The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors went on record yesterday (Tuesday) supporting George Mason University President Gregory Washington as “a critical partner” of the county government and local residents.
The action, taken at the request of Board of Supervisors Chairman Jeff McKay, came amid scrutiny of Washington and the university he heads by the Trump administration.
“It is far past time that our Board show its strong support,” McKay said. “I was saddened to see some of the criticism.”
The vote was 9-0. Springfield District Supervisor Pat Herrity, the body’s lone Republican, was away from the dais and did not vote.
As part of an ongoing campaign to realign higher education with policies favored by conservatives, the Trump administration began investigating GMU in July, allegedly for its handling of antisemitism complaints and consideration of race in employment and admissions practices.
Last Friday (Aug. 22), the U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Civil Rights announced its conclusion that Mason’s efforts to increase the diversity of its workforce are in violation of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which prohibits discrimination based on race in public education. The university was given 10 days to respond to the allegations.
A lawyer for Washington disputed the Education Department’s findings, calling the investigation “absurd” and incomplete in a letter to Mason’s Board of Visitors, according to media reports. Agreeing to the federal government’s conditions, including a personal apology from Washington, “would be falsely admitting to conduct that did not occur and would open GMU to further legal risk,” Douglas Gansler wrote.
In the letter approved by Fairfax County’s supervisors, McKay doesn’t directly mention the federal investigations, but he stresses Mason’s importance to Fairfax County and Virginia’s economy, and support for its “core values of equity and inclusion.”
“These principles are essential to building a strong, diverse, and resilient community. Mason’s efforts to expand access to education and opportunity reflect the same priorities we hold in Fairfax County,” McKay wrote, calling Washington a “key contributor to Mason’s success.”
Braddock District Supervisor James Walkinshaw also spoke out in support of Washington, focusing on what he termed a “significant improvement” in university-community relations over the past five years.
“He is active and engaged and serious about getting our community’s input,” Walkinshaw said.
Now, the letter will be sent to Mason’s Board of Visitors, which recently approved a 1.5% salary increase to $823,452 annually for Washington.
The Aug. 1 vote authorizing the state-approved pay raise came as a relief to faculty, students and community members who feared the university’s governing body might remove Washington after similar attacks on the University of Virginia led then-president Jim Ryan to resign in June.
Hired in July 2020, Washington is the eight president in Mason’s 53-year history. In the spring, he presided over its largest-ever graduating class with more than 10,000 students, and last week, the university welcomed a record number of new students for the fall.
In addition to navigating the federal investigations, the GMU board is facing an uncertain future for four potential visitors — one-fourth of its total voting membership.
The four were appointed by Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), but their confirmations were rejected by a state Senate committee. A state judge has, for the moment, blocked the four appointees from serving as a lawsuit filed by Senate Democrats continues.
Screenshot via GMU
