Tracy Mason

A new research collaboration between George Mason University and Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) aims to improve understanding of peripheral neuropathy, a painful and often life-altering side effect experienced by breast cancer survivors involving damage to the nerves that can interrupt daily function. 

Through a growing series of professional development opportunities, George Mason’s Quantum Science and Engineering Center (QSEC) is partnering with K-12 educators to make quantum science approachable, relevant, and practical for students.

From its Fairfax Campus in Virginia, to Washington, D.C., to the 2026 Quantum World Congress in College Park, Maryland, George Mason University spent the week demonstrating how universities can help turn the promise of quantum technology into research, workforce opportunities, infrastructure, partnerships, and economic impact.

In June, more than 225 educators, higher education partners, industry experts, and students gathered at George Mason University’s Science and Technology Campus in Manassas for the fifth annual Virginia Data Science Teacher Professional Learning Institute. The 2026 theme, “Data Science, Computational Thinking, and Modeling in the Age of AI,” reflected growing demand for data literacy and analytical thinking across industries.

In partnership with Children’s National Hospital, George Mason University scientists have discovered a new way to detect early signs of kidney damage in childhood patients with Sickle Cell Disease. Atwo-year $200,000 grant from the Commonwealth Health Research Board will support this work.

George Mason’s Virginia Climate Center (VCC) has unveiled the commonwealth’s first comprehensive, peer-reviewed climate assessment—a landmark report that provides science-based insights into Virginia’s changing climate and its impacts on communities, infrastructure, and the economy.

Four George Mason University faculty members have been elected to the Virginia Academy of Science, Engineering, and Medicine (VASEM) and were recognized at the 2025 VASEM’s annual summit held at the Virginia Tech Institute for Advanced Computing in Alexandria, Virginia.

Before his appointment as the dean of the College of Science, Cody W. Edwards served as interim dean for the college since July 2024. During his time at George Mason, Edwards has held numerous leadership positions, including executive director of the Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation and senior associate dean of academic and faculty affairs in the College of Science.

Commonwealth, public school and higher education leaders joined community members, parents and students Wednesday for the opening of the Shenandoah Valley Rural Regional College Partnership Laboratory School for Data Science, Computing, and Applications (DSCA Lab School).

The ASPIRE ONE Lunar Record lands on the Moon’s Mare Crisium, as part of the Ghost Riders in the Sky Lunar mission, to establish a new theoretical framework for planetary-scale archival communication.