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Maxwell Gocala-Nguyen (he/him) is a liaison to students, helping to build communities within the School of Business by bringing people together from all different groups. As the associate director for undergraduate recruitment and engagement at George Mason University School of Business, Gocala-Nguyen has spent the past four years working with staff, faculty, students, and alumni to build connections and grow the School of Business community.
“Historically, the business realm has not seen a lot of diversity,” says Gocala-Nguyen. “We are in a unique situation as a very diverse institution, business school, and region, to provide safe spaces for all individuals to create community and also highlight the beauty within our unit.”
This year, as Pride month approached, Gocala-Nguyen connected with Jennifer Rhodes (she/her), chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee of the School of Business Alumni Chapter, to plan a series of events for several diverse groups at the school, but plans were quickly altered when COVID-19 forced the university to go remote.
“As a way to remain engaged, we began brainstorming ideas to virtually connect the school community and decided to model an event off of a trivia night," says Gocala-Nguyen. "The event has grown from only within the School of Business, to a university-supported initiative.”
“To have all of this Mason effort going on while the U.S. Supreme Court makes its historic decision on the 1964 Civil Rights ruling protecting the rights of LGBTQ+ employees, is exciting,” says Rhodes. “Mason is making an impact by hosting this event for students, alumni, faculty, and staff—with an eye toward future students. We hope those prospective students look at events like Pride Trivia and feel connected, welcomed, and that they belong at Mason.”
This year’s event grew off of an initiative from 2019 called “Out in Business,” which hosted a panel event connecting alumni, faculty, staff, and students who identified as a member or an ally of the LGBTQ+ community. The school’s Offices of Undergraduate Programs and Career Services both participated in Safe Zone training to be become “certified safe space offices” through the initiative. A second annual panel event was in the works for June when the university had to cancel all events due to the pandemic. The group hopes to reschedule the panel event for a future date.
“There is power in visibility and we need to showcase how truly diverse our community is through events like this,” says Gocala-Nguyen. “As a gay man, I wanted to be able to offer that type of community to our students by connecting them with alumni who may have been where they are, create common networks, and allow for possible mentorship to flourish.”