LETTER FROM OUR VICE PRESIDENT, ROSE PASCARELL
Supporting Students at every stage
Friends of University Life,
University Life is dedicated to supporting students at every stage of their George Mason journey. From building community and promoting well-being to opening doors for career readiness, we ensure students have the resources and opportunities they need to thrive.
Philanthropy plays a critical role in this work, especially as we support students in times of change. In this issue of Succeed, we celebrate the programs and opportunities that make a real difference in students’ lives, as well as the donors whose generosity makes them possible. Every gift strengthens student success and prepares students for lifelong learning and leadership.
Throughout this issue, you’ll see the impact of philanthropy across University Life.
• Adaptive Sports: On page 12, discover Beep baseball, a groundbreaking initiative led by University Life’s Recreation and Disability Services units that is redefining access to sports for blind and visually impaired athletes.
• Transformational Giving: On page 8, we celebrate the extraordinary generosity of Kimmy Duong, whose gift to University Life established a scholarship endowment. Her story—marked by perseverance, generosity, and an unwavering belief in the power of education—is truly inspirational.
• Career Readiness: On page 5, learn how University Career Services’ Scholarship for Unpaid Internships helps students gain vital professional experiences that might otherwise be out of reach.
• Broad Impact: On page 28, our Giving at a Glance infographic highlights how donors are shaping every aspect of the student experience.
May these stories inspire you and remind us of the incredible impact we can have when we support students together.
With gratitude,
Rose Pascarell
Vice President for University Life
Fall 2025 Articles
Click the boxes below to read each featured article from SUCCEED magazine, Fall 2025 Edition.
View our featured student profiles
Eatha Lynch
Enterprise, Alabama
May 2025 Mason Graduate
Biology
New Patriot alum Eatha Lynch spent her senior year at George Mason University gaining valuable job experience through an unpaid internship scholarship from University Career Services. During her internship with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), she completed a project with the Branch of History, Library, and Partnerships under the direction of USFWS historian Mark Madison.
“The project entailed creating a comprehensive museum display for the Endangered Species Act’s 50th anniversary,” Lynch explained. Most of the work was virtual, but Lynch noted that although Madison mentored her throughout the placement, he left much of the planning and execution of materials up to her.
The work included “archival synthesis, writing, participating in oral histories, and independent research,” Lynch said. She created a timeline for the project and met periodically with Madison. She wrote the text and chose historical images for a pop-up museum display, an accompanying brochure, and a website with supporting information.
Lynch acknowledged that many entry-level jobs require unpaid experience, which can pose a significant economic barrier for applicants. “I would not have been able to accept this internship without the financial support from University Career Services,” she noted.
She is grateful for her George Mason education broadly and the internship scholarship specifically for the practical skills she will be able to apply to her career. “Completing the internship allowed me to strengthen and hone skills—project management, scientific communication, and synthesizing large amounts of information—which will be applicable in any future career,” Lynch said. While at George Mason, the peers, mentors, and potential employers with whom she has interacted have become a large professional network that, coupled with her practical experience, give her an advantage in today’s job market. “I am excited for the years of work ahead of me and thankful for the work I have had the opportunity to complete as an internship scholarship recipient.”
Latha Kona
Visakhapatnam, India
2024 Mason graduate
Master’s in Data Analytics Engineering
When Latha Kona accepted an internship through the On-Campus Internship Program (OCIP), led by University Career Services and funded by University Life, little did she know that it would lead directly to her professional career.
With a background in data analytics from her home country of India, Kona applied to be a finance data analyst intern in the office of Auxiliary Services and Operations. She worked 20 hours per week with the finance team while studying for her master’s degree in data analytics engineering.
OCIP creates paid, career-building internships for George Mason students who have barriers to off-campus work by partnering with campus offices to develop meaningful positions and offering ongoing support throughout the process. Kona hailed the program for “its structure, including mock interviews and feedback and evaluation processes at the end. That really helped me reflect on my performance and identify areas for improvement.”
Additionally, she explained that although she had a theoretical academic foundation in finance, she hadn’t been able to apply that knowledge to real-world problems. “The internship allowed me to explore new areas and understand how data analytics can be used to address practical challenges in finance.”
Kona also credits the Office of International Programs and Services (OIPS) in helping her secure the internship. “When I received the offer, I was confused as to whether I could accept it because of a restriction on my visa,” she recounted. “OIPS immediately helped me understand my eligibility and the process involved in accepting the position.”
The internship was so successful for Kona and Auxiliary Services and Operations that she was offered a full-time position as a finance data analyst upon her graduation. Kona highly recommends OCIP for current students. “They have a wide range of opportunities to cater to different academic backgrounds and career goals,” she affirmed. “They offer tailored support such as networking events and job search guidance, which helps students feel prepared and confident.”
Mackenzie (Mack) L. Freilich
Exeter, Rhode Island
May 2025
Scalia School of Law graduate
2025 Scalia Law School graduate Mack Freilich had many opportunities to learn and lead over the course of his student career. But it wasn’t until he worked as president of OutLaw to organize the 2024 Pride On the Plaza event in Mason Square that he really recognized his leadership capabilities.
