College of Engineering and Computing

George Mason’s summer camps introduce K-12 students to STEM fields and life on a college campus

Shayla Brown — Mon, 04 Aug 2025 19:49:58 +0000

George Mason’s summer camps introduce K-12 students to STEM fields and life on a college campus  Shayla Brown Mon, 08/04/2025 - 15:49

��’s science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) summer camps, programs, and workshops are dedicated to inspiring the next generation of scientists and researchers with STEM-focused curriculum and hands-on learning experiences. 

 The camps, offered to K-12 students, are run by George Mason faculty, staff, and students from the College of Engineering and Computing (CEC) and the College of Science (COS).  

In addition to hands-on experience and mentorship, attendees experience life on a college campus, preparing them to enter the higher education environment. 

 Aspiring Scientists 

The College of Science’s Aspiring Scientist Summer Internship Program (ASSIP) is one of the longest running summer STEM programs at George Mason. Nearly 400 students are participating in ASSIP this year both in person and remotely.

“ASSIP is an amazing eight-week program designed to give students more experience in the advanced labs. It runs every summer with different mentors from all over George Mason,” said Isela Gallagher, PhD Biosciences ’19, senior research scientist, Center for Applied Proteomics and Molecular Medicine (CAPMM) affiliate.  

Isela Gallagher (right) working with ASSIP students. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding.

Gallagher is an ASSIP faculty mentor working with local high school students Alex Simmonds and Yelyzaveta "Liza" Kalchenko.  

The rising seniors attended the Governor’s School at Innovation Park, which allows high school juniors and seniors to spend part of each school day experiencing life as George Mason students, where they heard about this opportunity to work alongside faculty mentors on a research topic of their choosing. 

“We're learning different lab techniques and working with laser capture microdissection, or LCM, and reverse phase protein arrays, or RPBA. We're doing this work to isolate cancer cells from breast tissue samples to better research them,” explained Simmonds, who attends Forest Park High School in Woodbridge, Virginia. 

Simmonds and Kalchenko are working out of the Advanced Biomedical Research Building at the Science and Technology �� (SciTech ��). The students will share their findings at the end of summer presentation for the program on August 7.  

FOCUS  

The FOCUS camp is a five-day residential camp geared toward helping middle and high school students better understand career options. It also utilizes alumni and community partners. 

FOCUS was started in 2014 with four cofounders, including mathematics professor Padmanabhan Seshaiyer, forensic science professor Kelly Knight, former biology professor Claudette Davis, and George Mason alumna Danielle Craddock, MA Integrative Studies ’11, founder of Girls Inspired and Ready to Lead Inc.  

This summer, FOCUS took place from July 14-18 with Craddock serving as the FOCUS program manager, while Knight serves as director of the program.  

FOCUS provides positive role models and experiences with STEM that will increase students’ confidence level in their knowledge, skills, and competencies in the respective fields. 

Each weekday of the camp focused on a different letter of STEM: Monday is science, Tuesday is tech, Wednesday is engineering, and Thursday is math, and on Friday, STEM professionals speak to the students through an interactive panel as well as do a poster presentation. 

ASSIP students working in the lab. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding.

“The students do all types of workshops from coding robotic arms to crime scene investigation, to building rollercoasters,” Knight said. “They also engage in team sessions where we focus on team and community building as well as reviewing content covered that day or content to be covered the next day.”  

“The high school students have an additional workshop before that focuses on college prep, confidence building, or specialized skills such as entrepreneurship,” she added. 

The camp builds students’ relationships with George Mason by prioritizing returning students in the registration process and as a result, the high school program is almost always sold out by alumni of the program within minutes, explained Kelly. The middle school program also has a significant number of alumni and also sells out within minutes.  

In addition to staying in the residence halls to get taste of campus life, camp participants learn more about the college experience from George Mason Admissions representatives and tour the campus. 

“This year we are also doing a workshop on college scholarships and introducing students to skills they will need to be successful in higher education,” said Knight. 

Space Exploration 

Camps such as the NASA-funded program Mason Space Exploration Center (MSEC) are spread across George Mason campuses and provide students with access to some of the university’s most notable facilities such as the Observatory. During its three years, the camp has expanded its offerings to meet demand.  

MSEC students. Photo provided.

“MSEC started as a summer camp but has now also expanded into many different outreach activities and family events, such as Space Day, that cater to fourth through ninth grade students,” said Rob Parks, COS assistant director of MSEC. 

 “We're hoping to be able to stay involved with these families as these kids age, so that hopefully we can encourage them to consider George Mason [when thinking about colleges],” said Parks. 

Rising high school seniors Gwen Chaves and Gabby Whitefield and Rob Parks are Observatory tour guides. Chavs led the advanced camp on the Science and Technology ��. Whitefield was the lead flight director, facilitating daily Astronomy and STEM-related lectures, activities, crafts, and demonstrations. 

