George Mason The Pulse

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FORMER CNN PUNDIT BILL SCHNEIDER ESTABLISHES FUND FOR STUDENTS—WITH A CATCH W hen Professor Emeritus Bill Schneider established a fund to help Schar School public policy students, he had only one stipulation. “The only condition I placed on it was a relative preference should be given to students whose parents do not have college degrees,” he said of the $250,000 Bill Schneider Endowed Scholarship. “Lots of people go to college, but they never get a degree, and that includes my own parents. I gave [the gift] so there would be more students from underprivileged backgrounds who would have an opportunity to study at the Schar School.”

FAYE TAXMAN RECOGNIZED WITH VOLLMER AWARD T he American Society of Criminology presented Schar School Distinguished University Professor Faye S. Taxman with its highest accolade, the August Vollmer Award, given to “the individual whose scholarship and professional activities [have] made outstanding contributions to justice and/or the treatment or prevention of criminal or delinquent behavior.” Much of the work that Taxman oversees as the director of Schar School’s Center for Advancing Correctional Excellence (ACE!) involves working with agencies to implement reforms, study the efficacy of the reforms and the implementation efforts, and continue to make tweaks as new information emerges. Her team at ACE! has ongoing relationships with 67 national associations to incorporate science into practice. ACE! provides a fertile ground for students to learn and apply rigorous research methods in the design and implementation of innovations. As ASC President Shadd Maruna pointed out, Taxman “is a very deserving recipient of the Vollmer Award, which is meant to celebrate criminological scholarship that has an impact on the real world of justice practice and reform.” —Buzz McClain

The Portsmouth, Virginia, native was the beneficiary of higher education benefactors, which, after graduating from Brandeis University on a scholarship

“ The only condition I placed on it was a relative preference should be given to students whose parents do not have college degrees.”

FAYE TAXMAN

from his hometown newspaper and a PhD fellowship at Harvard University, led to his 30-year career in journalism, including stints at the Los Angeles Times and the Atlantic

magazine. For 21 of those years, he covered American politics—and became a familiar election night pundit—for CNN. Schneider taught at Mason for 12 years, brought to the school by his Harvard PhD advisor and one of the founders of what is now the Schar School, Seymour Martin Lipset, an acclaimed social scientist and author of groundbreaking theories on economic development and democracy. The connection between economic status and democracy is not lost on Schneider, who sees education as vital to combating increasing threats to democracy. —Buzz McClain TAIWAN PRESIDENT BESTOWS MEDAL TO GERRIT VAN DER WEES I n May, Schar School adjunct professor Gerrit van der Wees was given one of Taiwan’s highest civilian honors by outgoing Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen: The Order of the Brilliant Star with Grand Cordon. The presidential medal was presented for van der Wees’ founding editorship of Taiwan Communiqué, a bimonthly, prodemocracy publication covering the island’s transition to democracy beginning in 1980 to 2016. The publication played a key role in informing the U.S. Congress, the Department of State, and the international community of Taiwan’s successes and challenges.

TRANSFORMATIVE TRAVEL I n the last year, the Schar School hosted not one but two visits to one of the most provocative locations in the world: The border between the U.S. and Mexico. The study abroad journeys were packed with activity that brought students face-to-face with policy leaders in both countries as well as those living day to day in the region. “Putting a face to the border was fascinating,” said Davis Kaderli, a Master of Public Policy student and participant on the trip. “What I actually saw isn’t what the mass media often portrays. It is much more complex than the majority of Americans understand.” Which is the point of study abroad opportunities. “Being able to spend time in other countries, talking to educators, politicians, and businesspeople, opens up an important ‘real-world’ window not always available in the classroom,” said Schar School Professor Kenneth Reinert. “Many of our students and instructors are from other countries, but visiting those countries in an educational capacity is an invaluable addition to the degree.”

The border trips were among those offered to students throughout the academic year and summer months. Other locations, guided by Schar School experts, include Cyprus, Rwanda, Britain, South Africa, Vietnam, and Cuba, among other destinations. —Buzz McClain and Aidan Jacobs

Upon receiving the award, van der Wees stressed that there remained dangerous challenges for Taiwan, including continued threats from Beijing to isolate it on the international stage. Van der Wees has taught the History of Taiwan since 2012, as well as a graduate course on Current Issues in East Asia since 2020. He continues to write commentaries on Taiwan’s history and political developments in and around Taiwan for the Taipei Times and the Diplomat. —Buzz McClain

GERRIT VAN DER WEES AND PRESIDENT TSAI ING-WEN

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