Fostering talent to solve global issues

Dean's new vision for Mason Korea

Fostering talent to solve global issues

It has been a little over two months since Dr. Robert Matz was named dean of George Mason University Korea. Students, faculty, and staff are well aware of his passion for the 5-year-old campus and plans to deliver top quality education to students here at Mason Korea.

Today, Dr. Matz shared his vision as the new campus dean at a press conference with nearly 30 journalists from general daily, business daily as well as Incheon and online news outlets. He also announced where his focus areas will be in order to contribute to the university’s continued growth and achievements.

“Thanks to the strong work of my colleagues here, I arrive at a time when Mason Korea is already enjoying great success,” he said. 

As part of that growth trajectory, Dr. Matz said that he is working on increasing the number of enrolled students to reach the total student quota. He is particularly focusing on diversifying the student body even further. “Corresponding to this growth in numbers of students must come a growth in the number and range of courses we teach on this campus," he stated. "We are currently in a process of evaluating the best new courses to add to regular rotation in our curriculum, and have already identified several in business, communication, psychology and Korean language and literature,” he added.

Dr. Matz also plans to cultivate George Mason’s unique capacity to provide some of the hallmarks of a US-style education in Korea. Although students at Mason Korea have identical course requirements as their fellow students in the US campuses, what they receive extends beyond particular requirements. Students in our classes are expected to be active participants in their own learning by, for example, engaging in discussions on course material with professors and fellow students, by collaborating on group projects in which they have to put into practice the material they are learning, and by participating in internship or research projects where they can similarly put knowledge into practice.

 

“At Mason, we believe that our future depends on creative problem solvers who in their university education have, in additional to learning the particular material in their area of study, have learned how to learn: how to question current ideas, to come up with new ones, and to put their new ideas into practice,” he said, adding, “My goal as campus dean is to make sure that we are infusing that ethos of engagement and support throughout our students’ education.”

 

Positioning Mason Korea as a point of connection between the United States and the Republic of Korea was another factor he stressed. “The US and Korea face many of the same challenges, and share many strategic interests, around, for example, the areas of climate change and sustainability, international peace and security, and the dynamics of a globalized economy. I hope to continue to take advantage of George Mason Korea’s location to make the campus a strategic point of contact between scholars, business leaders and government officials in the two countries, as we will be accomplishing with the upcoming CSPS symposium.”

Dr. Matz as well as Mason Korea leaders confirmed their intent to build relationships with local reporters to share informative stories at the right time and place, and to continue striving for excellence while collaborating with local bodies.