“A lot of the kids in the advanced camp are asking me about my experience in George Mason STEM and what it's like to live on campus,” said Chaves. “They’re really curious about what kind of labs and facilities we have, which are cool questions to be able to answer. It’s exciting to teach them about what George Mason has to offer them later on in their academic careers.” 

Engineering Is a Growing Field

Camps on engineering and related topics are always popular at George Mason, and there are a variety of programs on all three of the university’s Northern Virginia campuses for students looking to be inspired. 

The CEC Office of Outreach, Student Success, and Engagement (OSSE) offers outreach activities that encourage creativity and nurture a passion for STEM from an early age. Outreach activities include the Fall STEAM Fest, the Spring into STEM Event, the STEM Summer Showcase, and the Engineering 4 Us All Program. 

George Mason’s Exploring Renewable Energy Engineering Summer Camp, held at Mason Square is sponsored by Amazon Web Services. This camp, led by CEC professor Liling Huang, offered high school students a range of interactive science and engineering activities, including building a model town powered entirely by clean renewable energy.  

Huang’s E2 Center for Energy Exploration will host an upcoming summer camp for high school students as well. 

MSEC students. Photo provided.

BioE-Buzz 

Carolyn Wilson, internship coordinator for the Bioengineering Department, worked with the department’s external advisory board, called the Alliance, to increase the pipeline of students coming into the department.  

Through this initiative, Wilson created BioE-Buzz, a CEC summer camp for rising high school juniors and seniors.  

“We have a number of campers who are interested in majoring in bioengineering based on what they learned and were exposed to during the camp, so that really encouraged us to expand our sessions this year from one to two weeks. We’ve also doubled the number of campers from our first year,” said Wilson. 

The camp takes place on the Fairfax and SciTech campuses. The camp’s counselors, coordinators, and volunteers are George Mason students. 

“This is our second year of BioE-Buzz, and we have the campus structured so that students spend their time getting to know what Mason has to offer. They have access to our Nanofabrication and EDGE facilities as well as the MIX,” said BioE Buzz camp director Khadija Zaidi-Rashid, PhD Bioengineering ’23. 

Students will give presentations on what they learned and experienced at George Mason’s summer camps with a STEM End of Summer Showcase in August. 

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Summer Camps

ASSIP

College of Engineering and Computing

College of Science

Bioengineering

Governor's School at Innovation Park

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Fulbright awards expand George Mason faculty and staff perspectives

Katarina Benson — Mon, 04 Aug 2025 14:50:52 +0000

Fulbright awards expand George Mason faculty and staff perspectives Katarina Benson Mon, 08/04/2025 - 10:50

Each year, academic professionals teach and conduct research abroad through the highly competitive Fulbright Scholar Program. �� has a rich history of sending and hosting faculty and staff through the program, which is funded by the U.S. Department of State. This year, Frank Krueger of the College of Science, Nathalia Peixoto of the College of Engineering and Computing, and Yali Pan of the Office of International Programs and Services, received Fulbright awards.

Krueger is working with Tamagawa University.

Krueger, who is a professor of systems social neuroscience, received a Fulbright Scholars award to conduct social neuroscience research in Japan. Based at Tamagawa University in Tokyo, he will also be working on a project about cross-cultural relations to explore people’s perception of trust between the United States and Japan using epigenetic research.

“The interdisciplinary and cross-cultural nature of this Fulbright experience perfectly complements my research philosophy and will significantly advance my work,” said Krueger, who has previously collaborated with Tamagawa University.

“The George Mason students participating in this research effort will develop a neurologically-based understanding of how individuals across cultures reflect the trust they do or don’t feel,” Krueger further explained.

Peixoto collaborated with Ugandan entrepreneurs. Photo provided

For Peixoto, spending a month in Uganda fulfilled a lifelong dream to go to Africa and has been incredibly rewarding. “I had never been to this continent, despite feeling like I belong here,” she said. “I am originally Brazilian, and I have always heard that Brazil has the largest population of people of African ancestry who live outside of Africa. Many Brazilians consider Africans our cousins, but I don’t know any Brazilians who have ever visited Africa. Now it is clear to me that I really needed to come.”

During her time in Africa, Peixoto, who holds a joint appointment in neuroscience with George Mason’s College of Science, has also connected with the Ugandan business community, consulting on critical health and community projects.

Pan in a Korean hanbok during the program. Photo provided

In Pan’s role as assistant director of engagement and assessment in the Office of International Programs and Services, she provides programs and initiatives to help international students adjust and feel connected to the Mason community. Pan was awarded an International Educator's Award to attend a two-week higher education administration seminar in South Korea.

“I saw this as a valuable opportunity to learn more about South Korea—a country that consistently ranks among the top five senders of international students to George Mason,” said Pan. “I also have a deep appreciation for Korean culture and cuisine, and I was eager to experience it firsthand.”

