Exploring new frontiers: A Year to Remember

Winter break is a great time to reflect, reset, and refocus. For me, I got to spend time with my family and rest in a somewhat warmer climate. 

Mason Science completed a very productive year. Thanks to your hard work, our enrollment, research, and advancement growth continue and we remain focused on moving forward with our plans to address the college’s top priorities. 

Some of our colleagues may say the previous year was quite demanding, a roller coaster ride of challenges and high points. As a person who enjoys running, I like to think of the end of the year as a way to finish that race, and begin training for the next one. I encourage you all to look back at the moments of 2023 that were either big wins or were learning experiences for you. 

Sometimes we can get buried in the day to day and forget some of our shining moments. Not sure where to start? Take a look at our Mason Science annual report. Themed Exploring New Frontiers, it is a compilation of our highlights and successes from the prior academic year. We have much to be grateful for, starting with the hard work and innovative efforts of our faculty, staff, and students to further our science.

For those of you who rely on formal goal setting or list making to prioritize or stay focused, I encourage you to dream boldly and big. Write them down. Share them with family and colleagues. Don’t be tentative and afraid to put them out there for all to see and support. And then, as you may have heard, “Go confidently in the direction of your dreams.”

Perhaps 2024 lets you ride the momentum of great experiences and victories. For others, it’s a new chapter or fresh start. Either way, let the chill of the winter air energize your creativity and resilient spirit to make the coming semester one you can be excited for and proud of a year from now.

2024: we’ve got you!