“Putting on that event showed me the true meaning of resilience,” Freilich said. “When it seems like everything is against you but you keep going, organizing such a big undertaking really elevated that for me. Nothing I did would have been possible without the support of University Life’s LGBTQ+ Resources Center.”
OutLaw brings together the law school’s LGBTQ+ community and allies to engage in meaningful dialogue and activities that promote unity and understanding. Freilich conceived a big idea for the inaugural Pride On the Plaza. He wanted to gather all of the Washington, D.C., area’s LGBTQIA+ law-student organizations and the community at large to celebrate LGBT History Month in October through live entertainment, raffles, free community health and legal clinics, and much more. Proceeds from the massive event went toward furthering OutLaw’s work and mission.
“Josh Kinchen, the Center’s director, was a tremendous help in the initial thought process and pre-planning for what may have been the largest student-led event on the Mason Square Plaza,” Freilich said. “He showed me that I have a community, and that the Center is a support network, which was a good reminder that we’re all in this together.”
The event required many student volunteers, so Freilich reached out to law students from the entire Washington, D.C., area, not just George Mason. “For me it was that lightbulb of, ‘If we can do this here for this one event, what’s possible in the future when we work together across the courtroom or across the boardroom table?’ We need to be able to network, and my work with OutLaw and the LGBTQ+ Resources Center really taught me that valuable skill that I’ll always use.”
Nalani Kaysia
Washington, D.C.
May 2025 Mason graduate
Master’s in Nonprofit Management
As a women’s basketball forward, Nalani Kaysia has a big cheering section. But the smallest person in it is the most important: her one-year-old daughter Xéla.
The mother-student-athlete led George Mason’s women’s basketball team to the 2025 Atlantic-10 Championship and subsequent bid to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in program history. She was also named to the A-10 All-Championship Team.
Juggling all three roles was challenging at times, she admitted. “Being a mom can be difficult and tiring. Being an athlete can be difficult and tiring, and being a student can be difficult and tiring and combining all three? There definitely were some long days.”
But Kaysia is a problem solver. “Every morning, I wake up and there’s a list of things I have to do and I kind of get a joy out of figuring out how I’m going to get everything done and how that lines up with Xéla’s needs,” she explained.
She is quick to acknowledge the support she received from the George Mason community. “My professors were extremely supportive, even when I was pregnant and then later having to balance motherhood, basketball, and academics. They understood my situation and knew that I was trying to do the work to the best of my abilities.” She also gave a shout-out to her teammates, coaches, and the graduate assistants who watched Xéla during practice. “And really, the George Mason community as a whole.” Everyone she encountered on campus was genuinely happy to see her. “It really boosted my spirits when I needed it the most.”
Kaysia hopes to play professional basketball in Europe and after that, become a sports agent. She also plans to devote time to her “passion project,” establishing a nonprofit to lower the recidivism rates for former felons and help them integrate into society.
George Mason’s Contemporary Student Services unit supports students like Kaysia who have families, are working professionals, or have experiences such as being in the foster care system or the military.
Rachel Williams
Atlanta, Georgia
Expected Graduation / May 2028
Cultural Studies Doctoral program
For Rachel Williams, managing George Mason’s Patriot Pantry and working toward her cultural studies doctorate go hand-in-hand. “I was already passionate about food insecurity,” Williams said. “In my cultural studies program, we talk about possibilities for social change and ways to make the world a better place. Working at the Patriot Pantry helps me add to that theoretical lens and speak to specific challenges people are facing.”
Williams sees how Patriot Pantry gathers a community of people to support each other during times of economic hardship. The Patriot Pantry began in 2014 as one student’s pet project. Today Williams notes that it’s common to see more than 100 orders for bags of food and hygiene products each week. For some students, financial issues and food insecurity might mean the difference between dropping out or graduating.
“This role opened my eyes to the barriers people face when they’re just trying to get enough to eat,” Williams said. “The Pantry is a special space where people feel like they can get that connection to the broader student community.” Working with colleagues in University Life taught her lessons about empathy that she wasn’t expecting to learn from her graduate school experience. “The time supervising the undergraduate student staff is also something I treasure. It’s wonderful that we have ways to grow new leaders in fields like food security.”
She added, “When I arrived at the Pantry, I wasn’t really thinking of how I could affect the space beyond my time working in it. But it became clear that there was a lot of potential, and so the work became a challenge to grow a better and more responsive service.”
This fall, Williams moved on from her Pantry position to begin teaching with the School of Integrative Studies. She sees her work with Patriot Pantry as instrumental to her approach to teaching: “I know this experience will make me much more understanding of my students facing life challenges.”
VIEW OUR PAST EDITIONS OF SUCCEED MAGAZINE
Click on the cover to download and view previous editions of University Life’s Succeed magazine.
ISSUE NO. 4
ISSUE NO. 5