Pan said she was grateful for the opportunity to participate in the Fulbright International Education Administrator program and believes it was valuable to her work at George Mason. “Opportunities like this—designed specifically for higher education administrators to gain a systematic understanding of international education—are rare, and this experience was truly transformative.”

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College of Engineering and Computing mourns the passing of Mark Pullen

Martha Bushong — Tue, 15 Jul 2025 14:51:30 +0000

College of Engineering and Computing mourns the passing of Mark Pullen Martha Bushong Tue, 07/15/2025 - 10:51

In This Story

J. Mark Pullen

The College of Engineering and Computing community is deeply saddened by the passing of Professor J. Mark Pullen, Director Emeritus of ��’s C5I Center. Mark served as director of the C5I Center from 2005 until his retirement in 2020 and was also a beloved professor of computer science at ��. Under his leadership, Mark maintained the center's growth and recognition as a leading institution for national and global research in C5I. Mark was also recognized as a pioneer in distance education, personally developing open-source synchronous Internet software to deliver online MS degree programs in computer science long before online learning became ubiquitous. This work demonstrated his forward-thinking approach and commitment to making high-quality education accessible to the right students in the right place at the right time.

Mark’s contributions are highlighted by his strong academic expertise, practical engineering skills, and internationally recognized operational and strategic insights. He skillfully balanced developing the nation’s security future workforce, teaching leading-edge courses in computer networking and networked virtual environments with knowledge and strong mentorship, while simultaneously leading developmental solutions for complex defense and cybersecurity problems.

Mark Pullen. Photo by Ron Aira, Creative Services.

His direct contributions significantly enhanced the interoperability of command-and-control systems through leading-edge modeling and simulation, personally leading efforts such as the “Extensible Modeling and Simulation Framework” (XMSF) and the “Command and Control – Simulation Interoperation” (C2SIM) initiatives, which have significantly influenced NATO and SISO standards still used worldwide. After retiring from George Mason, Mark continued to “pay it forward” to the future of our nation’s security, as he was personally recruited to participate in advancing interoperability standards through his efforts working with NATO’s “Coalition Warrior Interoperability eXploration, eXperimentation, eXamination, eXercise” (CWIX) events.

Beyond his recognized technical expertise, Mark was a dedicated teacher, respected mentor, and valued colleague. His sustained commitment to problem-solving and supporting students and peers alike helped create the collaborative environment the C5I Center still benefits from today. Professor J. Mark Pullen, Director Emeritus, will be greatly missed, and his impact will continue through the focused efforts he started, the standards he helped develop, and the many people he guided throughout his career.

The tribute and obituary from Mark’s family are available here.

Instead of flowers, the family requests that memorial contributions be made to Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church at the address below, or shepherdstownpresbyterian.org, or to Coalfield development.org/community-based-revitalization-projects/

Service Information

Saturday, August 2, 2025, at 2:00 p.m.
Shepherdstown Presbyterian Church
100 W. Washington Street
Shepherdstown WV 25443

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College of Engineering and Computing

School of Computing

computer science

Computer Science faculty

Faculty and Staff News

School of Computing becomes Long Nguyen and Kimmy Duong School of Computing

Martha Bushong — Mon, 14 Jul 2025 13:31:04 +0000

School of Computing becomes Long Nguyen and Kimmy Duong School of Computing Martha Bushong Mon, 07/14/2025 - 09:31

As of July 15, 2025, the School of Computing in ��'s College of Engineering and Computing will officially be renamed the Long Nguyen and Kimmy Duong School of Computing. The school has been renamed to recognize the $20 million gift from the Kimmy Duong Foundation. The financial gift will provide scholarships to undergraduate students enrolled in degree programs offered in the school.

“We are so grateful to Long Nguyen and Kimmy Duong for their continued support of the College of Engineering and Computing, now culminating in this generous gift,” said Dean Ken Ball. “We are proud to steward this gift in support of our students and the commonwealth’s Tech Talent Investment Program. George Mason is honored to be part of their legacy in Northern Virginia.”

Long Nguyen (on left) and Kimmy Duong at an April 2025 press event announcing the new name of the School of Computing. Photo by Ron Aira/Office of University Branding

Duong believes that education is the cornerstone of life and recognizes that many in her generation worked multiple jobs to send their children to college, and now it is her turn to give back.

The gift establishes three endowments: two within the College of Engineering and Computing to provide lasting support for scholarships and student success initiatives—both of which support the commonwealth’s Tech Talent Investment Program (TTIP)—and one for University Life to provide scholarships through the Long Nguyen and Kimmy Duong Scholarship Endowment especially with a preference for students majoring in nursing, education, or journalism.

As the school moves forward, there will be changes in logos and some branding adjustments; however, the name change does not in itself entail or imply approval of any changes to degree programs and other academic programs administered by the departments located in the school. George Mason did not propose to initiate new degree programs or to establish new off-campus sites because of this change.

