College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA)

911�� course brings expertise from audio description pioneer

sbrown79 — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 15:26:32 +0000

911�� course brings expertise from audio description pioneer sbrown79 Tue, 10/20/2026 - 11:26

In This Story

For some, accessibility in the arts is a question of philosophy. 911�� adjunct professor Joel Snyder approaches the idea more literally.

Snyder is a pioneer in the niche industry of arts audio description—the process of translating the arts into spoken language, making theater, film, dance, and other art forms more accessible for people who are blind or have low vision.

Joel Snyder using a stenomask to audio describe a show. Photo provided.

Snyder has made that skill the center of a new audio description course in the College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA). 

He said 911�� stood out as the right place for the first-ever semester-long, for-credit audio description course in the United States because of the university’s existing commitment to accessible arts programming and its willingness to invest in the future of the field.

“I knew there was an interest at 911�� in making the arts events even more accessible,” Snyder said. “I’m thrilled that the university is forging ahead with courses like this."

For Snyder, the class is part of a broader vision for how accessibility should be understood on campuses and beyond: because audio description also enhances the experience of neurodivergent viewers. “It helps people on the autism spectrum, with ADHD, and it helps people who are learning a new language. Audio description builds literacy,” Snyder said.  
   
The course, CVPA 399 Audio Description for the Arts , connects students to a growing archive of audio description history and practice. Snyder donated more than 100 boxes of scripts, recordings, papers, and other materials to University Libraries in order to create a foundation for the Dr. Joel Snyder Audio Description Archive, a first-ever university-based collection of audio description historical materials and production elements. 

Snyder said he hopes the archive will be further digitized and made available to anybody around the world.

“These records provide a solid base to grow the primary source record on the development of audio description and thus accessibility from the last quarter of the 20th century to the present,” said Lynn Eaton, director, Special Collections Research Center. “Dr. Snyder’s donated collection will help current and future historians and researchers with essential documentation of his work and others in helping to make arts more broadly available.” 

There are nine students in the course, including three students who tune in from North Carolina, Texas, and Missouri respectively.

For Betsy Yancey, who has worked as the audience services manager at 911��’s Center for the Arts (CFA) for 24 years, the course offers a direct connection between the classroom and her day-to-day work.

Betsy Yancey (left) with her former student employees at the Center for the Arts.

“Part of my job is to coordinate access services for our performances—audio description, ASL interpretation, and captioning,” Yancey said. “I’m taking this course because I want to know more about [access services] and potentially be a backup in case our regular audio describer, Ermyn King, is unavailable.”

Her work at CFA includes coordinating with audio describers weeks before a performance, sharing scripts and rehearsal materials, and ensuring patrons can access show information in advance through large-print and screen-reader-friendly materials.

This season, more than 20 CFA performances include audio description, spanning productions in the School of Theater, School of Dance, and School of Music, as well as the professional artists series.

Yancey said she hopes the course encourages students and art professionals to think about accessibility as part of the creative process and not something added at the end.

“It would be great if all of our performing and visual arts departments as well as the companies that we present create the audio description script as they're working on their art because they know the [creator’s] intent,” Yancey said.  

“That's something that the audio describer may not know depending on how much access they've been given to the materials.”

She also sees opportunities for 911�� to expand audio description into digital spaces, including Mason Arts Amplified, the university’s digital arts platform.

"We have a college-wide commitment to making the arts accessible to more people, and Joel Snyder is one of the true founders of a key element of this mission, audio description,” said CVPA Dean Rick Davis. “His passion for this mission is stronger than ever after more than four decades of pioneering research and practice, and we're honored to have him with us."

Marybeth Haneline at the Kreeger Theater at Arena Stage audio describing CrazySexyCool: The TLC Musical. Photo provided.

Marybeth Haneline, who is auditing the course through 911��’s Senior Citizen Tuition Wavier program, brings another perspective to the course.

She is now in her third season as a volunteer with the Metropolitan Washington Ear audio description program, a program Snyder spearheaded in the 1980s. Haneline, who has audio described dozens of shows, said the class will allow her to apply what she’s learning to live performance. 

For her final project, Haneline plans to audio describe Frida: A Self Portrait at Shakespeare Theatre Company in Washington, D.C., where she is also currently enrolled in the Salon Series, an interactive, behind-the-scenes program.

Haneline plans to use the Laban/Bartenieff Movement System, a comprehensive movement framework, to audio describe the show.

“It's really the perfect show for this project,” said Haneline. “The solo performer is trained in the Suzuki Method and there are these movement pieces that provide space for me to develop a script and do something useful.”

Snyder hopes students leave the course with practical skills they can use in professional settings.

“I hope they build the skillset of writing, voicing, and audio editing descriptions for professional work,” Snyder said. “Audio describers, the writers, and the voice talents are in great demand.”

He also hopes audio description continues to expand across 911��, including in visual art spaces. 

“If there's an art exhibit on campus, there should be audio descriptions of those images available,” Snyder said.

As the course gains momentum after several semesters of planning, Snyder sees 911�� as part of a much larger shift—one that treats access as a creative and educational responsibility.

