Professor Ann Baker accepted an invitation from the Fulbright Program to colead a Latin American initiative in Peru. For two weeks in March at the Universidad Nacional de San Antonio Abad del Cusco, Baker taught 25 undergraduates who were selected by Fulbright Peru. The students then received scholarships from Fulbright for two years of intensive English language study. The program facilitates the preparation of indigenous young people from Latin America for future Fulbright exchange opportunities.

Current PhD student Cristina Checherita was accepted for a summer internship (May 15 to August 15, 2008) at the European Central Bank in Frankfurt, Germany. While there, she will continue researching the role of macro policies in the process of economic convergence. At the June 30 to July 1 Tinbergen Institute Workshop in Amsterdam, she will present her paper “An Investigation of Human Capital Endogeneity in Models of Economic Growth.” Then, at the 48th Congress of the European Regional Science Association in Liverpool in August, Checherita will present a paper, cowritten with the president of the Romanian National Agency for Economic Forecast, on economic growth across Romanian counties.

Alumna Ozge Koray (ICP 2000) received the Distinguished School of Public Policy (SPP) Alumni Award from the George Mason University Alumni Association at the Celebration of Distinction in April 2008. Koray served as vice president of the School of Public Policy Alumni Chapter from 2005 to 2006 and its president from 2006 to 2007. From 2007 to 2008, Koray participated in the chapter’s Signature Event and Student Awards Committee.

Professor Stuart Malawer was honored in April for his 30 years of service to George Mason University. Malawer began his career at Mason in the Law School and then became director of the International Institute’s master’s degree in international transactions program. In the late 1990s, he joined SPP as Distinguished Professor of Law and International Trade.

Tracy Nayar, the Mason Enterprise Center’s assistant business manager, received the University Exceptional Support Award in May. During a voicemail system failure last summer that affected 6 Mason programs and over 60 resident clients of the small business incubator, Nayar took the initiative to find a temporary solution on the Web called unified messaging, allowing her to reprogram the MEC system for clients to check their emails for their voice messages. Her leadership, know-how and dedication were evident as she assessed the problem, identified solutions, and coordinated actions. No business was compromised due to lost voicemail.

Professor Janine Wedel has accepted the honor to give the commencement speech at her alma mater, Bethel College in North Newton, Kansas, where she earned her bachelor’s degree in 1978. The ceremony will take place on May 25.

China’s State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs has approved certification of Mason’s School of Public Policy, making the school one of a select few overseas training institutions within a university to be awarded this approval. China requires this certification of any overseas institutions that wish to host Chinese long- and short-term educational and training delegations.