In This Story

Kenneth Ball

Brand Guidance

On first reference, always use the full name the Long Nguyen and Kimmy Duong School of Computing.
On subsequent references within the same piece, the shortened version can be the Nguyen and Duong School. To reiterate, the shortened version may only be used if the full version was already included in the same piece.
The Office of University Branding has created new logos for the school, which are available upon request.

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Long Nguyen and Kimmy Duong School of Computing

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Groundbreaking mobile app captures and documents bruises to help survivors of interpersonal violence

mthomp7 — Thu, 05 Jun 2025 16:47:09 +0000

Groundbreaking mobile app captures and documents bruises to help survivors of interpersonal violence mthomp7 Thu, 06/05/2025 - 12:47

Anonymous donor commits additional $5.3 million to advance research

An interdisciplinary �� research team is breaking new ground in using artificial intelligence to support victims of interpersonal violence. Led by Kat Scafide and Janusz Wojtusiak of the College of Public Health and David Lattanzi of the College of Engineering and Computing, the Evidence-based AI Software for Injury Detection (EAS-ID) project has successfully completed Phase 1: development of a working prototype of a mobile app designed to accurately capture and document bruises.

The tool has the potential to transform how clinicians and frontline professionals identify, record, and communicate evidence of injury, particularly in cases of interpersonal violence.

The EAS-ID (Evidence-based AI Software for Injury Detection) project has successfully completed Phase 1: development of a working prototype of a mobile app designed to accurately capture and document bruises. An anonymous donor recently committed an additional $5.3 million to advance the technology. Photo by Mary Cunningham/College of Public Health

The EAS-ID app acts as a digital guidance system—similar to mobile check-deposit apps that help users capture clear, usable images. When a clinician uses the tablet-based tool, the app detects the presence of a bruise and provides real-time guidance to ensure the image meets clinical and legal standards. A rectangle tracks the injury area, much like facial recognition technology, ensuring the final image captures exactly what’s needed to document the bruise effectively.

The research team announced $4.85 million in initial funding from the same anonymous donor in March 2024.

“Initially, we were laser-focused on detection—how to identify whether a bruise was present,” said Scafide, a forensic nurse. “But Phase 1 taught us that detection is only a small part of the clinical and legal challenge. The real complexity lies in documentation.”

That documentation must be both clinically sound and legally reliable. Forensic nurses—the app’s initial target users—often assess injuries while juggling multiple tasks: shining a light, holding a camera, completing paperwork. The EAS-ID tool reduces that burden by enabling simultaneous photo capture and structured documentation.

The app’s workflow is tailored to the real-world conditions of forensic nursing. It walks users through a standardized documentation process built directly into the interface, making it possible to create accurate, consistent records that can hold up in court—even years later.

“The documentation that nurses create is reviewed by many others in the criminal justice system,” noted Lattanzi, a civil engineer. “It must be reliable—not a liability.”

To ensure the app meets forensic standards, the team conducted extensive focus groups with practicing forensic nurses. These sessions were crucial to understanding not just what needed to be documented, but how clinicians make decisions in real time under pressure. Their insights helped shape the app into a useful tool with intuitive guide rails and legal relevance.

Based on Phase 1 progress, the team is preparing to broaden its focus to include a wider range of users. “We’re exploring how to adapt the app for clinicians—and even nonclinicians—who don’t have a forensic background but still need to document injuries,” said Scafide.

Wojtusiak, a machine learning expert, added: “Think of it like TurboTax. You don’t need to be a CPA to file your taxes. We want to make it possible for someone who sees fewer IPV cases—or who isn’t an expert in injury documentation—to still collect reliable evidence.”

Behind the app, a powerful AI engine is being trained to distinguish bruises from other skin discolorations and guide users through appropriate documentation steps. To train the AI, the team is building a massive, diverse dataset. So far, they’ve partnered with Inova Health System and Adventist Healthcare Shady Grove Medical Center to collect tens of thousands of images across different skin tones, body types, and medical conditions.

“Deep learning requires scale—and the team has set a goal of collecting one million images,” said Wojtusiak.

This summer, the team will launch a crowdsourcing initiative to expand the dataset beyond clinical settings. “All of our current data was collected in labs, under controlled conditions,” explained Scafide. “But real-world data is messier. We need to understand what the photos and data will look like when collected by the public, outside of protocols.”

The app’s architecture was designed with that in mind. Using machine learning, the app evolves over time—each new image improves its performance. This allows for continual refinement, even after the app is deployed.

The project has moved at an unusually fast pace for an academic endeavor, thanks in part to the support of students and research assistants whose contributions have accelerated development while gaining invaluable experience. Continued progress has been made possible by a second round of funding from the same anonymous donor.

With a patent pending on the app’s innovative integration of image capture and health assessment data, the EAS-ID team is now preparing to scale development, deepen partnerships, and explore commercialization pathways.