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Skills-focused academic minor programs prepare 911�� students for the workforce

Susan Martonik — Wed, 14 Oct 2026 16:33:19 +0000

Skills-focused academic minor programs prepare 911�� students for the workforce Susan Martonik Wed, 10/14/2026 - 12:33

In today’s competitive job market, students are increasingly looking for ways to distinguish themselves in the eyes of potential employers. To help its graduates gain a competitive edge, 911�� is strengthening students’ career readiness through its specialized workforce-ready minor programs. To date, 34 programs are available—and more are on the way.

“These programs provide students with an opportunity to enter the workforce equipped with the practical skills and experiences that employers seek,” said Elizabeth Loun, program manager for university internships in the Undergraduate Education. “They are also highly accessible. In many cases, students can earn a workforce-ready minor by completing only a few additional courses before graduation.”

911��’s workforce-ready minor programs currently span seven schools and colleges. They are designed to complement any major, and all programs include internship-based courses and career-relevant assignments, giving students the opportunity to gain practical experience and ensuring career readiness. Available minors include environmental consulting, government contracting, nonprofit studies, renewable energy, leadership, arts management, and more. These programs are designated in the course catalog for the first time this fall, making them easier for students to identify and explore.

Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding

The workforce-ready minors are strategically aligned with high-demand occupations identified by the Virginia Career and Technical Education Resource Center, a Virginia Department of Education-funded initiative that helps ensure that academic programs remain connected to the needs of employers across the commonwealth. These occupations are grouped into 17 career clusters—including energy, health sciences, information technology, and government and public administration—and represent 83 distinct career pathways.

“In the years ahead, we anticipate significant growth within these career clusters,” said Loun. “By helping students develop in-demand skills, our workforce-ready minor programs prepare 911�� students to pursue opportunities in these fields and contribute as future leaders.”

To expand access to career-focused learning opportunities across the curriculum, 911�� launched the Workforce-Ready Minors initiative earlier this year. Through the initiative, faculty members received stipends to modify programs, enhance courses, or create internship courses.

In the School of Art, Professor John von Bergen used the grant to redesign AVT 462 Advanced Sculpture, an upper-level course that teaches students advanced 3D fabrication techniques used in contemporary creative industries. With the Workforce-Ready Minors program, von Bergen enhanced the course to have a career-relevant focus each week. Throughout the semester, students create presentation materials tailored to careers in art, design, fabrication, and creative technology, participate in resume workshops, and engage with industry professionals to gain real-world experience and build professional networks. This course is scheduled to be offered in fall 2027.

“We received a tremendous response to our call for proposals this spring and summer,” said Loun. “The strong interest from faculty enabled us to double the number of workforce-ready minor programs in just a few months. In some cases, existing programs already met the workforce-ready minor criteria and required no additional funding.”

She continued, “With a final round of grants being distributed this fall, we look forward to building on this momentum and broadening our portfolio of offerings even further.”

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Patriot Profile: Maya Bayat

ckearney — Tue, 13 Oct 2026 15:51:48 +0000

Patriot Profile: Maya Bayat ckearney Tue, 10/13/2026 - 11:51

Maya Bayat

Year: Senior

Major: Business with a minor in visual art

Hometown: Arlington, Virginia

It might be difficult to guess based on how much 911�� student-athlete Maya Bayat, BS Business ’26, fits into her day, but she says she’s grown a lot when it comes to time management. Bayat is in the Bachelor’s-to-Accelerated Master’s Program working on a bachelor’s and a master’s degree in finance with a minor in visual art. In addition to her classes, she trains and competes for the women’s tennis team, works as an intern at two galleries and an art nonprofit, and creates her own art.

Home Away from Home: For Bayat, the chance to play Division I tennis while staying close to her family in Arlington made 911�� the right choice. “Having my family’s support means a lot to me. They help me every step of the way,” she said. As someone with many interests and the determination to follow them, Bayat has taken advantage of the myriad opportunities she’s had a 911�� to build relationships with teammates and coaches, network in the Costello College of Business, and expand art connections through Mason Exhibitions. “I would say as a person—not necessarily that I'm more extroverted—but I'm more open to connecting with people,” she said.

Maya Bayat. Photo by Art Pittman/Athletics

Leveling Up: Bayat, who plays both singles and doubles, started tennis later than most Division I players, but her enthusiasm for the game fueled her extra hours on the court. “We all love winning,” she said, but her training focuses on the process as much as the results: “I'm always trying to improve technically, mentally, physically.” She is also on the university’s Student–Athlete Advisory Committee, where representatives from all the Division I teams collaborate to improve the experience of current and future Patriots.

No Canvas, No Problem: “For as long as I can remember, I've been making art,” said Bayat. “I did my first structured art class when I was around five years old.” Painting in particular has provided an outlet. “[During COVID] I ran out of canvases because I was painting so much.” She had already transformed the mailbox, the driveway, and an old cabinet into artwork, so her parents said she could decorate some walls, and she discovered a new “love for murals.”

