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George Mason University
From SourceWatch
George Mason University is a Virginia-based University, situated close to Washington, D.C. It is notable for hosting over 40 libertarian research centers and affiliates including the Institute for Humane Studies and the Mercatus Center.
It has three geographically disparate campuses, at Arlington, Fairfax, and Prince William.
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History
The university began as the Northern Virginia branch of the University of Virginia in 1957. In 1972 it had grown to the point where it officially separated from its parent institution.
It became a "magnet for right-wing money" [1] during the 1990s. From 1992 through 1994, 12 libertarian foundations invested a combined total of $8.55 million in various academic programs and institutes of George Mason University. It was this funding that help establish (and continues to support) the University's unrivalled set of libertarian "study centers", which aim to recruit and support young, free-market-oriented students - typically through paid-for "study trips", seminars, and placements.
The Mercatus Center is currently the main focus of right-wing and libertarian funding. Between 1999 and 2001, the Mercatus Center was the third largest recipient of conservative foundation money (a position previously held by the Institue of Humane Studies). [2]
Study Centers
The most influential of the study centers are:
- Institute for Humane Studies
- Mercatus Center
- Center for Market Processes
- Center for the Study of Public Choice
- Law and Economics Program and Center
Executive Council
(as of April 2004)
- Alan Merten, President
- Thomas Hennessey, Chief of Staff
- Maurice Scherrens, Senior Vice President
- Peter Stearns, Provost
- Helen Ackerman, Vice President for University Relations
- Randall Edwards, Executive Vice President
- Joy Hughes, Vice President for Information Technology
- Earl Ingram, Vice President/University Equity Officer
- Judith Jobbitt, President, GMU Foundation, Vice President for University Development and Alumni Affairs
- Karen Rosenblum, Vice President for University Life
Board of Visitors
("Without limiting the generality of its powers, the Board of Visitors exercises its authority principally in policy-making and oversight.")
- Edwin Meese III, Rector
- Sidney O. Dewberry, Vice Rector
- Dorothy Gray, Secretary
- David Anderson
- Mel Chaskin
- Edwin J. Feulner, Jr.
- Richard Fink
- Denny Garcia
- William P. Johnson, II
- Teresa Klaassen
- Byron F. Marchant
- Long Nguyen
- Leonard M. Pomata
- Gary Shapiro
- Sudhakar Shenoy
- John Knox Singleton
Notable Academics
- David Armor, Professor of Public Policy
- David E. Bernstein, Professor of Law
- James M. Buchanan, University Professor Emeritus of Economics
- Timothy J. Conlan, Professor of Government and Politics
- Rick Davis, Artistic Director, Theater of the First Amendment
- Thomas Dietz, Professor of Sociology
- Stephen Fuller, Professor of Public Policy
- Hassan Gomaa, Professor of Public Policy
- Kingsley E. Haynes, Dean of School of Public Policy
- Jagadish 'J' Shukla, Professor of Climate Dynamics
- Vernon L. Smith, Professor of Law and Economics
- Walter E. Williams, John M. Olin Distinguished Professor of Economics
- Leonard Liggio, Professor of Law
Contact information
4400 University Drive,
Fairfax, Virginia 22030-4444
Phone: (703) 993-1000
Web: http://www.gmu.edu/
External links
- George Mason University and George Mason University Foundation, Inc., Media Transparency, undated, accessed April 2004.
- Clean Air Trust, "Trust names Wendy Lee Gramm the Clean Air 'Villain' of the month", January 10, 2002.