“Our goal is to get this technology into the hands of people who need it—quickly,” said Scafide. “The faster we can deploy, the faster we can support the professionals working to protect and care for victims.”

“Think of it like TurboTax. You don’t need to be a CPA to file your taxes. We want to make it possible for someone who sees fewer IPV cases—or who isn’t an expert in injury documentation—to still collect reliable evidence.”

Grand Challenge Initiative

Explore George Mason’s Grand Challenge Initiative addressing the greatest threats to humanity’s ability to live a peaceful, healthy, prosperous, and just existence.

In This Story

Katherine Scafide, PhD, RN, FAAN

Janusz Wojtusiak, PhD

David Lattanzi

Topics

EAS-ID

Bruise Visibility

Research

College of Public Health

College of Engineering and Computing

CEIE Success Stories

GCI-Grand Challenge Initiative

Advisors from George Mason receive National Academic Advising Association honors

Lauren Reuscher — Thu, 29 May 2025 12:47:53 +0000

Advisors from George Mason receive National Academic Advising Association honors Lauren Reuscher Thu, 05/29/2025 - 08:47

Two members of George Mason's academic advising community were honored with regional awards from the National Academic Advising Association (NACADA) this spring. These awards recognize excellence in academic advising in NACADA Region 2, which includes Delaware, Washington, D.C., Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Virginia.

Joshua Fletcher, undergraduate academic advisor in the Computer Science Department, was honored with the award for Excellence in Advising—Primary Role Advisor.

Barbara Snyder, director of student success and academic advising in the Costello College of Business, received the award for Excellence in Advising—Advising Administrator.

Joshua Fletcher and Barbara Snyder were recognized for excellence in academic advising at the NACADA conference in April. Photo provided

Fletcher and Snyder were formally recognized at the NACADA Region 1 and 2 conference in April in Buffalo, New York.

Academic advisors serve as vital resources as students navigate their academic journeys at George Mason. Delivering a distinctive and inclusive student experience is one of the university’s strategic priorities, and student advising is a critical part of the student services infrastructure.

Fletcher started working at George Mason in 2019, after previously working as a school counselor at a Title I middle school in Pinellas Park, Florida. He earned a master’s degree in counseling education from the University of Florida. We asked him to share some insights into his experiences advising students at George Mason and what it means to be recognized for his work.

What are your main responsibilities in your role? What types of students do you advise?

I advise approximately 2,600 undergraduate computer science and applied computer science students at all stages of their education journey. Academic advising has given me the opportunity to understand and evaluate students in difficult situations, develop a plan of action by utilizing the degree audit system, and take the lead in group advising sessions.

Joshua Fletcher is an undergraduate academic advisor in the Computer Science Department. Photo provided

I also process important documents such as substitutions, waivers, major declarations, re-enrollments, appeals, and many others. In addition, I help with several events throughout the year such as College of Engineering and Computing Visit Days, Fall/Spring Previews, orientations, Spotlight Days, and more.

What do you like best about your job?

I take an approach to meet students where they are. My philosophy on advising is to understand where the student is, but be real about the interworking of their major.

I have a dialogue with my students about their passion, hobbies, and goals. I use this information to help them build a support system for their career goals and encourage them to create alternative paths that will lead them to be successful in the future.

What are some of the biggest challenges in your role?

One of the challenges that advisors face is the caseload numbers. We see a lot of students every day, and it is not surprising that our appointments are booked.

Have you previously attended the NACADA conference? What do you enjoy most about the conference and the organization?

Last year, one of my colleagues and I attended the Regional 2 conference in New Jersey. One of the breakout sessions was called “How to Publish for NACADA,” and we discovered the opportunity to write for NACADA. Because we have so many personal experiences as advisors, we thought it would be a great idea to share some of our stories with other advisors.

To our surprise, our article was published in the September 2024 edition of Academic Advising Today. This is my first published article. Our article, “Academic Advisors' Mental Health Literacy and Experiences Working with Students Facing Emotional and Mental Health Issues,” encourages other advisors to gather information from research and colleagues to become more informed about how to effectively work with students who struggle with mental and emotional health issues.

What memorable moments stand out to you in your academic advising experiences?

The Degree Celebration for the College of Engineering and Computing. The Computer Science advising team always helps out with the event. One year, several of our students came up to us and thanked us for helping them through their journey at George Mason.

Graduation is a time of celebrating the students’ success, but it also felt good to hear that we are appreciated by our students.

Academic advising at George Mason

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Faculty and Staff News

Academic Advising

College of Engineering and Computing

computer science

Costello College of Business

Tech Talent Investment Program (TTIP)

Trial by virtual fire: Augmented reality project tailors training for firefighters

Sarah Holland — Thu, 22 May 2025 17:18:32 +0000

Trial by virtual fire: Augmented reality project tailors training for firefighters Sarah Holland Thu, 05/22/2025 - 13:18

For firefighters, even training is a risk. According to the United States Fire Administration, 16.6% of all firefighter fatalities in 2024 took place during training exercises. �� researcher Craig Yu is hoping to change that statistic.