Finding Her Niche: This summer, Bayat interned at Mason Exhibitions Arlington and the Fred Schnider Gallery of Art in Arlington. Her Mason Exhibitions supervisor made sure she could apply her finance skills to real-world projects like grant applications, but she also learned about every aspect of running the gallery. Bayat helped with exhibit de-install; learned how to care for artwork; and contributed research, wall text, and press releases to the What Remains? exhibit, which features art by veterans and runs through November. The experience, she says, “makes you respect…art galleries, art institutions, museums so much more.”

The Art of the Deal: Bayat describes herself as entrepreneurial—she has sold her own paintings to fund tennis expenses. She is now interested in pursuing a career in the art value investment market, which combines her love of art and her interest in investing. As for tennis, she’s begun coaching recently and would like to play in professional tournaments. “I'll always have it in my life. . . I love tennis. I feel like it has its own art form too. It's a way of expressing yourself.”

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Mason Arts Draw Crowds and Support at 2026 ARTS by George!

Laura Mertens — Mon, 12 Oct 2026 15:27:26 +0000

Mason Arts Draw Crowds and Support at 2026 ARTS by George! Laura Mertens Mon, 10/12/2026 - 11:27

911��’s College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA) celebrated the 21st annual ARTS by George! benefit event on October 3, raising $400,000 to support student scholarships and Mason Arts programs. The event, headlined by actor and musician Jeff Goldblum and the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra, brought the total raised through ARTS by George! to more than $5 million since the event began in 2006.

L to R: Dean Rick Davis and Jeff Goldblum address guests onstage after Goldblum's headlining performance during the 21st ARTS by George! event on October 3, 2026 on the stage of the Center for the Arts Concert Hall on the Fairfax Campus of 911��. Photo by Cable Risdon/Risdon Photography

Funds raised support of student scholarships in visual arts, dance, music, theater, game design, film, and arts management, as well as programs including the Mason Community Arts Academy, Green Machine Ensembles, and the Great Performances at Mason season at the Center for the Arts.

L to R: President Gregory Washington, Jeff Goldblum, and Nicole Washington pose together backstage after Goldblum's headlining performance during the 21st ARTS by George! event. Photo by Cable Risdon/Risdon Photography

“We take tremendous pride in 911�� serving as the cultural hub of our region,” 911�� President Gregory Washington said at the event. “When you come out here today and you support these artists, and you supported our students earlier today, you are not just supporting an individual going through a program. You are literally becoming a part of someone’s life. You have impacted them in a way that they will, quite frankly, never, ever forget.”

Green and Gold Soul, of 911��'s Green Machine Ensembles, performed on Wilkins Plaza to welcome guests as they arrived at the 21st ARTS by George! event on October 3, 2026, on the Fairfax Campus of 911��. Photo by Cable Risdon/Risdon Photography

Throughout the evening, more than 270 CVPA students and faculty presented a wide variety of performances and exhibits. Arriving guests were welcomed to the festivities by lively music from Green Machine’s Green & Gold Soul on Wilkins Plaza. The School of Theater offered a preview of their fall production of Urinetown, while students from the School of Music captivated audiences with jazz, piano, opera, and symphonic works. At the Virginia Serious Game Institute showcase, guests played games created by Computer Game Design students and watched virtual reality demonstrations, including a tour of a state-of-the-art nanofabrication lab.

Guests watched student films in the specially designed screening room during the 21st ARTS by George! event. Photo by Cable Risdon/Risdon Photography

Just down the hall, the School of Art and Mason Exhibitions collaborated to create an interactive gallery space featuring prints, sketches, and handmade books, where student and alumni artists discussed their work. A screening room showing films from students in the Film and Video Studies Program drew guests who sat down, slipped on headphones, and quickly became absorbed in the stories unfolding in front of them. School of Dance students and faculty packed their studio with performances that included “Without,” a moving work choreographed by School of Dance Professor Shaun Boyle D’Arcy that explored the nature of grief. And alumni from the Arts Management program reconnected with friends and faculty alike, posing for photos throughout the event, and offering guests an opportunity to create miniature art for a Free Little Art Gallery.

Freshman students from the School of Dance performed during the 21st ARTS by George! event in the deLaski Performing Arts Building. Photo by Cable Risdon/Risdon Photography

Alumna Adelina Mitchell. Photo by Cable Risdon/Risdon Photography

As the showcases wrapped up, guests gathered at the Center for the Arts, where this year’s distinguished alumni performer Adelina Mitchell sang “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” a nod to her own involvement in the Wicked universe, as well as to “the Wizard” himself, Jeff Goldblum. She told guests that the support she received from 911�� played a key role in her success. “Having access to that scholarship was the sole reason I began working professionally as quickly as I did in 2019. That is exactly what scholarship support can do. It gives young artists a way in, and a way forward.”

Following Mitchell’s performance, CVPA Dean Rick Davis led the annual Fund-A-Student appeal, which raised more than $83,000.

