university.

Ms. Walsh spent the first decade of her career practicing as a licensed Civil Engineer in the fields of geotechnical and environmental engineering. She led projects including environmental site assessments, geotechnical soils investigations, leaking underground storage tank site remediation, Superfund/RCRA site hazardous waste remediation, and design and monitoring of impoundments for mining, landfill, and industrial waste. Ms. Walsh is an expert database programmer, who applied technology solutions to streamline and automate data collection and analyses as part of her civil and environmental engineering work. She leveraged this data-driven approach in private practice for nearly two decades consulting in the fields of civil engineering, construction, real estate development, and process improvement, which included the development of custom technology solutions relating to construction project management, job costing, accounting, customer management, and inventory control. 

Ms. Walsh holds a Master of Science in Construction Management & Business Administration from Arizona State University. Her Bachelor of Science Civil Engineering was also from Arizona State University, where she graduated Summa Cum Laude and was honored as the Outstanding Graduate in Civil Engineering.

Dr. Banville earned her Ph.D. at Université Laval, Canada in 1998 and has been employed at George Mason since 1999. She is the Director of the Division of Health and Human Performance which includes four undergraduate academic programs (Athletic Training, Kinesiology, Therapeutic Recreation, and Health and Physical Education Teaching Licensure Program) and two graduate programs (Exercise, Fitness, and Health Promotion and Athletic Training). She is also the Academic Program Coordinator for the Health and Physical Education Licensure Program.

Since July 2016, Dr. Banville serves as the Faculty Athletic Representative for George Mason University. In that role she evaluates and ensures the academic integrity of the intercollegiate athletics program, facilitates institutional control of athletics, and works at enhancing the student-athlete experience.

Dr. Banville's research interests focus on the curriculum and instruction of physical education in the schools, and the preparation, induction, and professional development of physical education teachers. She has investigated the impact of a teacher induction program on teacher success and retention in the profession, and is currently looking at the training of cooperating teachers, and the impact of the implementation of an after-school curriculum on low socio-economic kids. She is a member of many professional associations (SHAPE America, AERA, AIESEP, VAHPERD) and a fellow of the Research Consortium of the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD - now SHAPE America).

For more information about the George Mason University Athletic Council, go here.