Yu, associate professor of computer science, has been developing augmented and virtual reality training for most of his career, and he has a particular interest in exploring how artificial intelligence (AI) and emerging technologies could help research on human development and sports science. Through National Science Foundation’s EArly-concept Grants for Exploratory Research (EAGER) program, Yu and Joel Martin, associate professor of kinesiology, are developing just that: an augmented reality program that could help train firefighters while minimizing risk.

“Firefighters have high rates of injuries and many injuries happen during training. There is a need for training technology that can replicate aspects of emergencies while minimizing the injury risk and physical burn,” said Martin. Martin has spent the past few years working with Fairfax County Fire and Rescue to determine how they can reduce physical strain to firefighters during training exercises. “I think that technology such as immersive reality training can help to meet training needs while minimizing the physical risks of performing certain drills."

A prototype of the virtual training space from their proposal. Image provided.

Augmented—or mixed—reality uses devices such as phones or a headset to overlay 3D computer-generated content onto the real world. An increasingly accessible tool, you can find augmented reality in applications like Ikea furniture previews in your house, dinosaur encounters in the Smithsonian, and catching Pokémon in your neighborhood.

As described in their project proposal, “Adapting Mixed Reality Training Programs to Real-World Scenes to Enhance Human-AI Teaming in Emergency Responses,” the new training would utilize augmented reality to create realistic training scenarios for firefighters.

Based on a 3D digital twin of the room, the program will use AI to analyze what's in the room and create a realistic outbreak of fire: where it is most likely to start and spread, and where civilians are most likely to be.

“The program understands the environment, and it will be refined with additional input from professional firefighters,” said Yu.

Yu also notes that the scenario can be adapted for different experience levels. Simpler scenarios can be developed for new firefighters, which can then be adjusted for increasing sophistication and complexity as the trainees learn and improve. It also allows them to practice scenarios that would be difficult or impossible to replicate in a live burn, such as how to best evacuate and rescue civilians.

Most importantly, it prevents firefighters from being exposed to hazardous conditions while in training.

“I don’t ever see us replacing real fire training,” said Yu, “but this is a means to augment the training to improve the health and safety of the firefighters, as well as make training easier to deploy in a variety of buildings and circumstances. AI allows us to rapidly analyze human performance and then adaptively synthesize training programs to address weakness we observe.”

Martin and Yu are in the early phases of development but hope to deploy their initial training designs with Fairfax County Fire and Rescue soon. They both have hopes for further incorporation of AI and augmented reality technology in firefighting tools, such as headsets that can scan the environment and offer real-time feedback about potential dangers, exit strategies, and health metrics as firefighters enter hazardous zones.

“More and more virtual and immersive reality training is being used [in kinesiology],” said Martin. “I think this project demonstrates the importance of collaboration and interdisciplinary teams to solve challenges in the field.”

Discover how George Mason is driving AI

In This Story

Craig Yu

Topics

Research

College of Engineering and Computing

College of Education and Human Development

Artificial Intelligence

Community Impact

National Science Foundation

Blast breakthroughs from Brazil bolster international engineering collaboration

Nathan Kahl — Wed, 21 May 2025 12:14:20 +0000

Blast breakthroughs from Brazil bolster international engineering collaboration Nathan Kahl Wed, 05/21/2025 - 08:14

In This Story

Girum Urgessa

A long-standing partnership between the Brazilian Air Force and ��’s College of Engineering and Computing is supporting a visiting PhD student’s investigation into explosion research, and enabling faculty to gather data that would otherwise be difficult to obtain.

Anselmo da Silva Augusto, a Brazilian Air Force major, is working with Girum Urgessa, an expert in structural engineering and mechanics, in what Urgessa calls a win-win partnership. “We provide the technical advice and mentorship and gather invaluable data from the tests Anselmo has been conducting,” said Urgessa.

This ongoing collaboration has yielded rapid results, with three peer-reviewed journal papers and five conference papers to be presented in the United States, Brazil, and Portugal.

The results of the blast, which can be digitally sent from Brazil to Anselmo. Photo provided.

Augusto is a trained civil engineer now pursuing his doctorate, who for nearly 20 years has focused on building protection. His military work led him to study explosives—specifically, how to best protect structures against blasts. The Brazilian Air Force sent him abroad, as part of a partnership with universities worldwide, where their service members study for one year.

Urgessa, a professor in the Sid and Reva Dewberry Department of Civil, Environmental, and Infrastructure Engineering, was happy to host him, having met Augusto during a previous visit to Brazil, where Urgessa was a keynote speaker at an international defense symposium.