Dean Rick Davis of the 911��'s College of Visual and Performing Arts encouraged the crowd to support student success by donating to the "Fund a Student" appeal. Photo by Cable Risdon/Risdon Photography

Jeff Goldblum and the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra took the Center for the Arts stage at 8:30 p.m., where—before opening with the rousing number “Grease Patrol”—Goldblum told the audience about his own lifelong passion both the arts, which, he said, “saved my life.” Over the following 90 minutes, Goldblum and the Mildred Snitzer Orchestra entertained the crowd as jazz vocalist Khailah Johnson occasionally joined in on songs that included “If I Only Had A Brain” and “Mean To Me.” In one of the night’s highlights, Goldblum invited three CVPA students, saxophonist Jeremy Fagen, vibraphonist Phillip Todd, and guitarist Silas Lewis, to perform with him and the orchestra during “The Kicker,” where each delivered solos that brought down the house.

L to R: Jeff Goldblum shares a laugh with Silas Lewis, Phillip Todd, Kenny Elliott, and Jeremy Fagen. Fagen, Todd, and Lewis are all current students at 911��. Photo by Cable Risdon/Risdon Photography

The evening’s program concluded with an onstage champagne toast, during which Goldblum and Davis mingled with CVPA students and faculty as well as with ARTS by George! guests and supporters, including snapping selfies and sharing hugs.

“There was a special feeling at this year’s ARTS by George!—you could sense it from the earliest student showcases,” said Davis. “With the record-breaking paddle raise for scholarships to Jeff Goldblum’s delightful performance and generous after-show remarks, a palpable excitement grew throughout the evening. We believe the arts create community, and this year’s event served as Exhibit A for that case.”

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Mason Artist-in-Residence Music From The Sole Shares the Joy of Tap with 911�� Community—and Beyond

Laura Mertens — Fri, 02 Oct 2026 16:04:45 +0000

Mason Artist-in-Residence Music From The Sole Shares the Joy of Tap with 911�� Community—and Beyond Laura Mertens Fri, 10/02/2026 - 12:04

Mason Artist-in-Residence Music From The Sole arrived at 911�� last month for a week packed with workshops, classes, discussions, and community events. Working with staff, faculty, students, and local educators, members of the acclaimed live music and dance company shared their knowledge of tap, percussion, and Afro-diasporic music, along with their real-world expertise as performing artists.

As part of Mason Artist-in-Residence Music From The Sole's engagement activities, cofounder Leonardo Sandoval and company members Gerson Lanza and Ana Tomioshi worked with students in 911�� School of Dance Professor Christopher D'Amboise's beginner tap class.

The residency kicked off on September 21, 2026, before Music From The Sole had even arrived on campus, when members joined graduate students in the Arts Management Program for a virtual conversation moderated by Professor Eric Oberstein. Two days later, faculty and staff welcomed the company to campus with a welcome lunch and then beginner tap students had the opportunity to work closely with members of the ensemble during a masterclass at the School of Dance. The energetic session drew praise from Professor Christopher d’Amboise.

“I cannot say enough about the generosity and joyful spirit of everyone from Music for the Sole. They are such talented dancers and musicians and were so generous with their time and spirit,” he said. “They are a very special and unique ‘family’ of artists.”

Sandoval teaches a tap class at Metropolitan School of the Arts.

After the morning class, Music From The Sole headed over to Metropolitan School of the Arts, an Alexandria nonprofit, to lead two free open-to-the-public masterclasses with intermediate and advanced tap students.

On September 24, the group visited Hunters Woods Elementary for Arts and Sciences in Reston to lead an assembly on body percussion, where they received an enthusiastic reception.

“We were beyond thrilled to welcome Music From The Sole to Hunters Woods Elementary,” said Julie Ohrnberger, who serves as the school’s K–6 dance educator. “Bringing their vibrant fusion of tap dance and percussive movement to our second and third graders offered our students an incredible opportunity to experience storytelling through rhythm and sound. Watching our young learners discover new ways to express themselves and connect with art in such an interactive, high-energy environment was truly unforgettable.”

Following the field trip performance, Music From the Sole members led a body percussion workshop onstage at the Center for the Arts.

More area kids got in on the fun on September 25 during a field trip matinee performance at the Center for the Arts, which was followed by an afternoon body percussion workshop for students. The day wrapped up with a lecture/demonstration and dinner hosted by the Brazilian Student Association at 911�� that provided opportunities for questions and socializing.

Cofounder Leonardo Sandoval participates in the discussion with company members and students from the Brazilian Student Association at Mason (BRASA).

The residency culminated in a Center for the Arts performance on Saturday evening. After participating in a pre-performance discussion with Professor D’Amboise, Music From The Sole took to the stage to deliver I Didn’t Come to Stay, a rousing, Carnival-inspired work led by choreographer Leonardo Sandoval and composer Gregory Richardson that showcased the company’s distinctive blend of samba, passinho (Brazilian funk), Afro Cuban, jazz, and house. The night was a celebration—and the perfect way to finish off the first residency of the 2026–27 season.

Music From The Sole's "I Didn't Come to Stay" at the Center for the Arts

The Mason Artist-in-Residence program is supported in part by the Wendy Frieman and David Johnson Fund.

