George Mason University is a public research university located in Fairfax, Virginia. It was founded in 1972 as a branch of the University of Virginia and became an independent institution in 1972. The university is named after George Mason, a Founding Father of the United States and the principal author of the Virginia Declaration of Rights. The university has grown to become one of the largest universities in the Commonwealth of Virginia with an enrollment of over 33, 000 students.