Dear Bioengineering PhD Students,


I am writing you on behalf of the Bioengineering Department during the Coronavirus pandemic to offer you additional support and information. First of all, I hope that you and your family and friends are well. Please take care and help us all by following the current guidelines concerning social distancing, wearing homemade masks, and other mitigation strategies. We know that this situation can be very difficult for many reasons, and we are here to do our best to help you through the crisis, and continue your education to reach your goals by completing the program.


Now that we are three weeks into the virtual instruction modality of delivering courses, I want to share with you the good news that all of our courses, and I believe all of Mason’s courses more generally, have successfully transitioned to the virtual instruction modality. Our faculty and staff have been working hard to develop materials and acquire the skills needed for online course offerings.  Although not all of the kinks have been worked out, the feedback we have received has been quite positive and we will continue to improve to ensure our courses meet the educational outcomes required in our PhD program. We also are working with faculty and staff across different levels of the University to identify solutions for those whose research and practicum experiences have been impacted to ensure that you will continue to make progress towards completion of your degree.  We are more than happy to hear from you if you have suggestions or comments regarding courses (in particular their virtual mode of instruction).  Please also reach out to us if you have any concerns or challenges related to research, internships, and/or meeting particular milestones in the program.  Please write us at [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>.


We are also offering online meetings to discuss with you any concerns you may have. Please join your PhD program director, Avrama Blackwell, for weekly “Coffee Chats” every Thursday from 12 to 12:30 pm by logging into Webex at https://gmu.webex.com/meet/kblackw1.  You can also reach her at [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>.


And finally, I am sure you know about the wealth of information for courses, grading, health and social distancing guidelines, on Mason’s Coronavirus/Covid-19 web site https://www2.gmu.edu/coronavirus and Mason’s registrar’s site FAQs  https://registrar.gmu.edu/students/registration/spring-2020-grading-options/. I encourage you to read through it from time to time as the content is often updated.


On behalf of the department faculty and staff, we are always here for you to listen or discuss any concerns you have. Please feel free to reach out and contact any of us by email or by phone. You can find our information on our website (https://bioengineering.gmu.edu/) or on People Finder (http://peoplefinder.gmu.edu/).


Take care and be healthy,

       Michael D. Buschmann

        Chair, Dept. of Bioengineering

        Volgenau School of Engineering

        George Mason University

        4400 University Drive, MS 1J7

        Fairfax, VA 22030



        Office: Peterson Hall 3101

        Tel: (703) 993-3564

        Cell: (703) 755-5627

        Fax: (703) 993-2077

        Email: [log in to unmask]<mailto:[log in to unmask]>

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