Launched during the 2019–20 season through 911��’s College of Visual and Performing Arts, the Mason Artist-in-Residence program connects artists appearing at the Center for the Arts and its sister-venue the Hylton Performing Arts Center with on- and off-campus communities. Artists engaged at the Center for the Arts have included Maria Schneider, A.I.M by Kyle Abraham, Indigenous Enterprise, Sphinx Virtuosi, Nrityagram Dance Ensemble, Third Coast Percussion, Camille A. Brown and Dancers, Small Island Big Song, Ballet Hispánico, the Silkroad Ensemble, Versa-Style Street Dance Company, Papermoon Puppet Theatre, and Limón Dance Company. Mason Artists-in-Residence coming up in the 2026–27 season at the Center for the Arts include the Grammy Award-winning Third Coast Percussion in February 2027 and S ilkroad Ensemble, returning in March for its fifth consecutive year in residence.

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911�� alum Rhea Seehorn wins Emmy for portrayal of Carol in AppleTV’s Pluribus

ckearney — Tue, 15 Sep 2026 18:43:24 +0000

911�� alum Rhea Seehorn wins Emmy for portrayal of Carol in AppleTV’s Pluribus ckearney Tue, 09/15/2026 - 14:43

Capping a year of recognition, 911�� alum Rhea Seehorn, BA Art (Studio) ’94, received an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series at the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards Monday, September 15, in Los Angeles.

911�� alumna Rhea Seehorn, BA Art (Studio) ’94, won an Emmy for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series at the 78th Primetime Emmy Awards. Photo by Gilbert Flores/Getty Images

Seehorn won for her role as romantasy author Carol Sturka on the AppleTV series Pluribus, a post-apocalyptic show set in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in which most of the world’s population has been assimilated into a hive mind. Carol and a handful of others have not, and she works to find a way to undo what the series calls the Joining.

Seehorn is widely known for her acclaimed portrayal of Kim Wexler in AMC’s Better Call Saul, a role that earned her two Emmy nominations for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. After years of collaboration, Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul creator Vince Gilligan wrote the role of Carol Sturka specifically for her.

This is her second award for the series, after taking home a Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Television Drama in January—the first Golden Globe win by a 911�� alum. She also was named to the TIME100 list of the Most Influential People of 2026.

In interviews about Pluribus, Seehorn has often pointed to her time at 911�� as the spark that ignited her passion for acting. On NPR’s Fresh Air, she recalled having to take an elective in the arts outside of her art studio major. She chose to take an acting class with theater professor Lynnie Raybuck.

Hers is believed to be the first Primetime Emmy win for a 911�� alum.

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New NEA Grants Support Veterans and the Arts Initiative Programs This Fall

Tionge Johnson — Mon, 31 Aug 2026 22:21:30 +0000

New NEA Grants Support Veterans and the Arts Initiative Programs This Fall Tionge Johnson Mon, 08/31/2026 - 18:21

This summer, 911��’s Veterans and the Arts Initiative, based at the Hylton Performing Arts Center, received two grants from the National Endowment for the Arts to support programs for veterans, servicemembers, military families, and caregivers. The workshops and community events, taking place both virtually and at the Hylton Center this fall, support the work of the initiative, which has served more than 20,000 military-connected people across Northern Virginia through programming that presents new artistic opportunities in a setting that also supports social connections with community members.  

U.S. Army Field Band. Photo provided

Beginning September 23, College of Visual and Performing Arts Dean Rick Davis will lead In Service of Theater: A Staged Reading Program for the Military and Veteran Community. In weekly sessions, participants will explore texts about military life and service and develop a rehearsed reading that culminates in a public performance on October 28.

"I'm looking forward to working with our Veterans and the Arts community to create a meaningful montage of dramatic scenes, narratives, and poetry that connects the workshop participants with an audience through the medium of language,” said Davis. “The 'staged reading' format is an elegant but simple way to focus on the stories and images of the texts without the extra bells and whistles of a full production."

The program, funded in part by Creative Forces^®: NEA Military Healing Arts Network, an initiative of the National Endowment in partnership with the U.S. Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs, will be presented in partnership with Virginia Department of Veterans. The Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant program is managed by Mid-America Arts Alliance.

“For our servicemembers, veterans, and their families, the arts offer an opportunity to create, to express, and to perform, and especially, to do so collaboratively. The In Service of Theater staged reading program is the latest initiative of 911��'s exceptional Veterans and the Arts Initiative. The Virginia Department of Veterans Services (VDVS) is proud to support it,” said Steven Combs, VDVS Deputy Commissioner.   

911�� alumnus Col. Scott McKenzie directs the U.S. Army Band "Pershing's Own." U.S. Army photo by Sgt. 1st Class Rachel Minto

The second grant from the National Endowment for the Arts supports three U.S. Military Band performances at the Hylton Center. On September 16 and 17, the U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own” will present two free daytime educational concerts for middle and high school students across the region. On September 27, community members of all ages will also have the opportunity to enjoy The U.S. Army Field Band’s 80th Anniversary Concert, featuring multiple Field Band ensembles, and favorite works such as Respighi’s Pines of Rome and the finale of Beethoven’s Ninth, as well as the Hylton Center debut of the Army Rappers. Tickets for the U.S. Army Field Band concert are free and general admission (limit four tickets per order). Each patron must have a ticket to attend. Tickets are available online or in person at the Hylton Center Ticket Office.

