When Linda Campbell, BA English ’73, returned to George Mason University for the Golden Patriots’ 50th Anniversary event last fall, she was determined to see what all the fuss was about.
Campbell had been hearing about Mason’s growth, having transformed into the commonwealth’s largest and most diverse university with more than 40,000 students and four campuses. When she and her classmates attended Mason in the 1970s, it was newly evolved from a University of Virginia branch campus to an independent university. While proud of being “among the first” to attend Mason, Campbell’s interaction with her alma mater has been limited over the years, and she was now determined to experience this new Mason for herself.
Campbell had her opportunity last fall, as she returned to the Fairfax campus for the Golden Patriots 50th Anniversary celebration and reunited with fellow Mason Patriots who attended the event in person and virtually. Hosted by the Office of Alumni Relations, the event offered the Class of ’73 breakfast, fellowship, and a special campus tour that confirmed for Campbell that this was not the commuter school that she remembered. “It’s very, very different,” said Campbell. “The campus is well-landscaped, and the dorms are the ice cream on the cake!”
When Campbell was a student at Mason, it was a time of new beginnings for both she and the university. Campbell entered as a transfer student, enrolling in Mason after a return to Virginia from Hiram Scott College in Scottsbluff, Nebraska.
Campbell, a 1969 graduate of Arlington’s Wakefield High School, came home to the Washington D.C., metropolitan area and applied to George Mason University amidst a host of higher education options in the region. “I chose Mason because it was more diverse in terms of people and groups,” said Campbell, who worked part-time during her time at the university. “I was working in an integrated situation, and I thought that would be best for me because this is where we were.”
At the time, the university did not offer a traditional campus life, but for Campbell, Mason definitely had its advantages. “I remember back in those years, there were no dorms,” she said. “My concentration was on doing a good job with my classes, making strong grades so that I could a get a good job in the metro area, because the job market was competitive.”
Campbell graduated from Mason with a bachelor’s degree in English, which was a critical credential for her burgeoning career and an important milestone for her family. “It was a major accomplishment…I was the first in my family to have a four-year degree,” said Campbell. “My father, especially, wanted that for me.”
While her years at Mason were primarily focused on her studies, Campbell did find time to forge a friendship with a university counselor, who became a lifelong friend. Her counselor, who also was the wife of a foreign service officer, gave Campbell lessons on life and advice on how to navigate the university.
Campbell would go on to a federal government service career that would begin at the State Department in the early 1970s and conclude at the Department of Defense, where she retired from in 2009.
Campbell credits her degree with equipping her with the skills and tools to write effectively, document accurately, and defend her positions when called upon, which she said was particularly important as a minority professional woman in the 1970s workforce. Campbell felt her Mason degree placed her in good standing. “My credentials were never challenged,” she said.
Her professional success enabled Campbell to achieve another first for her family: she was able to purchase a home, in Virginia, as a single professional. “My family had been renters,” Campbell said. “But homeownership was my taste of success. The American dream.”
Whether her time at Mason, her interaction with diplomats in the State Department or her work with Army personnel at the Pentagon, Campbell credits her exposure to diverse people and experiences as extremely valuable to her life and career.
“Life is basically a journey,” said Campbell. “You don’t know when it’s going to end or how you’re going to interface with people. But I am grateful for every encounter.”
Golden Patriots are Mason alumni who graduated 50—or more—years ago. We welcome all of our pioneering Golden Patriots to come back to Mason on Thursday, May 9, 2024, to march with our 2024 graduates as part of George Mason University’s 2024 Spring Commencement. And mark your calendars: the Class of 1974’s induction into the Golden Patriots will be held on the Fairfax Campus on September 19, 2024.
by Robin Rose Parker