Augusto’s work examines how steel sheets respond to near-field blasts and investigates protective systems, such as elastomers, rubber-like polymers that stretch. The technical and safety requirements make these tests impossible to conduct at George Mason.

“You need to be far from urban areas, and you must have appropriate protocol for the safe handling of explosives,” said Augusto, describing the challenges of setting off an explosive roughly the size of an apple. “Also, there are several people involved, including safety experts, engineers, and technicians.”

High-speed cameras record the explosions, allowing the researchers to see the detonation in detail. “With the camera, recording at 10,000 frames per second, we are able to see the sheet deforming, which happens in about one millisecond.”

The team working in Brazil scans the damaged sheets and sends the data to Augusto, who 3D prints a replica, a completely accurate, small-scale version of the results that he can hold in his hands.

Augusto and Urgessa are using the findings to inform best practices for retrofitting structures against human-induced or accidental explosions. “If you have an existing historical building, you can apply this protective material to enhance its capacity," Augusto said. Or, in other applications, you may have a tank or a military vehicle that needs to be as light as possible and use different types of polymer composites for better protection.”

Urgessa said, “When we think about new construction, having this information helps to determine safe stand-off distances. It supports site planning decisions. We can't predict the exact magnitude of the next threat, but field-scale tests supplemented by computational models help us design resilient and secure structures.”

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civil and infrastructure engineering

Research

College of Engineering and Computing

doctoral students

CEIE Success Stories

George Mason civil engineering students are helping local communities improve their flood resilience

Katarina Benson — Wed, 07 May 2025 18:04:10 +0000

George Mason civil engineering students are helping local communities improve their flood resilience Katarina Benson Wed, 05/07/2025 - 14:04

In September 2024, Hurricane Helene made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane and quickly became the deadliest hurricane in the United States since Hurricane Katrina. It brought catastrophic flooding, storm surge, landslides, and tornadoes, resulting in more than 250 deaths and $78.7 billion in damages, which some estimate may rise to $110 billion. Areas of Western North Carolina and Eastern Tennessee were devastated by the rainfall it brought, and Southwest Virginia experienced significant flooding.

“Flooding is a growing issue across local communities,” said Celso Ferreira, who leads ��’s Flood Hazards Research Lab. “It is one part of engineering that’s not well-solved. Communities want to understand and adapt to flood risk, but it’s expensive. If it were easy and cheap, it would already be solved. That’s where this idea came in—we thought, why not involve students? Not just teach them engineering but help them create useful products for these communities. Can we make a difference without a multimillion-dollar firm? Can we bridge the gap?”

George Mason PhD student Diana Veronez runs a modeling demonstration for the Flood Hazard Engineering and Adaptation course. Photo provided

Ferreira recently redesigned the CEIE 445/645 Flood Hazard Engineering and Adaptation course to work with community partners to deliver real projects as part of the Institute for a Sustainable Earth’s (ISE’s) NSF Accelerating Research Translation (ART) Seed Translational Research Project (STRP) Program. He taught it for the first time in its new format in fall 2024 and plans to offer it again this fall.

In CEIE 445/645, a course for civil engineering students, undergraduate and graduate students work together on teams to develop flood risk maps and conduct analyses to help real clients in local communities improve their flood resilience. For some communities, especially smaller counties or tribes with fewer resources or no engineers on staff, this can provide critical data to help them address areas at higher risk of flooding.

The student teams used the recently developed Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) models, which provided ground elevation surface (topography), hydraulic friction values, and surface water infiltration values. This served as a common framework each project could be built upon.

The class used Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation models to run scenarios. This figure shows areas of potential flooding in the Town of Quantico. Photo provided

During the first part of the semester, the students learned how to create models like those provided by Virginia DCR. Then, they worked with their clients to address individual case studies on flood mitigation.

“I think it’s transformational for the students,” Ferreira said. “I’m glad we’re able to do that. At the beginning, they wonder what they’ve gotten themselves into, but by then end, they’re proud of the projects they built. [This challenge] really captures their attention, and they get enthusiastic about it.”

Examples of student projects include:

Pamunkey Reservation Flood Resiliency Plan - Located on a peninsula east of Richmond, the reservation is just slightly above sea level, increasing its risk of tidal and pluvial (surface water) flooding. The student team—Jacob Ryan Tomechko, Amanda Mullen, Paul Pacheco, Angela Haines-Perez, and Heriberto Perez—helped identify potential problem spots for roadway flooding including scenarios to address sea-level rise and significant storm events such as hurricanes.
Forwarding Roadway Resiliency Efforts in Mathews County – Matthews County is located on Virginia’s middle peninsula and is at risk of coastal and pluvial flooding due to its low-lying roadways. The student team—Matthew Cantos, Daniel Cardona, Mike DeCarlo, Eglal Salih, and Allyson Skahen—assessed which areas were at a higher risk of flooding due to poorly designed drainage ditches or other characteristics.
Flood Adaptive Roadways in Quantico, Virginia – Located in Prince William County, the Town of Quantico is near the Potomac River and Quantico Creek. The student team—Sebastian Galarza, Marcos Sanchez, Roberto Mejia, and Gabby Wade—helped the town assess roadway flooding scenarios to inform future evacuation efforts.