“This season marks another exciting milestone for the Veterans and the Arts Initiative as we received two grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. This support allows us to innovatively expand the impactful programming that brings our veterans, servicemembers, families, and caregivers, as well as local students, together through creativity, collaborative storytelling, and shared artistic experiences,” said Niyati Dhokai, program director for the Veterans and the Arts Initiative and research associate professor at 911��.

The grant-supported workshops and concerts are just a few of the returning and new Veterans and the Arts Initiative programs at the Hylton Center this fall. Some of the additional workshops to look forward to this year are:

Instructor Glen McCarthy will be leading weekly Level I and Level II Veterans Virtual Guitar workshops for beginning and experienced musicians beginning September 22.
On October 17, veterans, servicemembers, and military family members can join artist, U.S. Air Force veteran, and 911�� alumnus Patrick Sargent for the Laser Engraved Relief Print Workshop and create relief prints based on self-portraits or beloved pets.
On October 24, the Screen-Printed Luminaries Workshop will offer the opportunity to celebrate America’s 250th anniversary with a hands-on class focused on the design and printing of patriotic-themed paper luminaries.
On November 4 and 5, artist, U.S. Air Force veteran, and 911�� alumnus Steven Luu will facilitate The Ritual of Mask Making: Play, Performance, and Self-Permission, which enables participants to share stories through mask creation and personal reflection.

The fall Veterans and the Arts Initiative programming concludes with two concerts honoring veterans. On November 6, The U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own” returns with a free performance for the general public. Col. Scott McKenzie, a Prince William Public Schools graduate who received his master of music degree from 911��, is the Leader and Commander of The U.S. Army Band “Pershing’s Own.” On November 14 the Metropolitan Jazz Orchestra presents To Swing Through the Sky, which will provide free tickets to veterans and servicemembers.

For more information on upcoming events, visit HyltonCenter.org.

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Research in Motion

Katarina Benson — Wed, 26 Aug 2026 16:20:15 +0000

Research in Motion Katarina Benson Wed, 08/26/2026 - 12:20

At 911��, learning and research aren’t limited to the classroom or the lab. Researchers, coaches, clinicians, and students are working across disciplines as a part of the university’s Living Lab, a space where real-world questions become opportunities for discovery, innovation, and care.

Noelle Saine leads a VO2 Max test on a student-athlete. Photo by John Boal Photography

From the training facilities used by NCAA Division I student-athletes to the rehearsal studios where School of Dance students spend hours perfecting their craft, 911�� researchers are studying how bodies perform, recover, and thrive under intense physical demands. This research has an immediate impact: helping athletes avoid injury, improving recovery and sleep habits among dancers, and shaping evidence-based practices that can influence health and performance far beyond campus.

These projects reflect 911��’s distinctive approach to research—bringing together academic expertise and hands-on practice in ways that directly benefit the health and well-being of the university community. Here, students are not only learning from research—they are living it.

Keeping Athletes in the Game

One way that 911��’s Intercollegiate Athletics and the College of Education and Human Development keep our athletes in top form is through evidence-based practices and science in the Patriot Performance Lab.

“We’re not just a research lab,” says Margaret Jones, director of the Patriot Performance Lab. “Providing health services to athletes is also critical. It’s what makes the partnership work.”

For example, postdoctoral research fellow Erica King, BS Bioengineering ’21, PhD ’25, a former student-athlete in swimming and diving, led a recent nine-month study that assessed the load demands on volleyball players’ knees using wearable sensors for tracking load during practice, counter-movement jump testing, wearable and clinical ultrasound devices, MRIs, and surveys.

Erica King, right, works with a student-athlete. Photo by John Boal Photography. Photo by John Boal Photography

“At the end of the season, we were able to show the coaching staff the average number of jumps athletes complete in a 15- to 16-week period and the direct effects of that from a joint adaptation standpoint,” Jones says. “Now they can tailor practice sessions to better support the players and help alleviate strain that could lead to injury.”

Athletes, coaches, and athletic trainers often come to the lab with ideas and questions for study. Last spring, 911��’s swim team approached the lab to conduct a blood lactate study and applied for and received an Office of Student Creative Activities and Research grant to fund the study.

Researchers collected data from blood draws, heart-rate monitors, DEXA scans, and jump testing. An early review suggests a swimmer’s stroke specialization and maximal power generation capabilities significantly impact accumulation in blood lactate levels during all-out swim bouts.

“We couldn’t do what we do without the support and trust of the coaching staff,” says PhD student Noelle Saine, BS Kinesiology ’22, MS ’23. Saine, who was a student-athlete in track and field, understands the importance of strong communication between sport scientists and athletes.

“The sports management field as a whole is starting to ask how we can make good management decisions around athlete health and performance data,” says Chris Green, director of the Center for Sport Management. “The Patriot Performance Lab is already doing this work. It’s one of the things that makes us unique, and it’s what makes our work impactful.”

