George Mason University began operation under the name "University College of the University of Virginia" in the fall of 1957 in an 8-room former elementary school in Bailey's Crossroads. The original student body consisted of 17 young men and women from local high schools. The college was renamed "George Mason College" in late 1959 and moved to its first permanent campus at Fairfax during the fall of 1964. George Mason College became independent from the University of Virginia on April 7, 1972 and was renamed George Mason University. In 1979 George Mason's acquisition of the International School of Law in Arlington was approved by the Virginia Legislature, creating the George Mason University School of Law (now known as the Antonin Scalia Law School) upon the Arlington Campus (know known as Mason Square Campus). Today's Science and Technology Campus near Manassas, Virginia was established in 1997, and Mason Korea, located in the Incheon Global Campus, began operations in 2014. Enrollment at all campuses combined totaled over 40,000 in 2024.

George Mason University Facilities and Campus Operations operates, maintains, repairs, replaces, renews, and secures all buildings, grounds, utilities, and other infrastructure belonging to George Mason University. This responsibility changed considerably over the years as the university grew from a four-building branch college in 1964 to a university boasting nearly 150 during the early 2000s.