College of Public Health News

Thomas Wilson is a second-year PhD student in the College of Public Health at George Mason University, where he specializes in Social and Behavioral Sciences. His academic work is driven by a commitment to understanding and improving the experiences of caregivers, particularly those facing structural and social inequities.

In Fall 2025, Thomas earned first place in the university’s Research Poster Competition, presenting a project that examined how caregiver identity status interacts with adverse mental health outcomes. His research focused on depression and extended periods (14 or more days) of poor mental health, using self-reported data to explore how sexual orientation and gender identity may act as modifying factors.

Professor in the College of Public Health Amira Roess guided individuals and organizations throughout the pandemic and reflects on what the end of the emergency status means for the health care system. 

Samantha Kanselaar and Julia Mandeville are among the first group of recipients of grants for a new initiative sponsored by George Mason University’s Office of the Provost. The program offers mentoring support and funding for graduate students’ project ideas that advance the university’s values of access and inclusion.  

Researchers led by Professors Farrokh Alemi and Janusz Wojtusiak found that computerized symptom screenings can supplement at-home COVID-19 tests to better confirm the diagnosis for patients and clinicians.

Professor of Nursing Rebecca Sutter, along with faculty and students across colleges, will lead the creation of an interprofessional Learning Laboratory for Community Health.   

The Mason Public Health Mentor Program pilot aims to support graduating Global and Community Health (GCH) graduate students by pairing them with GCH alumni mentors, who provide professional guidance and career advice in the public health field.

The Department of Social Work’s online Master of Social Work program was included in Forbes’ list of the Best Online MSW Programs of 2022.

A new study by Assistant Professor of Nutrition and Food Studies Raedeh Basiri shows that nutritional interventions play a pivotal role in treatment and healing.

Faculty in the College of Health and Human Services share insight on the public health implications of the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 23, 2022, decision overturning Roe v. Wade, the 1973 landmark decision protecting a woman's liberty to choose to have an abortion.  

Dr. Amira Roess shares some background on the disease, how globalization contributes to its spread, and the important role of public health in its containment and prevention.