Helping Dancers Stay Ready for the Stage

Dancers are “aesthetic athletes,” meaning they have high workloads and high injury rates like traditional athletes. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding

When Jena Hansen-Honeycutt, the athletic trainer for 911��’s School of Dance, started seeing an influx in injuries among dance students, she approached Professor of Kinesiology Jatin Ambegaonkar and then-student Kelley Wiese, PhD Kinesiology ’25, hoping to find a solution.

Dancers are “aesthetic athletes,” meaning they have high workloads and high injury rates like traditional athletes. “They dance for at least three hours a day in classroom practice alone,” says Hansen-Honeycutt. “And that doesn’t account for their extracurricular work: rehearsals, choreography, or additional practice.”

“We can recognize there’s a correlation between fatigue and injury, but you need data in order to make a stronger case for implementing cultural and systemic changes,” says Wiese.

Wiese, a trained dancer and now an assistant professor of athletic training at Shenandoah University, worked with Ambegaonkar on various studies at the intersection of kinesiology and dance during her doctoral program at 911��.

Dancers were given biosensors to wear on their wrists 24 hours a day for seven days. They repeated the study four times throughout the semester.

“We wanted to understand the cycles of the body breaking down and recovering as workload increased and decreased throughout their semester,” says Ambegaonkar.

Participating students were also given surveys to provide subjective perceptions of their workload, sleep habits, and energy levels.

Reviewing the data, Wiese found that at peak times throughout the semester, students were spending more than seven hours a day completing moderate to vigorous physical activity between class, rehearsals, practice, and choreographing. As a result, energy levels decreased and fatigue increased, indicating a need for integrated recovery times and programs.

Dancers were given biosensors to wear on their wrists 24 hours a day for seven days. Photo by Evan Cantwell/Office of University Branding

Another key finding from this study was the dissonance between students’ perceived sleep and the biosensor data. While students self-reported great and sufficient sleep, the biosensors reported insufficient sleep.

“Over time, insufficient sleep can lead to difficulty recovering and therefore higher rates of injury,” says Wiese, “particularly when [students are] already struggling to recover.”

As a result, the research team worked together to develop what Ambegaonkar calls “micro-interventions” through improved sleep health education programs. Hansen-Honeycutt has created sleep health resources for students to educate them on the impacts of good sleep on their academic and physical performance and is working with the faculty to incorporate this messaging into their classrooms.

“This study proved to me that us dance majors are extremely active, more than I often realize!” says Sanaa Fairley, BFA Dance ’26. “I learned that I could develop a much more consistent sleep schedule to set up my space, and therefore my mind, in a healthy way each day to prepare for rest.” Fairley says she has implemented other recovery techniques, such as cold showers, into her routine as well because of the study.

T’aja Williams, BFA Dance ’26, also reports she improved her sleep hygiene through a consistent bedtime. The study also made her more aware of how academic, socio-emotional, and physical activities impact her schedule and technology use.

Building good habits now helps George Mason dance students have long and fulfilling careers in dance. And Ambegaonkar and Wiese think this study might help pave the way for further research into the physical demands and impacts of dance.

“911�� is a pioneer in the field of dance medicine,” says Ambegaonkar. “We’re broadening the scope of what kinesiology is and what it can do in the public health domain.”

Discover more research at 911��

Creating joyful new—and therapeutic—connections through dance

Katarina Benson — Thu, 25 Jun 2026 18:27:30 +0000

Creating joyful new—and therapeutic—connections through dance Katarina Benson Thu, 06/25/2026 - 14:27

“Being in class with our participants reminds me of the pure joy of dance,” said School of Dance senior Emma Simons of her time interning with Dance for PD®.

Dance for PD is a national program providing movement-based classes for people with Parkinson’s disease. Photo provided

Dance for PD is a movement-based class for people with Parkinson’s disease, which offers physical benefits to the participants and helps reduce the social isolation associated with the neurological disease. 911��’s School of Dance has offered the national program, administered by 911�� arts partner Mark Morris Dance Group, in Northern Virginia since 2021.

When Simons and fellow dance major Asiah Moore interned with Dance for PD, each took a different approach to her work, a practice encouraged by 911�� adjunct Elizabeth Spatz, a certified Dance for PD teaching artist.

Moore concentrated on increasing internal awareness of Dance for PD at 911��, creating strategic social media content and encouraging her peers in the School of Dance to engage more robustly with the program.

She recruited fellow students to attend the classes and perform brief dance selections for class participants. After these showings, participants had the opportunity to ask the students questions about the pieces and their experiences overall.

“I wanted to combine these worlds and give the community a chance to see inside the work we do,” said Moore. “When [the participants] have a chance to see pieces beforehand, they might come to a performance, [then] they come in feeling like they’re already part of this world because they know us.”

Dancers participating in Dance for PD®. Photo provided

In her work, Simons focused on external communications, building on previous interns’ research into local medical practices, retirement communities, and businesses where patients and caregivers might be looking for the resource that Dance for PD provides.

Simons made cold calls and sent out emails, aiming to bring more people to 911��’s Fairfax Campus. But as she spent more time in class, she noticed that people’s hesitation melted inside the studio, and she decided to pivot in her approach.

