George Mason University President Gregory N. Washington leads the largest and most diverse public university in Virginia, a Tier 1 research university as categorized by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. He became Mason’s eighth president on July 1, 2020.

Dr. Washington, the former dean of the Henry Samueli School of Engineering at the University of California, Irvine (UCI), and former interim dean of the College of Engineering at Ohio State University, is regarded nationally as a strategic and collaborative solutions-oriented leader who is committed to providing opportunities for students of all backgrounds.

The first African American dean of engineering at any University of California campus, and the first African American president at Mason, Dr. Washington established an Office of Access and Inclusion at UCI to enhance campus life for all students and chaired the Task Force on Ensuring a Positive Climate for the Campus’ Black Community.

A first-generation college graduate, Dr. Washington is a New York City native who attended high school in North Carolina. He earned bachelor’s (1989) and master’s degrees (1991) and his PhD (1994), all in mechanical engineering, at North Carolina State University. He is a member of the N.C. State Engineering Foundation’s Board of Directors.

Dr. Washington launched his academic career in 1995 as an assistant professor in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering in the College of Engineering at Ohio State University. He became an associate professor in 2000 and a professor in 2004. He began serving as the college’s associate dean for research in 2005 and also founded and led the university’s Institute for Energy and the Environment. From 2008 to 2011, Dr. Washington served as interim dean of the Ohio State engineering school, one of the largest in the country.