As part of their work, the student teams created ArcGIS storymaps for each project, available through the course website.

After the course, several students were hired as undergraduate research assistants to continue working on the projects so that they could take them beyond one semester’s work and provide the clients with more advanced projects. They are reviewing and enhancing all the projects to improve alignment with the clients’ requests and developing a standardized product that each client will receive.

One client was interested in using the student maps and analysis to assist with their proposal for funding to address these flooding issues. This is one way Ferreira sees clients being able to use the student projects. He explained that when communities apply for a grant to hire an engineering company for a project, they need to do preliminary analysis as part of this proposal. Many communities don’t have this capacity—they don’t have engineers to do preliminary analysis.

Ferreira worked with a graduate research assistant, two post-docs, and a PhD student over the summer of 2024 to redesign the course. “The funding from the ART program made it possible. It provided the resources to adapt the course in this way. It was key to have those resources, because it was a huge undertaking that couldn’t be done by one faculty member alone.”

The goal of the NSF ART program is to translate science from the university to real solutions for local communities that can help them better prepare for climate-related disasters. The ISE and Virginia Climate Center (VCC) are collaborating with the University of Kentucky and the Center for Climate Strategies on the NSF ART initiative to close this gap and help communities in Virginia improve their resilience.

CEIE 445/645 will be offered in the fall 2025 semester, and applications are still open for local communities to participate as clients.

View the course website

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At 16, Yevin Goonatilake becomes George Mason’s youngest master’s graduate

Katarina Benson — Wed, 07 May 2025 17:21:14 +0000

At 16, Yevin Goonatilake becomes George Mason’s youngest master’s graduate Katarina Benson Wed, 05/07/2025 - 13:21

Yevin Goonatilake hasn’t slowed down since becoming ��’s youngest graduate with a 4.0 in December. In fact, he’s only picked up speed.

Now 16, the Leesburg, Virginia, native has added another milestone to his remarkable journey—completing a master’s degree in computer science, making him the youngest person in university history to do so.

Along the way, Goonatilake landed a job, earned his learner’s permit, and continued playing professional cricket—all while finishing graduate classwork that would challenge even seasoned scholars.

“Graduate life has definitely been a lot busier and more challenging,” he said. “These last few months have been the most demanding yet.”

Enrolled in the Bachelor’s/Accelerated Master’s (BAM) program through the College of Engineering and Computing, Goonatilake appears on track to finish his master’s with the same 4.0 GPA he held as an undergraduate.

Yevin Goonatilake. Photo by Ron Aira/Office of University Branding

“I’m proud to hold onto the record for the time being,” he said. “I’m sure it will be broken in the future, but it’s nice to be George Mason’s youngest ever master’s graduate for now.”

Taking four graduate courses this semester—including three advanced-level classes—meant longer hours and greater expectations. But Goonatilake has proven he’s up for the challenge of graduate study.

“One of the biggest differences I noticed in the graduate program is that it requires more independence,” he said. “The specific implementation details are often left to you. The focus shifts from following set instructions to producing meaningful results.”

His academic interests have sharpened, too. He’s especially drawn to cryptography, which involves applying encryption and decryption schemes to messages in order to conceal them.

As a master’s student research assistant, Goonatilake is working with Computer Science Professor and Eminent Scholar Giuseppe Ateniese on cutting-edge research at the intersection of cryptography and large language models (LLMs). His current focus: cryptographic watermarking—embedding hidden signals in artificial intelligence (AI)-generated content to identify its source.

Ateniese said he was “quite astonished” upon learning Goonatilake’s age.

“But age aside, I’m impressed by his maturity, diligence, and ability to grasp extremely complex topics,” he said. “I’m delighted to have him on my team, and I have no doubt that he will continue to achieve remarkable success.”

Despite a demanding schedule, Goonatilake remains committed to cricket, playing for the Baltimore Royals Sunny Sohail (BRSS) Cricket Academy, part of Minor League Cricket. He trains several times per week and played in winter tournaments this past year in both Tampa and Miami.

“Balancing academics and cricket has kept me a little busier than I would prefer,” he said. “But I need both. Cricket keeps me grounded and gives me the outlet to clear my mind, giving me something to look forward to outside of academics.”

Celebrating his 16th birthday earlier this year has made that balancing act a little easier: with a learner’s permit in hand, Goonatilake is beginning to practice driving. “Now that I have my permit, I have been trying to drive whenever I can,” he said with a smile.

As for what’s next? Goonatilake hopes to remain at George Mason in the fall to pursue a PhD in computer science.

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