“It’s so much joy to be in the room with the participants, and I knew words can’t bring people in as much as the movement itself could,” said Simons.

Simons and Moore joined forces and started reaching out to administrators at various retirement communities to organize in-person trial classes on-site. The class they offered with Westminster at Lake Ridge was very well attended.

“There were staff members who said ‘We’re just here to watch’ at the beginning of the session, but within five minutes, they were dancing and smiling and moving. It has this power for connecting people,” said School of Dance Associate Professor and 911�� alumna Shaun Boyle D’Arcy, MFA Dance '21, who helped bring the program to 911��.

Simons and Moore graduated from 911�� in May with BFAs in dance and look forward to building on their experiences with Dance for PD. They both plan to perform professionally and are looking for companies that value community engagement and service.

Spatz said these internships can lead to jobs. “One of our former interns was hired by a company that was impressed with her [Dance for PD] experience,” said Spatz. “It’s so valuable for our students to see the different ways dance applies to people’s lives.”

This research supports the Grand Challenge Initiative's goal of improving human health, well-being, and preparedness.

Discover more GCI human health, wellness, and preparedness research >>

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Film and Video Studies alum’s passion for animation led to two Academy Award nominations

ckearney — Thu, 21 May 2026 17:39:55 +0000

Film and Video Studies alum’s passion for animation led to two Academy Award nominations ckearney Thu, 05/21/2026 - 13:39

911�� alum Brendan Gottlieb, BA Film and Video Studies ’15, has been working at Disney as an animator since 2016. In 2025, he worked on two Academy Award-nominated films: he was an animator on the feature Zootopia 2, nominated for Best Animated Feature, and the animation supervisor for Forevergreen, nominated for Best Animated Short Film.

911�� alum Brendan Gottlieb on the red carpet. Photo provided

His previous work for Disney includes Moana, Wish, Encanto, Raya and the Last Dragon, Frozen 2, Wreck It Ralph 2, and Moana 2.

Gottlieb said that his love of animation started early. When he was in 10th grade, his dad gave him 3D animation software. “My dad had got my brother and I this really basic 3D program, where you could model characters and environments, and then make them move,” he said. “I was really into video games at the time, played for hours, but then that [software] sort of became like a video game. I could create my own worlds and stories, and I really just ran with it.”

He pursued his interest by watching online tutorials and using the software to create short animated films he posted on YouTube. After an animation course in high school, he learned to use the industry standard Autodesk Maya software, and a whole new world opened up for him.

“I could do all these cool and fun things that kind of made the animation look more sophisticated, and it was great. By the end of that year,” he recalled, “I was teaching the teacher, and I was also helping her teach her night class.”

Gottlieb credits his senior project in Film and Video Studies Program at 911�� for preparing him to work in the industry. He was originally planning a live-action short film until a classmate saw his designs and suggested he make an animated film instead. Gottlieb said that working on the project introduced him to animating with timelines, which he had never done before. The film needed to be several minutes long, which was a challenge. “A couple minutes is a lot in animation,” he said. “That's some heavy lifting, especially just for one person.”

Gottlieb asked for special permission from his professor to make his project only one minute long because it was animated. “It wasn't until a few months in the program that I could show an update where characters are acting and performing and moving and then I think people were like, ‘Oh, OK, this is what he's going for.’ But I do remember liking the whole process of putting it all together.”

Film and video studies professor Tommy Britt remembered that animated project and spoke highly of Gottlieb's work ethic during his years at 911��. “I enjoyed seeing his dedication to an ambitious animated short film that many would say was impossible to achieve with the time and resources he had.”

Gottlieb’s first job after graduation was at a visual effects (VFX) house just outside of San Francisco, where he worked with a computer-generated character in a live action film.

“It was a terrible movie, but the team was fun,” he recalled, “[We were] a bunch of animators fresh out of college; we bonded a lot. Oftentimes what's more important is who you work with, not necessarily what you work on. That job will always have a special place in my heart.”

While working for the VFX house, Gottlieb applied for Disney’s Animation Apprenticeship Program and was accepted. “After three months of training we were put on the first Moana movie, and we animated a lot of the background characters,” he said. “The little coconut demons, the Kakamora, were super fun.”

When Gottlieb served as the animation supervisor for the short film, Forevergreen, he animated a portion of the shots in the film and played a role in giving it the stop-motion style, despite it being a CG-animated project. For Gottlieb and the team working on it, Forevergreen was more than just another film—it was a labor of love.

“We did the project on our own time. Nobody was paid for it,” he said. “People were just extremely generous to be working on it, and it was great to work with the directors on that, and just to see their hard work and commitment and creativity be recognized. It was an honor to be part of the project and to see it get this far.”

The 13-minute film about an orphaned bear cub took more than five years to complete and is still garnering accolades and nominations.

Drawing on his success as a FAVS alum, Brendan offers current students one essential piece of advice for thriving in the industry as an animator: Find your niche. “Figure out what you like,” he said, “what you want to do the most in the animation sphere. Then find a way to learn that skill really, really well.”

Check out a video of Gottlieb taking about animating facial expressions.

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