Author Archives: Natalia Kolenko

About Natalia Kolenko

Natalia is the Campus News editor for Fourth Estate and a senior studying Communication (Journalism concentration) and Global Affairs (Environment concentration). She loves writing and hopes to one day become a journalist for a prominent magazine or news network/paper.

The Volgenau School of Engineering turned 30 this year

(Photo credit: Claire Cecil/Fourth Estate) The beginning of this semester marked the thirtieth year that Mason’s school of engineering has been on campus. According to the engineering school’s annual report, on March 19, 1985, the Board of Visitors approved the founding of the…

What students need to know about Tuesday’s Election

Tuesday, Nov. 3 is Election Day at Mason and around the country. 2015 is a midterm election year, meaning that candidates are running for positions at the state and local levels. During Meet the Candidates Day in September, candidates like…

Fourth Estate staff shares ghost stories for Halloween

  Tomorrow is Halloween, and in the spirit of the spooky holiday, the Fourth Estate staff has shared its best ghost stories for everyone to enjoy! Natalia Kolenko, Assistant News Editor “I lived in Massachusetts till I was nine, in an…

Mason looks to decrease substance abuse with new training program

by Sophia Delmar The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) awarded Mason a three-year, $920,000 Health Professions Student Training grant to provide new training in screening for substance abuse. According to Mason’s College of Health and Human Services,…

Various scams affect the Mason community

In the past month, students in some large lecture classes have been subjected to a scam. The scam comprised of students being asked to sign up for free tutoring by giving their names and numbers and then were spammed with…

Mason looks to assist first generation population

For every three students that attend Mason, one of them is a first generation student. According to the Office of Institutional Research and Reporting, the percentage of Mason undergraduates who were first generation had reached 33% for the 2014-2015 school…

President Cabrera’s annual salary breakdown

In the past couple months, Virginia university presidents have been making headlines for topping the list of the highest-paid state employees. Among these presidents, Mason’s own Ángel Cabrera has been put at number six for highest-payed university presidents in Virginia,…

Fairfax City and County candidates encourage student votes

(Photo Credit: Alya Nowilaty/Fourth Estate) November elections are just around the corner, and candidates running for positions in Fairfax City and County are reaching out to Mason students. On Tuesday, Sept. 22, Mason Votes, George Mason Democrats, RepresentMason and GMU…

Superhero kids

(Photo credit: Sarah Kladler/Fourth Estate) Muslim Students Association decorates capes for sick children as part of Peace Week The Muslim Students Association participated in Mason’s annual Peace Week by helping local sick children feel like superheroes. The event was called Capes for Kids,…

Standardized tests phasing out of college applications

(Photo credit: Alya Nowilaty/Fourth Estate) One of the most prominent schools in the country, George Washington University, recently dropped its requirement of submitting test scores for freshman admission, following in the footsteps of Mason. Mason dropped its requirement of submitting…