George Mason University’s Bethany Usher Elected as 2023-2024 CUR President

Dr. Bethany Usher, Associate Provost for Undergraduate Education at George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia, has been elected to serve as president of the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR). Usher will become president-elect on July 1, 2022, taking a seat on CUR’s Executive Board, and succeeding 2022-2023 CUR president Ruth Palmer (emeritus College of New Jersey) in the summer of 2023.

Mark R. Ginsberg, George Mason’s Provost and Executive President, remarked that Dr. Usher, a respected member of the university’s faculty and leadership team, “…has led the undergraduate program to new heights. She has led multiple initiatives that have been catalysts for the success of our students while also launching new programs focused on academic achievement, career development, and life success. She has an extraordinary ability to connect with and mentor students while also supporting faculty members. I am very proud of her to be elected as President-Elect of the Council on Undergraduate Research and so pleased for both her and the important organization she will help to lead.”

Usher’s vision for her presidency aligns with the CUR 2020-2025 Strategic Goals. Her stance has been outlined to enhance the focus on giving students equitable access to research; sustainably supporting undergraduate student constituents beyond NCUR; growing CUR’s partnerships with other higher education associations that promote high-impact practices anchored by undergraduate research; and advocating for defining the how and why undergraduate research is good for students and faculty with investing in decisions that measure this success. 

“Undergraduate research is unique because it combines our students’ curiosity with the discovery mission of our colleges and gives students skills that they can use in their careers and their lives. CUR and our members have transformed higher education by embedding undergraduate research as an expected part of many students’ experiences, within and beyond the classroom,” said Usher. She continues with, “CUR is now building undergraduate research as the model inclusive high-impact activity. In addition to making undergraduate research available to students at all institutions and in every discipline, we need to look to intentionally integrate it with other high-impact practices, including internships, community engagement, study abroad, entrepreneurship, and capstones.  I look forward to seeing our vision of enriching society through undergraduate research to continue to emerge through our shared commitment.”

Lindsay Currie, CUR executive officer, stated: “Dr. Bethany Usher’s commitment to and experience with key CUR issues such as diversity, mentoring, and support will provide invaluable benefits to the organization and the wider undergraduate research community. Her engagement with CUR for twenty-plus years, including service on the CUR Council and Executive Board, receiving CUR’s inaugural Campus-Wide Award for Undergraduate Research Accomplishment (AURA) in 2015, and so much more, attest to her dedication to the mission. This passion and her leadership will act as a needed asset in continuing to achieve CUR’s mission to advance undergraduate research.”

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Founded in 1978, the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR) is an organization of individual, institutional, and affiliate members from around the world that share a focus on providing high-quality and collaborative undergraduate research, scholarly, and creative activity opportunities for faculty and students. More than 700 institutions and more than 13,000 individuals belong to CUR. CUR believes that faculty members enhance their teaching and contribution to society by remaining active in research and by involving undergraduates in research, and that students engaged in undergraduate research succeed in their studies and professional advancement.

George Mason University is committed to enriching the lives of our students with impactful, transformative learning experiences. George Mason University is Virginia’s largest public research university. Located near Washington, D.C., Mason enrolls more than 35,000 students from 130 countries and 50 states. Mason has grown rapidly over the past half-century and is recognized for its innovation and entrepreneurship, remarkable diversity, and commitment to accessibility. We embrace and are recognized for our culture of innovation, entrepreneurship, and diversity, and are committed to making our classrooms available to students no matter where they live.