BLAST OFF WEEK

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Belonging | Leadership | Access | Success | Trailblazing

Join us for BLAST Off Week 2025 from September 15 to 19. Meet the CEC community at special events and activities that showcase our college. Learn more about resources and support offered by CEC's Office of Outreach, Student Success, and Engagement (OSSE).

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Agenda
Students gather in front of the Nguyen Engineering building at the ice cream social event
Belonging – Monday

Ice Cream Social

September 15 | CEC Atrium and Griffith’s Plaza | 1–4 p.m.

Begin the week with the CEC Belonging Fair. Enjoy ice cream, snacks, and games and learn about CEC student organizations and campus resources that will help you thrive in the CEC community.

Aisha Bowe at an Aerospace museum
Leadership – Tuesday

Leadership Workshop with CEC students
1–2 p.m. | Horizon Hall MIX, room 2107

Leading with Aerospace Engineer, Aisha Bowe
6-7:15 p.m.

September 16 | JC Bistro (Fairfax Campus)
*Live Stream at Life Sciences and Engineering Building, room 2402 (SciTech Campus)
*Live Stream at Fuse, room 1311

Join the CEC for an inspiring day of leadership events. The afternoon will begin with a leadership workshop for CEC students offering an interactive session. In the evening, CEC's Leadership Speaker, Aisha Bowe (a former NASA rocket scientist turned serial entrepreneur, and civilian space traveler who made history as one of the first Black women to journey into space) will bring her remarkable perspective on collaboration, representation, and driving impact across industries.  As the founder and CEO of STEMBoard and LINGO, she has built award-winning technology ventures while empowering the next generation of innovators.

Young women sit on the great lawn on George Mason University's Fairfax Campus
Access – Wednesday

Access to George Mason Student Resources

September 17 | Nguyen Engineering Building, various conference rooms |1–3 p.m. and 5–7 p.m.

Students, here is your chance to meet and become familiar with student-facing offices related to computing resources, undergraduate research, wellness and being, community engagement, fellowship, international education, and more. Come out and take part in our experiential workshops and Q and A sessions.

White male student discusses resume with CACI professional
Success – Thursday

Career Prep Lab with CACI

September 18 | HUB | 4–7 p.m.

Meet CACI hiring managers and staff for our annual career prep simulation lab. Learn about resume building, online job applications, creating professional correspondences, and developing your elevator pitch. Come out for a free haircut, and make-up tips and tricks.

Multiple plaques lined on a wooden table for CEC faculty and staff achievements
Trailblazing – Friday

OSSE Trailblazers Award

September 19 | Nguyen Engineering Building (invite only) | 10–11:30 a.m.

CEC celebrates its fourth annual Trailblazers Award Ceremony. We will award the Inclusive Trailblazer Award to four constituents: university partners, faculty, staff, and students (undergraduate and graduate) during our commendation breakfast. Recognize outstanding exemplars who help us accomplish our institutional mission and set the standard for excellence in socially conscious engineering and technology.