Students

Captain Naquan Staton applied to the prestigious Marine Corps Congressional Fellowship to learn how to do financial management better for the Marines. Read his story and what he hopes to discover about how Congress decides to spend money.

BSN Co-Enrollment Program student Frankie Farmakis’s military service and appreciation for diverse health systems informs his pathway to nursing

For Marine Corps Captain Desiree A. Peterson, studying at the Schar School as a Marine Congressional Fellow “offers a unique chance to see the legislative process from the inside, which I believe is essential for enhancing our effectiveness as a force.” See her story.

It was an epiphany of sorts, in the most unlikely time and place, but it changed the course of George Mason University veteran Abidail “Abi” Estrada’s life—and the many lives he’s touched since.

Why would a Marine Corps major come to the Schar School to earn a Master of Public Policy degree? For Major Anthony Matacotta, he believes it will make him “a better-informed citizen, able to effectively participate in government.”

Paul Deller and Michael Harris are part of a cohort of 11 Marine Corps officers attending Mason through the Congressional Fellowship Program, which gives Marines opportunities for professional development that include working on Capitol Hill for one year and enrollment in Mason’s graduate public policy program.

Mason doctoral students LeNaya Crandall Hezel and Lt. Col. Michelle Ruehl are part of the 2021 class of Tillman Scholars, named in honor of Pat Tillman, the former NFL star who was killed in Afghanistan in 2004 while serving with the U.S. Army Rangers.

A strong sense of duty is what led Michael Manges to George Mason University, and the Veterans of Foreign Wars’ Sport Clips Help A Hero Scholarship is helping him realize his dream.